The Moof Monsters, a FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL) team from the Bolles Lower School Whitehurst Campus, earned second place at the Florida state robotics tournament, held February 7-8 at SeaWorld in Orlando.

With support from coaches Beth Zerkowski and Devan Skapetis, the Moof Monsters achieved an impressive 405 points in the robot game, rising to one of the top teams among a competitive field of 88.

The tournament was hosted at SeaWorld due to this year’s ocean-based theme, Submerged. Zerkowski said the Moof Monsters spent this season researching shark tags – even meeting with Sharks4Kids expert Jillian Morris and OCEARCH representative Bryan Franks.

“After discovering that the AAA batteries used for shark tags die and scientists no longer receive the required data, the Moof Monsters proposed using piezoelectric materials and the shark's own inertia to maintain a charge that can continue sending data even with a dead battery,” Zerkowski said. “They presented their research to a panel of judges [at the tournament] and will follow up with Wildlife Computers to propose incorporating their innovation into current shark tags.”

Congratulations, Moof Monsters! #BulldogProud #BollesRobotics