The recent FIRST LEGO League Challenge brought together teams from across the region to showcase their creativity, problem-solving skills, and teamwork in a dynamic robotics competition. Here’s a recap of the winners and their outstanding achievements:
Coach/Mentor Award
This award celebrates coaches who inspire their teams to achieve their best while embodying the FIRST® Core Values. Corey Ryder, from Wayland-Cohocton Central School District, received this honor for his kindness, persistence, and ability to lead with a calming presence. His team credited him with helping them navigate challenges and prepare for success.
Core Values Award
The Oakfield-Alabama Hi-Tech Hornets were recognized for their exceptional enthusiasm, strong communication, and unwavering team spirit. Their collaboration and respect for one another stood out to the judges, earning them this well-deserved award.
Innovation Project Award
The Batavia Middle White Robotics team impressed judges with their impactful project focused on cleaning up Lake Ontario. Their creative and well-researched solutions demonstrated their commitment to solving real-world problems, making them worthy recipients of this award.
Robot Design Award
The Gillam-Grant Team stood out for their excellent programming principles, solid engineering practices, and an efficient, durable robot. Their precision in mission planning made them a standout in this category.
Robot Performance Award
The Gillam-Grant Team also claimed the Robot Performance Award with an impressive top score during the Robot Game, demonstrating exceptional execution and teamwork.
Champion’s Award
The Steam Knights Robotic Royals earned the highest honor of the competition, the Champion’s Award. Their innovative water cleanup project and advanced robot design exemplified excellence across all competition categories. They will advance to the Finger Lakes Regional Tournament in Buffalo, along with the Gillam-Grant Team and the Oakfield-Alabama Hi-Tech Hornets.
This year’s competition featured teams from Wayland-Cohocton Central School District, Batavia City Schools, LeRoy CSD, Oakfield-Alabama CSD, Keshequa CSD, Mount Morris CSD, Byron-Bergen CSD, Warsaw CSD, and Attica CSD. Congratulations to all participants for their creativity, collaboration, and hard work! Best of luck to the advancing teams as they represent their communities at the regional competition!