Queenstown Primary School's team, "Remarkably Calm", also performed well to reach the final of the inaugural eight-team contest, held at the Otago Museum, before losing narrowly, two rounds to one, in the final.
The event was compered by Sticky TV's Kanoa Lloyd.
The contest was made possible by a Swedish-made electronic game, known as Mindball, a form of brain-powered table soccer, which is exhibited at the museum's Discovery World science centre.
Headbands on contestants' foreheads detect electrical brainwaves , particularly alpha and theta waves, which are associated with states of relaxation and mental focus.
When the Mindball system detects a contestant's relaxed mental state, it runs their signal through a transducer to move a puck-like magnetic "ball" into an opponent's goal.
In "distraction" rounds of the contest, supporters of the one team can call out loudly in a bid to disrupt their opposition's concentration.
Some contestants put their heads down and closed their eyes in order to relax, while others stared intensely at the magnetic "ball".
New Zealand Academy of Sports mental skills trainer Carol Goodlass, of Dunedin, said the young contestants had been "hugely impressive".
Mrs Goodlass was keen to use the museum-based machine to help elite sports people to relax mentally and to focus more effectively.
