Starkville, MS  –  On Saturday, March 25, robotic teams from around the state crowded the sides of the Olympic-sized pool of the Sanderson Center on the Mississippi State University campus for the SeaPerch South Regional Competition.  Among them was the first-year MSMS Robotics Team.

SeaPerch is an annual underwater robotics competition in which teams work together to build an underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) to take on challenges that vary each year.  This year, the competition was broken into three parts: the design documentation, the obstacle course, and the challenge course.

The newly founded MSMS Robotics Team worked diligently to prepare for the competition.

“Every single day that the engineering lab was open, we (the team) went there to work for the entire time that it was closed,” junior Jim Zhang said.  “We did the same during school days, and it did take a huge time dedication.  I think it was worth it in the end.”

Junior Harpreet Singh added, “We also went to the Stark (Recreation Center) pool to test every modification that we made every time we got the chance.”  

The team did not place in the competition but walked away with confidence and high hopes for next year.

“We were especially challenged because other teams had classes and well-established teams, which gave us a bit of a disadvantage,” senior Conner McCartney remarked.

“Since this was our first year, we basically went in blind and were quite amazed to see the ingenuity that was put forth in the various designs, and we hope to be on the same competitive level as next year rolls around,” Singh said.

The MSMS Robotics Team was represented by Conner McCartney, Nathan Gardner, McKenzie Jones, Jim Zhang, Harpreet Singh, Calisa Henry, Kyle Brown and Tanner Miley.