Submitted photo | Cedarville University
The Cedarville University team of engineering students won the 30th annual World Solar Splash event at Champions Park Lake in Springfield June 9. This is the 14th time Cedarville has claimed the top honor — the most championships of any competitor.
CEDARVILLE — The most decorated team in the history of the World Solar Splash competition added another accomplishment to its lengthy list.
The Cedarville University team of engineering students received the George Ettenheim Memorial World Championship trophy for winning the 30th annual World Solar Splash event at Champions Park Lake in Springfield on Sunday, June 9. This is the 14th time Cedarville has claimed the top honor — the most championships of any competitor.
The victory came one year after the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez (UPRM) overtook the Cedarville team for the top prize. This year, the roles were reversed as UPRM finished in second place with a 870.72 score — more than 100 points behind Cedarville’s 987.70 score out of a possible 1,000 points. It was Cedarville’s most impressive victory to date as it registered its highest score in history.
The University of New Mexico placed third with 731.75 points, followed by Carnegie Mellon University (521.55) and Stony Brook University (480.04). Locally, the University of Dayton finished sixth in the nine-team event with 399.96 points. UD was also the recipient of the Teamwork award and Carnegie Mellon was awarded the Most Improved trophy.
Cedarville dominated in each of the water events — slalom, endurance, and sprint. With a possible 850 points in these three categories, Cedarville was perfect in each one to outdistance any other team.
Each competitor is a student team that spends the previous year designing, constructing, and testing their solar boat. The boats, driven by a single driver, vary in appearance but must conform to size, power, and safety specifications.
Changes to the rules for 2024 required that the boats compete in slalom, sprint, and endurance events with solar panels in place on the crafts. Batteries supplement direct solar power for all events but must be charged by solar panels only.
The first Solar Splash competition was held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1994 with 11 competitors. Since the initial competition, more than 90 American universities, 11 international universities, and five high school teams have participated.
The 2025 Solar Splash world event will take place June 3-7 at Champions Park Lake at the Clark County Fairgrounds in Springfield.
