Robotics Team Loses Tournament, But Wins Big in the End

The West Ashley High School robotics team, W.A.R.P. DRIVE, recently traveled to Sumter to compete in their second VEX Robotics Competition (VRC) event of the season, the Bot Squad Icicle Open. This event was a regional qualifying event where the top teams could earn a ticket into the SC Palmetto State VRC Championship in March 2016.
This time around, WAHS’s team, W.A.R.P. DRIVE, brought three robots to the competition expecting to dominate. They brought their tournament champion robot, “Mr. Bucket,” and previous teammate robot, “Jumper.” They showcased a new robot named “Crab-Bot” which was built by juniors Cooper Bennett and Skylar Reese. All three were prepared for more difficult competition than their last couple of matches as teams were becoming better at developing strategies and skills to use in competition.
“Crab-Bot” came in 2nd place going 6-1-0 scoring a total of 350 points. “Mr. Bucket” finished in 3rd place going 6-1-0 with 230 total points and “Jumper” ended in 14th place going 1-6-0 with 189 total points. While “Jumper” was knocked out in the quarterfinals of the playoffs, “Mr. Bucket” and “Crab-Bot” played each other in the semifinals where “Crab-Bot” won but went on to lose in the finals.
Even though they were no longer undefeated, West Ashley High’s Team 9623B, creator of “Mr. Bucket,” was awarded with the Excellence Award, the highest award given at VRC events which helped to reassure the team that they were the overall best team at the event. This award guarantees their trip to state and allows them to participate in the VRC National Championship in Council Bluffs, Iowa on April 7-9, 2016.
WAHS will host their second annual VRC event on Feb. 20 in the gymnasium of the school. Admission to the event is free so come out and cheer on W.A.R.P. DRIVE as they work toward earning a spot in the world championships this April in Louisville, Ken.