Civil and environmental engineering student teams earn top-five finishes at national competitions

Courtney Sakry

29 Jul 2025

Members of the Sustainable Solutions Team show their presentation materials while competing in the national competition. Photo courtesy of Claire White.

After months of hard work, a group of civil engineering students packed up their tools and designs and headed west to compete on one of the biggest stages in collegiate engineering at the 2025 American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Civil Engineering Student Championships, hosted by Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

The result was four top-10 finishes and national recognition for engineering excellence, creativity, and teamwork.

Smooth sailing for Concrete Canoe Team

Team members in concrete canoe — Concrete Canoe Team members race in the national competition. Photo courtesy of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

The Concrete Canoe Team glided into second place in a national competition often dubbed the “America’s Cup of Civil Engineering.” Blending technical expertise in concrete mix design with hydrodynamic modeling, construction, and racing strategy, the team turned months of design and fabrication into a canoe that stood out among competitors from across the country.

With a canoe called “Desperado,” the team also won second place in both men’s and women’s slalom races and the top spot for best final product. Overall, Virginia Tech placed less than one point behind the concrete canoe champion, the University of Florida.

A strong finish for Steel Bridge Team

Steel Bridge team assembling bridge — Steel Bridge Team members practice their build prior to the national competition. Photo courtesy of Evan Marshall.

Competing against 43 other teams from across the country, the Steel Bridge Team took third place overall in a challenge that requires students to design, fabricate, and then rapidly construct a steel bridge that meets rigorous specifications. Their structure won first place in aesthetics for its elegant design and clean fabrication and second in structural efficiency. The team also earned third place finishes in lightness and stiffness.

“Being part of this team has made me a better student,” said team captain Oliver Fishman. “The rigor of having to figure out how to design, fabricate, and build a bridge in a timely manner makes me think smarter and make decisions in high pressure moments.”

Building sustainable solutions for tomorrow

Sustainable Solutions Team at nationals — The Sustainable Solutions Team included (from left) Kaylee Senlick, Brianna Lombardo, Devin Poe, and Jessica Young. Photo courtesy of Claire White.

Virginia Tech competed for only the second time in school history in ASCE’s Sustainable Solutions Competition. According to Associate Professor of Practice Claire White, who serves as the team’s faculty advisor, this year’s modern urban planning challenge was to redevelop an underutilized office building and convert it into a mixed-use development with affordable housing, retail, community amenities, and more. The five-student team provided a technical proposal, presentation, poster, and 3D model of a concept plan that incorporated ASCE’s Envision sustainability framework and met client criteria.

The Hokies’ proposal earned fifth place out of 22 teams, including third place in technical design.

“This was only our second year competing,” said team captain Brianna Lombardo. “Placing fifth was a big accomplishment. It shows the hard work and passion our team brought to the competition, and we’re excited to see how the team continues to succeed in the future.”

Measuring up in surveying

Team members surveying — Survey Competition Team members calculate the area and volume of a stormwater pond. Photo courtesy of Claire White.

The Surveying Team earned a ninth-place finish out of 19 teams in the ASCE Utility Engineering and Survey Institute Surveying Competition, which tested seven students on both field and office surveying tasks. The team earned third place in subdivision mapping.

The team completed tasks on a real piece of property, including leveling, determining inaccessible points, using a compass, and calculating area. Each team is randomly assigned the tasks, which vary for each competition.

“Hands-on experience like this breaks the barrier between the classroom and practicing in industry,” said team captain Liam Glennon. “We especially felt that in land surveying because we were taking real-world measurements to use in calculations that we learned in the classroom.”

Preparing future engineers

Across all four events, Virginia Tech’s student teams demonstrated what is possible when classroom learning meets real-world application, building skills that will serve them well in their future careers.

“Participation in these competitions provides students with an applied opportunity to work on problem-solving skills and professional skills such as technical communication and teamwork,” said White. “The students work on these projects over the course of an academic year. The payoff at the end is getting to represent Virginia Tech at the national level and network with other passionate engineering students from across the country.”