SUNY Canton Steel Bridge Team Finishes 13th in National Competition

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Pictured are (l to r) SUNY Canton Steel Bridge Team members Andrew C. Walker of Camden and Ethan J. Fregoe of Massena working on this year's entry.

CANTON, NY (05/30/2014)(readMedia)-- A group of SUNY Canton students placed 13th in the National Student Steel Bridge Competition.

The 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers and American Institute of Steel Construction competition was held May 23 through 24 at the University of Akron, Ohio. The team competed against approximately 50 other distinguished colleges and universities.

"We are proud of the valiant effort this group of students made in the two day event, and how favorably they represented their college," said Paul D. Hitchman, the steel bridge team adviser and an instructional support associate in the Canino School of Engineering Technology.

The steel bridge team proved their ability to compete at a national level after placing third in the upstate regional competition held April 24 at Cornell University, Ithaca. The team has won the regional competition 15 times in 18 years and won the national competition in 2009.

The SUNY Canton students competed against teams from the United States, South America and Canada. The University of California, Davis was named the national champion.

Hitchman said he was grateful for the college-wide support the team received.

"Our students gained a memorable experience because of the effort and financial support of many from within the SUNY Canton family," he said. "I want to thank all of the employees, alumni and corporations that support us year in and year out."

The steel bridge team will return to competition this fall with a regional tournament at West Point. The students will be given a new challenge and will have to design a new bridge for the 2015 competitions.

For more information, including a full roster of steel bridge team members, vist "Students Aim to Build a Bridge Better, Faster and Stronger" and "Steel Bridge Team Preps for National Competition."

About SUNY Canton

SUNY Canton is Northern New York's premier College for career-driven bachelor's degrees, associate degrees and certificate programs. The College delivers quality hands-on programs in engineering technology, health, management, and public service to students in the North Country, New York State, and beyond. Faculty members are noted for their professional real-world experience in addition to their academic credentials. SUNY Canton OnLine offers hundreds of flexible and convenient courses as well as eight exclusively online bachelor's degrees. The College's 14 athletic teams compete in state-of-the-art facilities as provisional members of the NCAA Division III and the USCAA.

-www.canton.edu-