Robotics teams from Seymour Middle School and Seymour Intermediate School competed Saturday at Immanuel Lutheran School in Seymour.

SMS coach Amy Jo Miller Kuzel said five teams made it to the finals.

Seymour Intermediate Team 3113F, MacKenzie Denton, Perla Perez, Tonantzin Roblero and Leonardo Mendez, placed sixth, earning them a spot in the finals, where they placed second.

“Their robot was light on its wheels for speed and could lift multiple cubes into the intake, transport and dispense,” Kuzel said. “I have watched this team build during their practices, and they have this special spark. These team members have such an amazing positive attitude, determination and they work hard at their engineering and innovation. I look forward to seeing what they bring to the next tournament in a couple weeks.”

Coach Joseph Burnette said the team had good notes and good teamwork.

“This team is extremely helpful to the teams around them,” he said. “When they had all of their members and noticed another team who was missing two, they sent someone from their team to help. Interesting fact, they were my team No. 7 when I made my rubric. Had I kept my team to six, they would have been cut.”

SMS Team 3138E, Logan Garcia and Caydyn Parks, placed second to earn a spot in the finals. Together with Immanuel Lutheran Team 520D, Emersyn Dailey and Daniel Neawedde, they placed first and earned the Teamwork Champion award, which earned them a spot in the Indiana Robotics State Championship on March 23 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

“Their bot was able to intake, lift, transport and drop the cubes into the goal while playing a light sensor pattern and music from the brain Logan Garcia programmed,” Kuzel said. “It was entertaining while the crowd was quiet, the referees were tallying scores, all you could hear was this little mighty robot playing a tune for you while you wait. Logan spent countless hours learning how to program and work on this bot. Caydyn had a crash course driving the bot today and learning the controller. He became a strong driver and team member today. As a team, they brought home the win.”

SMS Team 3138B, Gavin Murphy, Noble Hare and Cruz Gaspar, placed fourth to compete in the finals, where they placed third.

“Their robot would intake several cubes at a time, lift, transport and dispense the cubes into a goal,” Kuzel said. “What is unique about this bot is their programming. While Noble and Cruz focus on their driving skills, Gavin team leads the programming. They can earn 15 points autonomously driving, and they have a game plan to improve this for the next tournament. Most teams do not have programs written, and this is a skill that many teams need and are working on to get to the next level. Gavin, Noble and Cruz are seasoned players that work hard in their innovation, engineering and programming.”

SMS Team 3138F, Dafne Dominguez, Jazzlyn Cravens and Anniston Rennekamp, placed fifth that earned them a spot in the finals. There, they placed second with Seymour Intermediate Team 3113F. Their robot also would intake several cubes at a time, lift, transport and dispense the cubes into a goal.

“This girl power team has overcome a lot of adversity,” Kuzel said. “Several teammates have dropped out throughout this season. They bonded together to redesign their bot a couples time, including taking it apart two days before competition. These girls seized the moment, and it was crunch time to get the job done. They were so successful at working together and putting in extra hours harnessing Owl power.

“Dafne and Jazzlyn are seasoned players, and while Jazzlyn designs and Dafne troubleshoots all issues, Anniston is learning the ropes,” Kuzel said. “Anniston spent hours of her eLearning Day engineering the intake. The girls collaborated endlessly and have shown tremendous eighth grade determination.”

SMS Team 3138C, Lillian Westmoreland, Ellie Maynard and Ashley Reyes, placed seventh to earn a spot in the finals, where they placed fifth.

“Their robot would push cubes strategically to earn points,” Kuzel said. “This girl power team has done amazing in their fight to achieve success. Lillian and Ellie are seasoned players, and Ashley is learning the ropes. Lillian engineers and designs, Ellie drives, motivates and helps with the engineering notebook and Ashley has become a stellar driver and creative engineering notebook leader.”

Their robot was meant to lift several cubes, but Kuzel said there were some challenges with the motor placement and the lift.

“This seventh grade girl power team is ready to redesign and implement their ideas at this week’s practice,” the coach said. “I am so impressed with their abilities and determination to win while being amazing team members to others. Their positive attitude shines through the adversity.”

Kuzel gave special appreciation to Seymour High School robotics team members Kayla Baker, Hannah Baker, Alejandro Perez, Taylor LeBlanc, Micah Yee and Kellan Stanfield for volunteering to help run the tournament.

“Our Seymour High School team members learned how to run matches, skills test, use their software a bit, mentored all our Seymour Owls of all grade levels and collaborated more with our competition and host Immanuel,” Kuzel said. “This program would not be as strong as it is if it weren’t for all our community’s high school team members. We even learned that Micah Yee makes a great emcee. He entertained and educated the crowd on not just what was going on in the matches but the formal rules, as well. We truly have amazing talent with our young people.”