Hornets

* Current
* 2019

The **Hornets** were a team that first competed in the Marble League Showdown 2019 and finished second. The team was the winner of the first Fan Team Contest in that same year. They also competed in Marbula One Season 1 and Marble League 2020, where they finished last in both.

In 2021, the team retired and was taken over by the Bumblebees. Two of their team members, Stinger and Hive, competed for the Bumblebees from 2022 onward.

## Team Members

Stinger, Wasp, Vespa, Hive, and Yellowjacket were the members of the team. Stinger became team captain upon the team's formation. On 12 August 2022, post-retirement, Stinger and Hive joined the Bumblebees' roster for the 2022 Marble League, where they remain to date.

## History

### Pre-Marble League

The Hornets come from the Eastern European city of Buzzkill, the westernmost city within the Buzznya region. Stinger and Wasp knew each other since childhood. They met their future teammates, Vespa, Hive and Yellowjacket, at individual marble races and brought them together to form the Hornets in 2010. Their coach, Swarm, is the parent of Vespa and a former athlete. Each member of the team is seen as vitally important to the others.

Vespa is known for their marble racing experience, and that earned them the nickname "Speed Queen" inside the Bug Marble community. Wasp is very loyal to the team, and especially to Stinger, having competed together for many years. They can be aggressive, but it stems from a passion for marble sports and a drive to avoid losing. Hive is outgoing, funny and friendly with other teams. They didn't let poor performances get to them, and they guided the team forward towards better results.

Yellowjacket, the reserve and youngest member of the Hornets, has never shown their age through their energy and competing with other marbles. Stinger, the team captain, was the one who held the team together, setting an example for fellow team members to follow. They are one of the most decorated marble athletes, and their self-control in times of pressure inspired the team to remain hopeful and follow in their footsteps.

The Hornets were one of the first teams in the Bug Circuit, a regional marble racing tournament in Eastern Europe that started in 2011. The inaugural competition was hosted by the Bumblebees. The Hornets emerged victorious and claimed their first championship, beating the host team by a narrow margin. This marked the start of the Hornets' friendly rivalry with the Bumblebees, who also happen to hail from Buzznya.

Over the next two years, the Hornets proceeded to keep up with their performance in the Bug Circuit. The team came in third in the 2012 competition, hosted by the Centipedes and won by the Ladybugs with the Scorpions finishing in second. In the 2013 competition, hosted by the Moths, who eventually finished in third, the Hornets scored another top three overall finish, finishing second behind the Dragonflies.

The Bumblebees had failed to challenge the Hornets for the past few years, but that changed in 2014. The year's competition was hosted by the Snails and had a snow theme. The Bumblebees managed to win their first Bug Circuit after years of inconsistent performances beforehand, and were joined by the Cockroaches and the Grasshoppers for the top three.

The Hornets were selected to host the 2015 Bug Circuit and they dominated the competition. During one of the races, Stinger was doing poorly. The Hornets fans started chanting "Bzzzz" at Stinger, which eventually became their signature cheering chant as it helped Stinger win the race. This, in turn, helped the Hornets win their second Bug Circuit championship, ahead of the Ants and the Tarantulas. They had become the first team to win a Bug Circuit season as the hosts, the feat they had prevented their rivals from achieving four years earlier. Unfortunately, the Hornets faltered in the 2016 Bug Circuit, and missed out on the top three, while the rival Bumblebees came in third right ahead of them. The team succeeded in redeeming their disappointing 2016 performances by winning the 2017 Bug Circuit, earning their third championship.

In 2018, the Bumblebees announced they would be leaving the Bug Circuit to compete in the Hubelino Tournament 2018, replacing the retiring Team Phoenix. That year, the Grasshoppers also left to train Grasshopper for Sand Marble Rally 2018, and the Tarantulas returned after spending two years helping Tarantula in Sand Marble Rally 2016 and 17. The Hornets remained in the 2018 Bug Circuit, finishing second, but felt something was missing following the departure of their rivals.

### 2019

When the fan vote for Marble League Showdown 2019 was announced, the Hornets decided to apply. They used their experience in the Bug Circuit and their rivalry with the Bumblebees to rally support from the marblebase. This, coupled with dominant social media presence, led to the Hornets winning both rounds of fan voting, winning the latter round by two-thousand votes. The team, along with the Turtle Sliders, were admitted to Marble League Showdown 2019. However, they decided not to go watch Marble League 2019 so they could focus on training for the Showdown.

Thanks to Hive's networking and continued friendship between the Hornets and the Bumblebees, both teams eventually met each other to train together. The Bumblebees had also qualified for the Showdown due to their victory in Hubelino Tournament 2018. The Hornets also trained with some other Showdown teams as the competition drew nearer. They arrived at the Seven Seas Stadium six weeks before the Showdown started and trained all the way up to the night before the first event, the Sand Rally.

The Hornets had a great start to the Showdown. Vespa stayed in the top four throughout the entire Sand Rally event and finished second. The team earned a second silver medal in Event 2, Collision, rising to the top of the standings. This was followed by the Funnel Race, the only event the team failed to medal in, finishing in 6th. It was also the only event where the Bumblebees beat them. However, by this point, the Hornets already had enough points to secure their place at the Marble League 2020 Qualifiers. They concluded the Showdown by finishing in second overall, following their bronze medal in Event 4, Balancing. The Bumblebees also qualified in seventh.

As the Hornets prepared for the Qualifiers, they received an official invite from the JMRC to take part in Marbula One Season 1. Since the team had yet to participate in a Marble League championship tournament, they saw the invitation as an honor, so they accepted it and chose Vespa and Hive to represent them. They were also selected to host the fourth Grand Prix at their track, the Hivedrive.

### 2020

Although the team had shown promise in Marble League Showdown 2019, they could not live up to the expectations in Marbula One Season 1. Vespa, despite being nicknamed "Speed Queen", finished the first Grand Prix in 13th place, failing to earn any points. This was followed by a ninth place finish for Hive at the O'raceway Grand Prix, earning the team two points. Unfortunately Vespa failed to score any points in the entire season, only edging out Mary in the individual championship due to slightly better finishes. Hive wasn't much better, only netting six more points at their home track, the Hivedrive Grand Prix, for a final total of eight points. The team would finish last in the team championship, 17 points behind the next-lowest team, the Limers.

Despite their poor performance, the team were not deterred. The Hornets next competed in the Marble League 2020 Qualifiers. They had a good start with a sixth place finish in Event 1, Balancing, getting two finishers. The next two events, Funnel Endurance and Block Pushing, were not as strong, finishing in 11th and 19th respectively, dropping them into the 16th overall and putting them at risk of not qualifying. Wasp was chosen to represent the team in the final event, the 5 Meter Sprint. Wasp finished in eighth earning them 12 points. The Hornets managed to qualify in tenth, one point away from failing to qualify.

The team started Marble League 2020 with a 12th place finish in Balancing. This was improved upon with a seventh place finish in the next event, the Halfpipe, taking the team to tenth overall. Unfortunately for the Hornets, the team finished the next three events in the bottom five, dropping the team to last place overall. The team ended the first half of the competition with two mid-table finishes in the 5 Meter Hurdles and in Block Pushing. The Hornets entered Stinger into the final event of the first half of the tournament, the Triathlon. After dominating the first two heats, Stinger made it to the finals. However, the finals had some of the most experienced teams, including the O'rangers and the Hazers. Stinger had an amazing start, and entered the water well in front of everyone else. However, all three teams passed Stinger, and they finished in fourth, the closest they would get to the podium, bringing them up to 11th overall at the halfway point.

The Hornets could not keep up their better form and returned to their poor form with three bottom half finishes in the next three events, dropping them to 15th overall, only above the consistently poor Mellow Yellow. Two mid-table finishes followed for the Hornets in the Relay Run and the High Jump. Unfortunately, as before the Hornets could not keep this up. The team finished Marble League 2020 with a tenth, 11th, and 14th place finish in the Team Aquathlon, Collision and Marble Marathon respectively. At one point Hive had been in the top five at one point in the Marathon but again could not keep it up and fell to 14th. Due to their poor performances and a spell of strong finishes for Mellow Yellow, the Hornets finished Marble League 2020 in last place overall, their second last place tournament finish in a row.

The Hornets were not invited to return for Marbula One Season 2. The team released a press release saying they weren't surprised, were sorry for disappointing fans and were looking to the future. Stinger also admitted the team were ashamed by their recent poor performances but were determined to make a comeback.

### Retirement

The following months continued to bring trouble for the Hornets. They weren't invited to compete in the Marble League Winter Special and debts and lack of motivation started to plague the team. It was decided that the only way to save the team was selling the Hornets brand and hoping the new owners would continue to let them compete. Hive was opposed to the selling of the team and quit, becoming a comedian. The remaining team members struggled to find a buyer, leading to feelings of hopelessness. Rumors spread about the team being bought by cosmetics company L’Oróll, but that did not happen.

With options running low, the Hornets turned to their rivals, the Bumblebees, who used their company, Beesports Ltd., to buy the team. However, the team members ended up retiring anyway, starting new jobs working for the Bumblebees as staff members and trainers. Fan response was mixed with some excited for the new chapter and some bitter, including Thorax, the marble team's former spokesmarble and social media manager who had played a pivotal role in the team's Marble League entry bid and who had been lined up to become the team's manager. The Bumblebees offered an apology to Thorax as well as a job as staff for the team which Thorax rejected.

The team had one final opportunity to compete in the Marble League 2021 Practice Race. Vespa offered to compete for the team and send off the Hornets brand. They could only manage a 25th place finish but Vespa seemed unconcerned after the race. Later that day Nectar and Beeline, the managers of the Bumblebees told the press that the Hornets had been treated too harshly by fans and that they would be a great asset to the team as staff members. Stinger got a job in management, preparing meetings and special events and helping with communications; Vespa became a mentor for the Bumblebees during training for racing events; Wasp became responsible for fitness; Yellowjacket and Swarm follow youth leagues in the region and advise on scouting future athletes.

## Marble League Showdown 2019

*Main article: Marble League Showdown 2019*
The Hornets qualified for the Marble League 2020 Qualifiers.

## Marbula One Season 1

*Main article: Marbula One Season 1*

 Hive |  | 9th

### Qualifiers

The Hornets qualified for Marble League 2020.

## Career Events

 2020
 2021
 Total

## Team Members' Individual Scores

### Marbula One

 Vespa | M1S1 | Savage Speedway GP (S1)Momotorway GP (S1)Short Circuit GP (S1)Razzway GP (S1)

## Gallery

Team Profile 2020Marbula One (S1) PosterStinger, the Hornets' captainSwarm, the coach of the HornetsThe Hivedrive, home of the Hornets
## Trivia

* The team shares a rivalry with the Bumblebees, who ironically bought them out in 2021.
* Their fans' "BZZZZZZZ" chant is similar to the O'rangers' signature "OOOOOOOO" fan chant.
* The Hornets won both rounds of the fan team contest vote, and won the second round by nearly 2,000 votes.
* The Hornets are one of the three retired teams that has participated in at least one Marble League, alongside the Quicksilvers and the Jawbreakers.
	+ As they only partook in the 2020 Marble League Qualifiers, this makes them the only retired team with a 100% qualification success rate.

## References

1. ↑ dionnoib (13th April 2021). Official announcement:. Reddit.
2. ↑ Spark11A (6th March 2019). Entering the Hornets! (Marble Showdown). Reddit.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Stynth, The Emperor (6th August 2021). RetRollSpective – Bumblebees. Project Marblearth.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Stynth, EduGJ23, Vector (17th December 2021). RetRollSpective – Hornets. Project Marblearth.
5. ↑ Stynth (30th October 2020). Offseason Moments – ML2020 Part 1. Marble Sports.