A robotics team from Plymouth will soon have the chance to represent the state at this year’s VEX Robotics World Championships in Anaheim, Calif. April 22 – 26, going toe-to-toe with 400 top teams from cities and countries around the world as the boys look forward to the chance to improve upon last year’s quarterfinal tournament run.
The 2014 VEX Robotics Indiana State Championship Competition was held Saturday, March 1 at Stonybrook Middle School on the east side of Indianapolis. Josh Kuhn and Kennedy Schnieders, comprising the RoboNinjas, entered the competition as defending 2013 Indiana State Champions.
The RoboNinjas, determined to defend their title, tied their first match and easily won out their remaining ones. They ended the qualifying rounds with a 5-0-1 record and had advanced themselves in the rankings to the top spot.
Quarterfinals, however, started off a bit rocky as the RoboNinjas faced some technical difficulties, ultimately losing the first match by 10 points. The boys handily outscored their challengers in match three, avoided the upset, and advanced to the semifinal rounds.
After winning the first match in their semifinal, the RoboNinjas again had technical difficulties in match two, forcing them to play match three. But, just as in the quarterfinals, the RoboNinjas bounced back and took the match easily, advancing to the finals.
The RoboNinjas easily bested their final challenger on the day, winning the first two matches and giving the team an unprecedented second straight title as Indiana State Robotics Champions.
