MMA Cyber Cadets Earn Three Perfect Scores in National Cyber Cup 2026

Thirty Missouri Military Academy cadets competed in the 2026 National Cyber Cup, testing their skills against teams from across the United States.

The competition challenged cadets across a broad range of cybersecurity disciplines, including cryptography, networking, programming, digital forensics, social engineering, physical security, reverse engineering and steganography. Teams worked through challenges worth a total of 2,245 available points.

Three MMA teams earned all 2,245 available points, achieving perfect scores and finishing among the top 6% of roughly 700 teams competing nationwide. 

One perfect-score team included Cyber interns Cadet Sean Mumm, Class of 2027, of Mexico, Missouri; Cadet William Larson, Class of 2027, of Foristell, Missouri; and Cadet Eric Shellabarger, Class of 2027, of Mexico, Missouri; along with third-year Cyber student Cadet John Shadonix, Class of 2028, of Dallas, Texas. Cyber interns at MMA work in roles that let them apply their cybersecurity knowledge and skills in support of the Academy.

A second perfect-score team included third-year Cyber students Cadet Thomas Fitzsimmons, Class of 2028, of St. Louis, Missouri; Cadet Archer Gober, Class of 2030, of Columbia, Missouri; Cadet James Farnell, Class of 2029, of Mexico, Missouri; and Cadet William Creighton, Class of 2028, of Fulton, Missouri; along with Cadet Lucas Dias da Cunha, Class of 2028, of Brazil.

MMA's third perfect-score team was made up entirely of first-year Cyber students: Cadet Batbayasgalan Bat-Erdene, Class of 2028, of Mongolia; Cadet Jayden Paulk, Class of 2030, of Auburn, Alabama; Cadet Peter Paulk, Class of 2031, of Mexico, Missouri; Cadet Eli Mumm, Class of 2030, of Mexico, Missouri; and Cadet Eric Morgan, Class of 2031, of Las Vegas, Nevada.

The first-year team's performance showed that cadets new to MMA's Cybersecurity program could successfully tackle the same national-level challenges as more experienced Cyber students and interns.

MMA's other teams continued working through the competition, earning between 45% and nearly 64% of all available points.

Cadet Kie Portuallo-Lopez, Class of 2030, of Parkland, Florida; Cadet Charles Heady, Class of 2029, of Linden, Iowa; Cadet Ethan Gachuhi, Class of 2029, of Olathe, Kansas; and Cadet Eli Ruyenzi, Class of 2029, of Rwanda, earned 1,435 of 2,245 points, completing 63.9% of the available challenges.

Cadet Cayden Schoneberg, Class of 2029, of Lindsay, Oklahoma; Cadet Sean Edward Mulcahy, Class of 2030, of Lenexa, Kansas; Cadet Evren Gener, Class of 2028, of Dripping Springs, Texas; and Cadet Tyler Knight, Class of 2029, of Rancho Cucamonga, California, earned 1,315 points, or 58.6% of the available total.

Cadet Kaden Billups, Class of 2030, of Mexico, Missouri; Cadet Damian Black, Class of 2029, of Moline, Illinois; Cadet Connor Wall, Class of 2030, of Phoenix, Arizona; and Cadet Ricky Ganza, Class of 2029, of Rwanda, earned 1,090 points, or 48.6% of the available total.

Cadet Emilio Anaya, Class of 2028, of Mexico; Cadet Tegan Compton, Class of 2028, of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Cadet Callahan Evans, Class of 2028, of Redondo Beach, California; and Cadet Maxwell Stuehmer, Class of 2029, of Kansas City, Missouri, earned 1,010 points, or 45% of the available total.

The National Cyber Cup gives cadets practical challenges that require more than memorization. Cadets must research, troubleshoot, analyze information and apply technical skills to solve unfamiliar problems. These skills are also emphasized throughout MMA's Cybersecurity program and help prepare cadets to approach complex problems with confidence, persistence and critical thinking.