Denham Springs High School Robotics Team Wins Pike Peak Regional, Earns Spot at FIRST World Championship
Denham Springs High School Robotics Team Wins
Pike Peak Regional, Earns Spot at FIRST World Championship
DENHAM SPRINGS, La. – The Denham Venom Robotics Team recently returned from Colorado Springs, Co., with a victory at the FIRST Robotics Pikes Peak Regional Competition and a secured berth to the 2026 FIRST World Championship to be held later this spring in Houston, Texas.
The Denham Springs High School (DSHS) team defeated a field of 33 teams that included international competitors from Mexico and Taiwan. The victory advances Denham Venom’s rankings to No. 15 in the world, No. 13 in the United States, and No. 1 in Louisiana, according to Statbotics.
“This is the farthest our students have travelled to compete, and they made certain the outcome was worth the extra effort,” Denham Venom Coach Daniel Eiland said. In addition to the competition victory, the team earned the Quality Award and was recognized for excellence in robot design and pit efficiency, spotlighting the team’s attention to engineering detail both on and off the competition field.
“The trip to Colorado Springs was about more than competition. For several students, it was their first time on an airplane,” Eiland said. “Between matches, the team hiked mountain trails, threw snowballs, and explored a new city far from home — even pushing their robot through the snow on the way into the venue.”
Eiland noted that not all the team’s members were able to travel for the competition. He said those not travelling gathered at the DSHS STEM and Robotics Center to watch the competition live, through streaming video, where they scouted matches and relayed data to the onsite team in real time.
“All that we do is a real team effort, and everyone’s role is a valuable part of our success,” he said.
The team’s competition season continues with the Magnolia Regional in Laurel, Mississippi, this weekend, followed by the Bayou Regional at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner, Louisiana, April 2-3, and then the FIRST World Championships in Houston, Texas, April 29-May 2.
The Denham Venom Robotics Team extends its gratitude to its major sponsors that help support the team’s financial costs: NASA, Weyerhaeuser, DoD STEM, West Coast Products, Fabworks, the Gene Haas Foundation, and Limelight, as well as individual sponsors who support the program.
Eiland said the team is seeking new corporate and community sponsors to help underwrite the team’s journey to the FIRST World Championship competition. To learn more about the program or to become a sponsor, contact Eiland by email at
[email protected]