This story has been updated to include information on a 10th team qualifying for worlds.
HANCOCK COUNTY — At least one team from each Hancock County school that sent students to the Vex Robotics State Championships last weekend are heading to the worlds competition later this spring.
Fifteen robotics teams from the area competed at Indiana’s day-long competition on Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Ten of those teams, from elementary to high school students, scored well enough to qualify for the Vex Worlds Robotic Competition in Louisville, Kentucky, in late April.
Students were tasked to manipulate a series of objects in a room-size arena “pit” using their robots’ arms. The students drive the robots around the pit and score points based on how they handle the objects.
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryGreenfield-Central High School
Two of the three Greenfield-Central High School robotics teams that qualified for state are heading to worlds, said robotics instructor Julie Stoeffler. Team 1115 B finished the state competition as a semi-finalist, ranking third in Indiana and 10th in the world, Stoeffler said.
Team 1115 A was a quarter-finalist, ranking fourth in the state and 48th in the world. Principal Jason Cary wrote on Twitter that this year is the first time two G-C robotics teams qualified for worlds.
New Palestine High School
The Dragon team of New Palestine High School seniors finished in second place at state, qualifying for worlds, said robotics instructor Dave Post. The school’s team of juniors, which also competed at state, did not place high enough to advance.
New Palestine Junior High School
New Palestine Junior High School Engineers, a robotics team of seventh-graders, advanced, said instructor Mary Jones. The group finished third in their division at the state competition. Big Brains, the school’s eighth-grade team, placed 46th at state.
New Palestine Intermediate School
Two New Palestine Intermediate School robotics teams, Tech Turtles and The A Team, both qualified for worlds. The Tech Turtles — ranked 22nd in the world — won a second-place trophy in their division and finished seventh out of 211 teams, according to information provided to the Daily Reporter from a parent of one of the students.
The A Team won the Innovate Award, which is given to the team that has the most “innovative” design feature on their robot.
Montessori Science Academy
A team of eight elementary school students from Montessori Science Academy in New Palestine placed fourth in their division at state and qualified for worlds, said the academy’s director, Brian Wheatley. The academy’s middle school team just missed out on finals at state, Wheatley said.
Geist Montessori Academy
TechnoSquad, a team of Geist Montessori Academy students, qualified for worlds by earning the competition’s Amaze Award, said robotics instructor Kathy McGinn. “The award is presented to a team that has built an amazing, high-scoring robot that clearly demonstrates overall quality,” according to Vex.
The school’s other team at state, TechnoBeast, did not qualify for worlds.
Cornerstone Robotics
Team 323A Apex — which competes at the middle school level — is a team of home-schooled students from Hancock County that is part of Cornerstone Robotics. Apex competed at state last weekend, but it also won a signature event in Ohio in January, which already qualified them for worlds. Apex finished third in its division at state and received the design award, said Nicole Bishop, the team’s coach.
Team 323Z Phoenix, a team of home-schooled students competing at the high school level, also competed at state. The team was a semi-finalist and qualified for worlds, Bishop said.
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The following Hancock County robotics teams are heading to Vex Worlds Robotic Competition in Louisville Kentucky in late April.
New Palestine High School
Dragon 1, seniors: Tyler Newcomb, Evan Shaw, Logan Weaver, Cameron Rooks, Trevor Darley
New Palestine Junior High School
NPJH Engineers, seventh grade: Oliver Bindewald, Dylan Moody, Bradon Newcomb, Noah Dropsey
New Palestine Intermediate School
The Tech Turtles: Jake Cooper, Jace Sutton, Tyler Wilson, Chase Shinkle
The A Team: Kendall Steele, Brady Torzewski, Andrew Hahn, Jackson Kamp
Montessori Science Academy
Elementary school: Kendan Lehman, Leyton Hinton, Jayden Abraham, Castiella Wheatley, Lizzy Burns, Brody Waterman, Callie Prows, Sara Weller
Greenfield-Central High School
1115 A: Adam Hughes, Steven Bass, Grayson Bishop, Christian Voigt, Luke Muckerheide
1115 B: Caleb Stoeffler, Elaine Hilton, Dylan Wyman, Austin Robinson
Geist Montessori Academy
TechnoSquad: Eliza Sweeney, Adrianna Terry, Isak Thorne, Caleb Lewis, Molly Kwok, Brian Beck
Cornerstone Robotics
Team 323A Apex
Team 323Z Phoenix
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A list of teams that advanced to the Vex World Championships, which will held in Louisville, Kentucky, in April.
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