LEONARDTOWN — The College of Southern Maryland’s Medical Laboratory Technology program finished first among all Maryland and District of Columbia schools in the 2025 Cell Bowl, a nationwide competition testing speed and accuracy in blood-cell identification.
Over the three-week regional phase that ended in November, the CSM team correctly identified 30 blood cells in just 51 seconds using the CellAtlas app developed by CellaVision. That performance placed CSM 17th out of 58 participating two-year and four-year institutions across the country and gave the college the highest score of any program in the greater Maryland-D.C. area.
The Cell Bowl challenges students to distinguish normal cells from abnormal ones that may indicate cancer, infection, or reactive conditions within a strict one-minute limit for 30 cells.
CSM student Saniya Kelly said the timed format brought out her competitive side.
“The Cell Bowl really activated my competitiveness. I wanted our class to rank high against the other competing schools,” Kelly said. “I put some pressure on myself to do well; I wanted to make my professors proud and rank high.”
The CSM Medical Laboratory Technology associate-degree program trains students to perform complete blood counts, urinalysis, blood cross-matching for transfusions, microbial identification, and chemical analysis of body fluids — skills used daily in hospital and reference laboratories.
Professor Tiffany Gill, CSM’s MLT program coordinator, launched the Cell Bowl in 2021 after using the CellAtlas app in her classes at the La Plata campus. She later partnered with the American Society for Clinical Pathology to expand the event into a national tournament broadcast on her YouTube channel, Medical Lab Lady Gill.
The ASCP serves as the competition’s gold-level sponsor and awards the overall Super Cell Bowl champions an interactive practice exam and study book to prepare for the national certification examination.
Gill said the publicity helps spotlight a critical but often overlooked healthcare profession.
“When people think of healthcare they typically think about the professions you see and recognize,” Gill said. “Medical laboratorians may work behind the scenes, but their training and expertise are essential to patient care, diagnosis, and treatment. We’re hoping to bring some visibility and awareness to this valuable field.”
Although the CSM team did not advance to the national playoffs, students continued weekly challenges for extra credit and a traveling trophy awarded to the top scorer. By season’s end the fastest CSM time dropped to 40 seconds for a perfect 30-cell identification.
Kelly, who discovered her interest in laboratory science through a high school biotechnology class, praised the program’s real-world focus.
“Something I really appreciate about this program is that we use real specimens, reagents, and analyzers that simulate an actual laboratory setting,” she said.
After earning her associate degree, Kelly plans to work as a certified Medical Laboratory Technician while completing a bachelor’s degree to become a Medical Laboratory Scientist.
Gill said watching the improvement has been the most rewarding part of the competition.
“The joy of being an educator is being able to watch these students grow, and to feel empowered by what they have learned,” Gill said. “My goal is to prepare these students to leave the classroom and be the best professionals possible.”
The College of Southern Maryland offers the two-year MLT program at its La Plata campus with clinical rotations at hospitals and laboratories throughout the region.
