More than 1,200 students from 50 high schools from Long Island, New York City and Brazil participated in School-Business Partnerships of Long Island’s (SBPLI) 14th Annual Long Island Regional FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition, which took place April 5-6 at Hofstra University’s David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex (Arena) in Hempstead. Teams received honors and recognition that rewarded design excellence, competitive play, sportsmanship and high-impact partnerships among schools, businesses and communities.

“All teams demonstrated tremendous teamwork, gracious professionalism and strategic thinking, but these winners went above and beyond to overcome the challenges of the competition,” said Ginny Greco, FRC Director of SBPLI, sponsor of the Long Island Regional FIRST Competition. “The fun and excitement of the competition was evident as many students, professional mentors, school groups and community members caught the spirit and came to cheer on their favorite teams as engineering and technology at work surpassed the excitement of a championship athletic event.”

With the hope of winning one of several coveted awards, high school students worked with professional mentors to design, program and build a robot over a six-week timeframe using a "kit of parts" and a standard set of rules. The students gathered to compete with their robots in this year’s game “ULTIMATE ASCENT SM,”in which two Alliances of three teams each attempted to throw as many flying discs into their goals as possible during the two-minute, 15-second match. Discs thrown into higher goals scored Alliances more points. Matches ended with robots attempting to climb up pyramids located near the middle of the field.

Winners of the Long Island Regional Awards include:

Award

Winner

Musical Performance Award

Team 810, Smithtown High Schools, Smithtown, NY

Imagery Award in Honor of Jack Kamen

Team 3950, North Shore High School, Glen Head, NY

Rockwell Automation Innovation in Control Award

Team 533, Lindenhurst High School, Lindenhurst, NY

Xerox Creativity Award

Team 1751, Comsewogue High School, Port Jefferson Station, NY

Delphi Engineering Excellence Award

Team 329, Patchogue-Medford High School, Medford, NY

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers Entrepreneurship Award

Team 1601, Aviation High School, Long Island City, NY

Judge’s Award

Team 3624, Half Hollow Hills Central School District, Dix Hills, NY

General Motors Industrial Design Award

Team 369, William E. Grady Technical High School, Brooklyn, NY

Motorola Quality Award

Team 871, West Islip High School, West Islip, NY

Johnson & Johnson Gracious Professionalism

Team 263, Sachem, Lake Ronkonkoma, NY

Chrysler Team Spirit Award

Team 564, Longwood High School, Middle Island, NY

Rookie Inspiration Award

Team 4458, Center Moriches High School, Center Moriches, NY

Rookie All Star Award **

Team 4567, Seaford High School, Seaford, NY

Highest Rookie Seed Award

Team 4567, Seaford High School, Seaford, NY

Underwriters Laboratories Industrial Safety Award

Team 2638, Great Neck South High School, Great Neck, NY

Regional Finalist #1

Team 527, Plainedge High School, North Massapequa, NY

Regional Finalist #2

Team 369, William E. Grady Technical High School, Brooklyn, NY

Regional Finalist #3

Team 1751, Comsewogue High School, Port Jefferson Station, NY

Regional Winner #1**

Team 1796, Queens Vocational and Technical High School, Long Island City, NY

Regional Winner #2**

Team 358, Hauppauge High School, Hauppauge, NY

Regional Winner #3**

Team 3171, Westhampton Beach High School, Westhampton Beach, NY

Regional Engineering Inspiration Award**

Team 353, Plainview-Old Bethpage High School, Plainview, NY

Regional Chairman’s Award* **

Team 358, Hauppauge High School, Hauppauge, NY

* The Chairman’s Award is the most prestigious award of the event and recognizes the team that embodies the goals and purpose of FIRST and best represents a model for other teams to emulate.

** These teams are eligible to participate in the FRC Championship that will take place April 24-27 at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, MO.

SBPLI named Terri Hovanec, a longtime volunteer at the Long Island FRC, and Mary Anne Sadowski, Principal, Ingerman Smith, LLP, as its Volunteers of the Year. The Fred Breithut Award went to Nick Panzarino of Westhampton Beach High School Robotics Team #3171. Catherine Temps, mentor for the Hicksville High School Robotics Team #1468, received the Regional Woodie Flowers Award. Winners of the Dean’s List Finalist Award were Alexandra Smaldone of the Patchogue-Medford High School Robotics Team #329 and Dylan Wagner of the Plainedge High School Robotics Team #527.

Other major sponsors for this year’s competition were Motorola Solutions Foundation, Festo Corporation, Hofstra University, School Construction Consultants, Inc., BAE Systems, Northrop Grumman, Stony Brook University, Farmingdale State College, Schenck Trebel Corporation, and Estée Lauder Companies.

Coverage of the event appeared in both Newsday and Newsday.com, as well as on Fios1, WLNY TV 10/55, and News 12 Long Island.

Newsday: Going Toe to Toe, But With Robots, 4/7/13

Newsday.com: LI Students Vie in Robotics Competition, 4/6/13

FiOS1 Long Island: 14th LI Regional FIRST Robotics Competition Held, 4/6/13

TV 10/55: 14th Annual Long Island Regional Robotics Competition, 4/5/13

News 12: High School Students Compete in Robotics Competition, 4/5/13