Side & Blind North Andover 2025

A winning average of 2.30 seconds in the 2x2x2 Cube set the benchmark as 20 competitors gathered at Brooks School on March 15, 2025. Side & Blind North Andover 2025 brought eight specialized events across ten rounds to North Andover, Massachusetts, USA. The single-day WCA competition delivered a concentrated schedule of lightning-fast speed events alongside demanding memory disciplines, giving New England cubers an intense test of agility and focus.

The 2x2x2 Cube featured a tight battle through two full rounds. Saisabari Ramesh delivered a tournament-best single of 1.44 seconds on the way to clinching the title with a 2.30 winning average in the final. Brandon Kwok secured second place on the podium with a 2.62 average, while Joey Mait claimed third with a mark of 2.79 seconds. The event was the most heavily attended of the day, featuring 16 competitors vying for early speedcubing momentum.

Speed events remained in the spotlight as 16 solvers tackled 3x3x3 One-Handed, a showcase of one-handed dexterity with the classic Rubik's Cube. Yancheng Liu topped the standings with a winning average of 14.26 seconds, bolstered by a round-best single solve of 12.41 seconds. Syndey Zhou earned second place with a 15.05 average, finishing just five hundredths of a second ahead of Ramesh, who rounded out the podium in third at 15.10. Enthusiasts tracking 3x3 results across the region saw strong single-handed execution throughout the single round.

The Skewb event brought another rapid-fire contest to the floor, where Justin Lee claimed top honors with an average of 2.79 seconds and a standout 2.37 single. Saisabari Ramesh collected another podium spot by taking second place with a 3.10 average, while Will Russo finished third at 4.54 seconds. In Square-1, Thiago Han captured victory with an average of 12.47 seconds and a best single of 11.22, edging past Ramesh in second at 12.97 and Russo in third at 14.06.

Beyond the podium finishes, the tournament featured meaningful personal milestones and event debuts. Michael Lee achieved a personal best of 8/8 solved in 54:22 during 3x3x3 Multi-Blind and took on his first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Blindfolded, posting a time of 15:01.00 while earning a best finish of 5th in 5x5x5 Blindfolded. First-time competitors stepped onto the stage as John St. Martin completed a first WCA competition with an initial 2x2x2 Cube mark of 5.67 seconds, and Alani Layth Lepke completed a debut attempt in the same event with a time of 10.36 seconds.

Other dedicated competitors carried hefty event loads across the day. Kai Routhier tackled seven events, securing a best finish of 5th place in Square-1. Alex Cohen entered five separate disciplines and earned a 6th place result in Square-1. Giulio Beniamino Ciampa also competed in five events, taking a best finish of 5th in the 2x2x2 Cube. Connor Meehan took on three events and secured 6th place in Skewb, while Derek White entered four events and earned 5th place in Skewb. Syed Mekaeel Ghani rounded out his two-event slate with a 13th place finish in Skewb.

Blindfolded events formed the other core pillar of the schedule, requiring total memorisation before turning the puzzles sight unseen. Rowe Hessler completed a dominant sweep of the large blindfolded categories, winning 3x3x3 Blindfolded with a 23.04 single, 4x4x4 Blindfolded with a 2:24.42 average, and 5x5x5 Blindfolded with a 6:40.52 single. Thiago Han earned second place in all three blindfolded single-cube events, posting 43.95 in 3x3x3 Blindfolded, 3:50.74 in 4x4x4 Blindfolded, and 8:42.25 in 5x5x5 Blindfolded. Joey Mait took second in 3x3x3 Blindfolded at 26.07, Caleb Retik placed third in 4x4x4 Blindfolded at 6:49.41, and Jason Hammerman earned third in 5x5x5 Blindfolded at 16:09.00.

The 3x3x3 Multi-Blind contest closed out the memory challenges under a strict one-hour time limit. Jason Hammerman earned the victory with a score of 21/23 points in 1:00:00. Rowe Hessler took second place after attempting a massive array of cubes, finishing with 44/70 in 1:00:02, while Will Russo finished a clean 12/12 in 57:53 for third. In the overall medal standings, representatives of the United States secured 19 podium places, Brazil earned 4, and China claimed 1.

Side & Blind North Andover 2025 demonstrated the broad technical spectrum of competitive speed cubing, balancing quick-turn sprint puzzles with grueling blindfolded marathons. Competitors across Massachusetts and visiting delegations delivered memorable performances, setting standard marks that will carry through the rest of the 2025 cubing competition calendar.