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The Mountain View High School robotics team can call itself one of the best in the world after winning a prestigious competition last weekend in Atlanta.
Over 350 teams from around the world competed in the “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology” (FIRST) competition, held April 16 to 18, and only three walked away as champions, according to Mountain View High team captain Hershal Patel.
“It was pretty intense,” Patel said. “There were a lot of amazing robots out there. It was great to see we could compete.”
This year the students had to build a robot that could throw balls and also had a cage to catch the balls. The goal of the competition was for a robot to get the most balls into its competitor’s cage, while keeping balls out of its own. Seventeen of the Mountain View High students on the robotics team traveled to Atlanta to watch their robot compete.
“It is kind of like golf,” team coach Sarah Good said of the competition. “The lower your score, the better.”
The robotics team designed and built their own robot, according to Good, and parents and teachers helped coach and supervise. As a first place team, the Spartans won a banner and trophy.
This is the first time Mountain View High has won the championship, Good said, although the students reached the national competition in 2004 and 2006. The student-led team had to qualify in a regional competition to make it to the nationals.
Congratulations MVHS Robotics Team for winning the “FIRST” Competition!
I had the privilege of being a judge at the San Jose regional FIRST robotics competition, and there I met the MVHS team and their robot for the firs time. Congratulations to Spartan Robotics, FIRST team 971, for winning the championship!