Robotics Magnolia Regional Competition

Parkview Baptist School’s High School robotics team, the Bulahbots, delivered an impressive performance at the Magnolia Regional in Laurel, Mississippi this past weekend. Thirteen students and their mentors traveled Thursday through Saturday to compete against top teams from across the region and beyond.

Throughout the qualifying matches, the team consistently ranked in the top eight, finishing with a strong 7–2 record. Their performance earned them a spot in the elimination rounds as the captain of the 5th seeded alliance, where they partnered with teams from Taiwan and Lafayette, Louisiana. The alliance advanced to the semi-finals, marking an outstanding showing against a highly competitive field.

The Bulahbots compete in the FIRST Robotics Challenge (firstinspires.org), where students design, build, and program a fully functional robot. This year’s robot weighs approximately 100 pounds and is designed to pick up and launch 6-inch foam balls up to 10 feet in the air into a target hub. During the competition, the team successfully re-programmed their autonomous mode to collect balls from the floor and score them automatically before switching to driver control using an Xbox controller. In one match, their alliance scored an impressive 269 balls in just two and a half minutes.

More than just a competition team, the robotics program is structured to simulate a real-world engineering firm, with students working across specialized subteams including Coding, Design, Manufacturing, Assembly, CAD, CAM, and Media. From concept to construction, students use tools like Autodesk Fusion, CNC mills, and plasma cutters to bring their designs to life.

The team now looks ahead to their next competition on April 3–4 at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner, Louisiana, with matches running from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Admission and parking are free, and the community is encouraged to come out and support the Bulahbots.

We are incredibly proud of these students for their innovation, teamwork, and dedication as they continue to represent Parkview with excellence.