With top-seeded pl31415 being eliminated in the Regional Finals, ZorbaTHut is now the favorite in the Northeast region. ZorbaTHut won the Regional Championship by triumphing in Room 2 with 1035.12 final points, and is now the top-rated collegiate member. ZorbaTHut is a perfect 9-for-9 in submissions during the Collegiate Challenge. In the Regional Quarterfinals, ZorbaTHut won Room 8 by successfully coding all three problems and finishing with 1060.69 final points. ZorbaTHut had the highest score (1223.49) in the Regional Semifinals, en route to winning Room 6. ZorbaTHut was the long shot of the 16 semifinalists in the 2001 TopCoder Invitational, after beginning the tournament as the 92nd seed. Can this former long shot complete an amazing ascension up the TopCoder rankings and win the Collegiate Challenge?

ambrose used four successful challenges in the Regional Finals to finish second in Room 3 and gain the 15th spot for the semifinals. In the Regional Quarterfinals, ambrose finished second in Room 18 with 710.50 final points, the 10th highest total in the region. ambrose easily won Room 9 in the Regional Semifinals with 773.90 final points. The 2002 Collegiate Challenge is the second major tournament appearance for ambrose, who was a semifinalist in the 2001 TopCoder Invitational. After a close call in the Regional Finals, can ambrose rebound for a championship?

DjinnKahn cruised to the Midwest region championship by winning Room 1 with 1032.29 final points. In the Regional Quarterfinals, DjinnKahn finished second in Room 4 with 1046.55 final points, the fifth highest total in the region. DjinnKahn had the fifth highest point total in the Regional Semifinals (938.69), en route to easily winning Room 1. DjinnKahn has had a perfect Collegiate Challenge so far, going 9-for-9 in submissions and 1-for-1 in challenges. This is the first major tournament for DjinnKahn. Can this first time tournament participant continue to post high scores and make the semifinals and finals look so easy?

Even though dmwright finished third in Room 4 in the Regional Finals, dmwright should still be considered the favorite in the West based on past tournament success. dmwright was a semifinalist in the 2001 TopCoder Collegiate Challenge and finished second overall in the 2001 TopCoder Invitational. dmwright has the most TopCoder experience, having competed in 65 of the 71 Single Round Matches, and has 43 Overall Room Wins, far and away the most of any member. dmwright finished third in Room 18 with 893.80 final points in the Regional Quarterfinals. dmwright followed that up by winning Room 14 in the Regional Semifinals with 794.29 final points. Three of the top-25 Highest Point Totals have been earned by dmwright, including the fourth highest (1814.93). dmwright is ranked first in Submission Accuracy (84.54%) and second in Challenge Success (83.56%). Is dmwright due for a championship?