Orange Grove Middle Goes to Texas for World Robotics competition
Special For West Of Free Press
After a huge win earlier this year at the FIRST Tech Challenge State Championship, the Orange Grove Middle School Hurricanes earned a spot at the FIRST World Championship in Houston, Texas. Last month they traveled to compete against 224 teams from across the world representing nearly 30 countries. The team was comprised of four Orange Grove middle students and four high school students (all Orange Grove alumni).
In FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC), teams are challenged to design, build, program, and operate robots in order to compete in head-to-head challenges. Guided by adult coaches and mentors, students develop STEM skills and practice engineering principles, while realizing the value of hard work, innovation, and working as a team. Each competition season comes with different gameplay, challenges, and rules. This season, students are tasked with building a robot that can pick up 3-inch “pixels” and deliver them to a 22-inch high “backdrop.” The robot had to be able to reach up and suspend itself off rigging that is 22 inches off of the ground while being able to drive under trusses that are 12 inches high.
In March, the team was selected as the 2024 Inspire Award Winner at the State Championships, the top award given out to the best all-around team in all the categories of Design (Function and Form), Promote (Promoting FIRST Robotics), Connect (Connect with STEM community), Innovation (Inventive problem solving), Think (Engineering process), Control (Sensors) and Motivate (Outreach to the community) and qualified them to attend the World Championships.
“It shows how our team’s hard work and dedication really paid off with us winning this prestigious award,” said Cora Wilson, who flew with her seven teammates, four coaches, and their robot to Houston for the FIRST World Championship, which began on April 17.
“Unfortunately, we did not perform as well as we had hoped in the robot matches,” said Hurricane’s coach Michelle Comen. “We encountered some very tough opponents and had weaker alliance partners. Consequently, we did not make it to the semifinals. Nevertheless, I am still very proud of the team. Based on our scores, our rank in the world was in the top 2.5 percent.”
One of the judges recognized the team with the Woodie Flowers Gracious Professionalism award. Each judge was only allowed to select one team out of the 224 who competed from around the globe. And Emily Daniels won the Dean’s List Award. She was one of 10 chosen from 150 candidates. Additionally, she’s the first from South Carolina to receive this award.
“Getting to meet teams from all over the world with similar interests and collaborating with them is a unique experience that we will cherish for the rest of our lives,” said Huirricanes team member Zoey Annibale.
