Baton Rouge Winter 2023

Inside the East Baton Rouge Parish Library, the morning air settled into a rhythm of rapid rotations and steady timer beeps on January 7, 2023. A field of 59 competitors gathered to open their year in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA, ready to test their preparation across 7 events and 11 rounds of action. With no safety nets in short-format rounds and punishing formats where every single solve counts toward the final average, even the slightest hesitation or lockup could upend a podium chase in an instant.

The unforgiving pressure of events with fewer chances to recover shaped the entire tone of Baton Rouge Winter 2023. In events like 5x5x5 Cube, where a single slip can ruin an entire three-solve mean, precision proved paramount. Dylan Miller delivered a remarkably steady series of solves to claim the 5x5x5 title with a winning average of 1:07.59 and a best single of 1:04.18. Teri McAcy kept the contest exceptionally close, finishing second at 1:08.47, while Daniel Mullen secured third place in 1:12.07.

Miller demonstrated the same sharp focus in Megaminx, another demanding long-solve discipline where consistency is critical. He captured the victory with a 37.66 average, backed by a tournament-best single of 34.62. Melanie Barber finished as the runner-up with an average of 52.58, while McAcy collected third place in 56.41. The performance set an uncompromising standard across the large puzzle roster, leaving zero margin for error for the rest of the 18 competitors in the field.

When attention shifted to the traditional Rubik's Cube, Miller remained virtually unstoppable throughout three rounds of intense competition. Leading the 55 competitors in the main event, he posted the winning average of 6.83 to take the crown, alongside the fastest single of the day at 6.17. Mullen claimed second place in the 3x3 results with an 8.76 average, just edging out McAcy, who finished third with an 8.83 average. Miller also topped the 3x3x3 One-Handed event, averaging 13.23 with an 11.11 single, followed by Mullen at 13.69 and McAcy at 17.02.

McAcy struck back with decisive victories in the shorter and mid-sized puzzles, displaying blistering pace in 4x4x4 Cube. Over two rounds, she took top honors with a winning average of 31.22 and a best single of 28.37, holding off Miller who finished second at 34.00, with Mullen taking third at 40.51. In the lightning-fast 2x2x2 Cube, McAcy secured another gold with an average of 2.14 and a single of 1.36. Mullen earned second at 2.56, while Andres Rodriguez grabbed third at 2.89. Rodriguez also dominated the Pyraminx event, averaging 2.76 across two rounds with a 1.71 single, finishing ahead of Mullen at 4.38 and Peyton Tumy at 4.53.

Beyond the championship podiums, Baton Rouge Winter 2023 offered massive breakthroughs for competitors building their tournament experience. Anthony Russo achieved the biggest single leap of the weekend, carving an enormous 64.3 percent off his 3x3x3 One-Handed personal best down to 19.90. Trenton Freeland posted major progress across multiple disciplines, dropping his 4x4x4 Cube personal best by 38.7 percent to 1:10.35, his 5x5x5 Cube mark by 32.4 percent to 2:07.14, and his one-handed time by 30.1 percent to 21.75. Luke Anglin dropped his 3x3x3 Cube best by 34.7 percent to 22.14, while Joe Fountain reduced his 4x4x4 Cube time by 30.5 percent to 1:13.75.

The gathering served as a stage for debut attempts and ambitious schedules as well. Ashton Esler made a first ever attempt at 3x3x3 One-Handed with a time of 30.89 and improved his 3x3x3 Cube best by 22.3 percent to 12.08 across five events. Ty Pham tackled seven events, clocking a 2:36.20 in a first ever Megaminx attempt alongside a 17.8 percent drop in Pyraminx to 6.41. Fox Forrester took on a first ever 4x4x4 Cube attempt in 1:09.12, while James Osterwisch made his first WCA competition appearance memorable by completing seven events, highlighted by a 4.00 single in a first ever 2x2x2 Cube attempt.

The one-day cubing competition demonstrated the depth of the regional speed cubing scene across every round and puzzle category. United States competitors swept all 21 podium positions on offer, celebrating both elite podium battles and personal milestone solves. As the timers were packed away at East Baton Rouge Parish Library, Baton Rouge Winter 2023 concluded as a masterclass in staying calm when every single turn of the puzzle carries the weight of the entire result.

With early-season benchmarks now established, the speedcubing community leaves Louisiana with sharp averages, fresh personal records, and valuable tournament mileage. The balance between daring turns and steady control will remain the central challenge as competitors look forward to their next official test.