GEORGETOWN, Del. - Student from across Sussex County showcased their research projects at the 2026 Sussex County Science Fair, where middle and high school students competed for top honors.
Student from across Sussex County showcased their research projects at the 2026 Sussex County Science Fair.
First Place: “Beyond the Brand: Golf Ball Performance Test” — Ben Adkins
Rachel Chisenhall, a student at Georgetown Middle School, presented her project on the strength of eggs and said participating in the fair was an exciting experience.
“It’s very exciting because you get to have face-to-face interactions with people and explain what you have done,” Chisenhall said.
Students competed in several categories, including team and individual divisions for middle and high school participants. Special awards were also presented by sponsors and local institutions.
Special Awards
Schaffer Lubrication Products
High School: Nialah Gustin — “Exhausted Drosophila”
Middle School: Rachel Chisenhall — “The Strength of Eggs”
Delaware Technical Community College Honorable Mentions
Middle School: Oakley Routon — “The Great Paint Showdown”
High School: Peyton Vied — “Innovative Approaches to the Refinement and Design of Surfboard Fins for Enhanced Performance and Stability”
Middle School Teams
Honorable Mention: “The Geniuses of Hydrogenesis” — Isabella Buschert and Kaitlyn Kauffman
First Place: “Does Your Honey Taste Funny?” — Tessa Mast and Mollyanne Wright
Middle School Individuals
Honorable Mention: “The Great Paint Showdown” — Oakley Routon
Honorable Mention: “How Mass Affects the Altitude of a Rocket” — Cole Beauchamp
Second Place: “The Amazing Strength of Eggs” — Rachel Chisenhall
First Place: “Beyond the Brand: Golf Ball Performance Test” — Ben Adkins
High School Teams
Second Place: “How Does a FPV Surveillance Drone Work?” — Chad Hughes and Nathaniel Hoang
First Place: “Analyzing the Effectiveness of Different Fertilizers on Crop Growth using a FarmBot” — Brenner Short and Grant Conway
Grades 9–10
Third Place: “The Effects of Ultraviolet Light on Fabrics” — Geraldine Castrejohn
Second Place: “Fabric Affecting Burning Time” — Nathalie Ramirez
First Place: “Using Reinforcement Learning to Speed up Drug Discovery” — Eva Navitskaya
Grade 11
Third Place: “The Effects of Height and Angle on Splatter” — Demariyah Watson
Second Place: “The Effects of Arm Slot Angle on Pitching Performance” — Jack Thomas
First Place: “Exhausted Drosophila” — Nialah Gustin
Grade 12 — Group B
Honorable Mentions
Peyton Vied — “Innovative Approaches to the Refinement and Design of Surfboard Fins for Enhanced Performance and Stability”
Nick Walker — “How Does Sound Reflection Vary with Different Materials?”
John Keys — “What Planing Hull Design is Faster, Catamaran or Monohull?”
Third Place
Matthew Lerman — “How Do Different Trusses Differ in the Distribution of Weight They Can Hold?”
Second Place
Adam Jennings — “How Do 3D Printed Gears Differ from Normal VEX Gears?”
First Place
Joshua Cohen — “A Novel Approach to Rocketry Using 3D Printed Systems”
Grade 12 — Group A
Second Place: Ashley Mercada — “Bacterial Response to UV Exposure: An Investigative Study”
First Place: Aimee Velasquez Garcia — “The Effects of Artificial Sweeteners on Drosophila Melanogaster”