Woodbridge Robotics Team to Compete in California

By Carlos Castro, WSHS Engineering Teacher and Robotics Sponsor 

's burgeoning after-school robotics program gained more momentum this last Saturday as it captured the tournament title win at the VEX Robotics Washington, D.C. Regional Tournament.  WSHS sent all five of its squads to compete against 66 teams from Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania at the Potomac School in McLean, VA. 

In a daylong tournament filled with qualifications matches, skills challenges, and interviews with judges, Woodbridge teams held their own against some of the best talent in the Mid-Atlantic.  In the end, Woodbridge had three teams qualify for the elimination rounds: 1575C, 1575D and 1575E.

In the end, Team 1575C – operated by Micheal Salazar, Matthew Rheinstein and Madison Wilson – battled on to win the tournament and also the prestigious Excellence Award, deeming them to be the epitome of VEX robotics in terms of design, competitiveness, and professionalism.

With the win on Saturday, Woodbridge will now be sending three teams to the VEX World Tournament in Anaheim, CA in April.  There, they will compete against 300 plus teams from all over the world for the title of VEX Robotics World Champion.

Woodbridge's robotics program began as an effort of county school leaders to encourage students to explore science, technology, engineering, and mathematics as career options.  Early efforts in elementary school and middle schools have finally reached many of the county high schools.  Now, WSHS Robotics is in it's third year having started with only three students, it has expanded to over 30 students on five design teams and plans top grow beyond to other robotic systems.  Many of its members are also enrolled in WSHS's engineering program, Project Lead the Way.

There, they learn to challenge themselves by taking college paced engineering classes with the goal of eventually becoming engineering majors once they are in college and engineers once they graduate.

Next, Woodbridge Robotics travels to Richmond, VA to compete in the Central Virginia VEX Regional Tournament.  A win there will help seal their status as one of the new upcoming forces in VEX Robotics.