Hocking College Cyber Hawks finish in top 10% of teams in National Cyber League competition

The Hocking College “Cyber Hawks” earned a top-tier national finish in the National Cyber League (NCL) competition held Nov. 7–9, placing in the top 10% out of 4,215 teams from across the country.

Representing Hocking College in the competition were students Andy Graybeal, Alexandra Drum, Ada Niple and James Jordon.

The three-day event tests students on real-world cybersecurity challenges, including network traffic analysis, password cracking, cryptography, digital forensics and open-source intelligence. Teams work under a tight time limit, simulating the pressure of responding to live security incidents.

Team captain Alexandra Drum, a second-year Hocking cybersecurity and networking major, said the time window is one of the biggest hurdles. “You have such a short window to solve everything,” Drum said. “You rely on what you learn in class, the NCL practice gym and a lot of teamwork. Preparing together and pushing each other makes the difference.”

Hocking First-year student Ada Niple said competing at the college level has helped her see the field in a new way.

“I did Cyber Skyline in high school, but this is a different level,” she said. “You learn to work on your own and as a team at the same time. It helps you figure out what you actually like doing in cybersecurity.”

James Jordon, a Hocking cybersecurity major, said the team’s strategy centered on dividing work based on strengths. “We play to our strengths,” Jordon said. “One of us handles network traffic, someone else focuses on cryptography or password cracking. We double-check each other’s work and back each other up. That’s what kept us moving.”

Hocking “Cyber Hawks” Coach Norma Depriest has been involved with the National Cyber League since 2018, first as a player and later as a founding member of the Players Committee (Hush1e) and contributor to its training resources. She said the competition is deliberately structured for students.

“It’s one of the few competitions designed specifically for students,” Depriest said. 

“The students are competing against their peers. They use real tools, tackle scenarios based on actual events and learn how to respond when time really matters.”

NCL is hosted by Cyber Skyline and runs once in the fall and once in the spring. Organizers align the competition calendar with college schedules so students can gain job-relevant, hands-on experience while in school.

For more information about the Cybersecurity program at Hocking College, visit https://www.hocking.edu/cyber-security-and-network-systems.