Dos Pueblos High School-based robotics team, Octobots Robotics made it into the top 10 at the First Robotics District Competition, March 6-8 in Port Hueneme.

After an eight-week robot-building period and an intensive, three-day competition of 42 California high school robotics teams, Octobots Robotics placed tenth in the qualifying matches, earning a spot as a coveted alliance team captain in the semi-finals.

The team fought hard but were knocked out in the second round of the semi-finals.
 
This was the first of two district competitions that Octobots Robotics will participate in this season with the next competition set for March 27-29 in Glendale, California. If the team continues to do well, they will earn a spot at the State Championships next month.
 
“We are really proud of our ambitious design this season. We chose a more mechanically complex robot architecture which plays into our strategy,” said team captain Zeo Pereira, a senior at Dos Pueblos High School.

Pereira said this year’s biggest challenge for the team is “meeting the weight restriction of keeping the robot under 115 pounds. The real test is how small, light, and efficient we can make it while still keeping it agile, consistent, and precise.”
 
Octobots is now ranked in the top 6% (312 out of 2,976) of FIRST Robotics teams in the U.S. Last year, Team Octobots was recognized by FIRST Robotics with the “Excellence in Engineering Award” and the “Rising All-Star Award.”
 
For more about Octobots Robotics Team 9084, visit www.teamoctobots.org. For more about FIRST Robotics, visit www.firstinspires.org/robotics/frc for more information.