And the woman has her way!
by MaryBeth Biondi, TopCoder Staff
Friday, November 22, 2002

The answer to my last question has been answered in a resounding way - the surprises are anything but over. In the biggest upset of the day, the lowest ranked coder onsite, moira, has overcome the odds and will be advancing to the finals for the chance to win $50,000.

This round seemed to possess particularly troublesome problem statements, and we unexpectedly saw NDBronson pass on the 300-point problem early on in the contest. obfuscator was the first to submit code 26 minutes into the coding phase, and earned himself 184.78 points. He then employed dmwright's strategy by opening the 1000-point problem next. moira followed close behind obfuscator by submitting her 300-point answer three minutes later for 171.79 points. She, however, moved on to the 500-point problem. 34 minutes into the contest, radeye submitted his 300-point problem for 157.46 points, and then also moved on to the 500-pointer. Meanwhile, NDBronson continued diligently coding the 500-point problem, which he finally submitted at 41 minutes for 291.29 points.

moira was the next to submit code 13 minutes later - her 500-point problem for 315.21 points. Having passed on the 1000-point problem, obfuscator submitted his 500-pointer for 270.31 points with only one minute to go in the contest. At the end of the coding phase, the first female ever to make it to the onsite finals had finished in first place with 487 points. Her boyfriend and referrer, obfuscator, was in second with 455.09. NDBronson and radeye rounded out the field with 291.29 and 157.46, respectively.

Again the challenge phase produced no changes since no action was taken. Tension mounted as the system tests were run. Everyone wondered if either of the 500-point submissions would fail, allowing the once #1 ranked NDBronson to advance to the finals. But when the results were broadcast, we saw that all competitors had submitted flawless code, and moira had stunned the crowd with an impressive victory!

One room remains. Can ZorbaTHut make his third trip onsite a charm and advance to the finals? Will John Dethridge get the chance to compete on Saturday against his rival, SnapDragon? Or can DjinnKahn or jms137 make it three upsets in a row? If you haven't logged in to watch the action unfold live, now is the time!