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A trio of University of North Georgia (¹û¶³´«Ã½) students attended the BSidesAugusta conference in October to hear seminars and network with cybersecurity experts. In the waning minutes of the one-day conference, the three, all of whom are pursuing cybersecurity degrees, decided to compete in the Capture the Flag contest.

"We weren't expecting to get anywhere," said David Hamback, a 23-year-old junior from Stone Mountain, Georgia. "But we wanted to do as much as we could."

Their efforts proved successful. Hamback, Jack Crowder and Brendon Mitchell, all pursuing cybersecurity degrees, went from last place to second place in less than 30 minutes. They beat more than 30 teams and individuals who participated in the competition that involved picking locks, escaping from handcuffs and hacking computers.

"It was awesome," said Crowder, a 21-year-old sophomore from Cumming, Georgia.

Mitchell, an 18-year-old sophomore from Braselton, Georgia, said the winner competed all day while he and his ¹û¶³´«Ã½ teammates played for only 30 minutes.

"It was my first Capture The Flag, and it was a great experience," Mitchell said. "I wish we had allocated more time."