Bots bring action to competition

By Zorian Edwards, Editor-In-Chief

On April 5, Saegertown had three teams compete in the annual RoboBOTS competition held at Meadville Area High School. Thirty-two teams from fourteen different schools from Crawford, Erie, and Mercer counties competed in the competition. 

The event is held every year and is open to high school and middle school students. The competition is centered around student-made bots who compete to move up the bracket chart. This was started to create an interest in technical education careers in the 2006-07 school year. 

The first team, “Knights of the High Table,” competed with their bot named Excalibur. The team consisted of Elliot McWright, Levi Connally, Rylee McIntyre, Kaylee King, Alexa Lynn, John Childers, and Justin Crawford. They received fourth place in the competition, making them the highest-placing Saegertown team this year.  “We are proud of how well we did, but we hope to improve design and go to nationals and take home first place,” senior Levi Connally said. 

The second team was called “Jolly Green Giants” and their bot was named Green Bean. The team members included Mason Allio, Josh Weaver, Kohlton Perry, Noah Shoop, Xander Brauen, and Eric Steudler. They placed tenth in the overall competition. 

“It was definitely a fun competition. It was fun to drive the bot,” Sophomore Kohlton Perry said. “It was definitely a fun experience. Overall it was fun and cool to see different types of bots.”

The third team—a freshman team—was “Hazard Boys,” and their bot was named General Lee. The team members included Winston Zook, Nate Shartle, Isaac Huya, Robert Smith, Preston Allen, Hunter Mulidoro, Kole Esterly, Mark Whitman, Kade Paris, Iggy Petrie, and Isaiah Mattocks. They placed thirty-first in the competition overall.

“This was my first year. At the beginning of the year, I had no idea what it would be like,” Nate Shartle said. “It was more extreme than I thought it would be. The biggest struggle was getting the bot done on time.”

For more information check out this article from The Meadville Tribune