The Delta Robotics team competed among the top 40 teams at the Vex Robotics California Regional State Championship last weekend and walked away with another trophy. The March 14-15 two-day event was held at Cal State University, Bakersfield.
“These students worked very hard at building and programming an impressive robot this year that beat over 90% of the teams present in skills,’’ said Jeff Cooper, Delta’s Coach. “The team also impressed the mechanical engineers that acted as judges enough to be finalists for the Excellence Award, the top award at the event.”
Unfortunately, the Delta team missed earning the award by just 3 points in a nail-biting match that got many in the crowd on their feet. They also narrowly missed qualifying for the World Championships again by just four points in skills. Still, the team impressed enough of the eight judges with their knowledge to earn the Judges Award, a first for the Delta Team at a State Championship.
“I am just happy that we earned another award and that I was the lead engineer that helped design and build a great robot this year. I am the only Delta student to have two years of experience, and we really took advantage of it this year. We compete against teams from larger high schools that have multiple intros to advanced robotics classes and four or more years of experience,” said senior Adrian Lopez.
This team dedicated many hours after school to build a top tier robot.
“I spent over 300 hours programming more than 200 versions of this robot’s code in Python. I am proud of what we accomplished,” said senior Kody Alarcon.
“I am now considering a job offer from one of the engineers that works for a company that uses robotics in manufacturing in Bakersfield. I didn’t know I could be making over 100k per year within a few years out of high school,” said senior Alex Lopez.
“I am just happy I could support the team with programming and mechanical help after joining in December, it was a fun experience,’’ said senior Saige Zuniga.
This was the third year in a row the Delta Robotics Team has qualified for the State Championship. The team said what they most enjoy is spreading their love for robotics among students in the community.
Next month, they will be demonstrating robotics at a STEM night at Taylor Elementary on April 9, teaching kids at Battles Elementary about robotics on April 11th, and hosting the Vex IQ Santa Maria Valley Championships.
People interested in the Delta team or Vex Robotics can come to the free admission tournament at Tommie Kuntz Middle School between 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on April 12. Demonstrations are also available upon request.