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Eagle Robotics succeed at
state tournaments
Sharon Advocate - Friday,
January 14, 2005
 The
FIRST LEGO League Massachusetts state tournaments are now complete, and Sharon
Youth Robotics Association teams performed with their usual skill and élan, with
each competing team accepting at least one award for their achievements. All
teams qualified to represent the Sharon Youth Robotics Association (SYRA) in
internal competition before they went on to the MA state tournaments.
The Sharon Eagle Robotics Unlimited and Chimps teams had a memorable experience
at the Eastern MA FLL State tournament (Dec. 4 at Quincy North High School). The
morning competition for top score in the FIRST LEGO League 2004 No Limits
challenge included three rounds for each team to achieve their highest average
score, with the Unlimited and Robotic Chimps teams both qualifying, the
Unlimited in first place. In the finals, the Robotic Chimps team made it to the
top eight, a strong finish for the team in their first season. The Unlimited
team faced North Andover in the last match, with North Andover achieving the
victory.
The Robotic Chimps team was awarded the Top Rookie Team award, for finishing
ahead of all other teams competing in their first tournament. Their performance
for the day truly showed No Limits! For the Unlimited team, the award for
Research Innovation joined the second place award for Robotic Performance.
The Sharon Eagle Robotics AngelBots, CoCoColas and Eaglettes teams had a
fantastic time at the Central MA FLL State tournament (Dec. 18 at the Worcester
Polytechnic Institute). The AngelBots, an all-girl team, are the most
experienced group in the SYRA. Both the CoCoColas and the Eaglettes (also an
all-girl team) are rookie teams, at their first tournament ever. In the face of
very strong competition, an average of five robot performance rounds left each
team well positioned for the playoffs. All three teams did well in the finals
and overcame some tough calls on the field, but were stopped short of the "final
three" play-off round.
Each of the Sharon teams was recognized with an award for their achievements.
The veteran AngelBots won a Research award for most Creative Presentation. The
rookie CoCoCola team won a technical award for Design Innovation. The rookie
Eaglettes won a Judges award for the Most Reliable Robot. And most
representative of the cooperative nature of the Sharon Youth Robotics
Association, the three teams (as a group) won the award for Team Spirit. You
truly had to be there to experience their enthusiasm!
Also at the tournament were members of the Sharon Eagle Robotics Unlimited team
(helping to mentor the rookie teams, and demonstrating their RoboSumo design),
as well as all the coaches and parents leading and supporting the teams'
efforts.
With this tournament signaling the end of the regular Massachusetts FIRST LEGO
League season, the teams will anxiously "Wait 'till next year!" and another
great FLL Challenge! If any Sharon students from 9-14 years of age are
interested in participating in this competition, see the SYRA Web site in late
August, at syraweb.home.comcast.net.
The FIRST LEGO League was created in partnership between FIRST and the LEGO
Company in 1998, the pilot season with 200 teams participating.
This fall, 6,000 FLL teams all over the world have accepted the "No Limits"
challenge (theme is to address the issues of disabilities), which will engage
them in robotics design, as well as research into technological topics.
Each team has built and programmed a LEGO Mindstorms robot to accomplish various
tasks set out as part of the challenge. The robots autonomously (no remote
control) complete their missions with a 2.5-minute period for accumulating
points. After eight weeks, the season has culminated with high-energy,
sports-like tournaments. To honor the theme of this challenge, the seven Sharon
Eagle Robotics teams adopted the motto, appropriate for Eagles - The Sky Is No
Limit!
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