Friday, October 21, 2016
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Neighbors | Alexis Bartolomucci.Volunteers worked as crew members on Sept. 25 to help with the Mahoning Valley FIRST Robotics Competition charity food drive at Austintown Middle School.
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Neighbors | Alexis Bartolomucci.The crew and audience watched as the robotics team battled their robots against each other on Sept. 25 at Austintown Middle School during the FIRST Robotics competition.
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Neighbors | Alexis Bartolomucci.Robotics teams battled against each other during the FIRST Robotics Competition charity food drive on Sept. 25 at Austintown Middle School.
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Neighbors | Alexis Bartolomucci.Robotics members and volunteers set up the robots on Sept. 25 during the FIRST Robotics Competition charity food drive at Austintown Middle School.
By ALEXIS BARTOLOMUCCI
Austintown Middle School hosted the third annual Mahoning Valley FIRST Robotics Competition charity food drive on Sept. 25.
FIRST Robotics teams from schools across Ohio and Pennsylvania came to AMS to participate in a robotics competition. The competition was free and open to the public, but people were asked to bring non-perishable food items to donate to the Second Harvest Foot Bank of the Mahoning Valley. Concessions were also available during the competition with the proceeds going to help fund future NEOFRA robotics competitions.
The robotics competition consists of the robotics teams from different schools battling their robots against each other. The robots would break through the wall obstacles and try to shoot a ball in the other teams’ basket.
This competition gives the teams the opportunity to test out the new robots they created on a regulation playing field. In a FIRST Stronghold match, two teams of three robots each try to break into the opponents’ forts, weaken the tower and then capture the tower. The points are scored by beating the opponents’ defense and putting balls into their tower. The game is created to show high energy, real contact and intense action.
Sponsorship from Youngstown State University College of STEM and LED3 Premium Displays are what helped make the 2016 MVRC possible.
The teams are looking forward to participating in the 2017 MVRC and several others to come. This competition allows the teams to have a practice run with their robots before becoming a part of the upcoming robotics competitions all around the United States.