WildStang robotics team claims regional crown

The WildStang Robotics Team, made up of students from Rolling Meadows, Wheeling and Prospect high schools, claimed first place at a regional competition over the weekend, moving them one step closer to a chance at another national title.

The team went undefeated while competing among 50 teams from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Iowa, Ohio, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Ontario at the FIRST Wisconsin Regional held at U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee. FIRST, is an acronym for For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, an organization that encourages high school students to enter engineering and technology fields.

This year’s competition pits robots created by the students in a game called Logo Motion. In the game, two alliances of three competing teams use their robots to place inflated tubes shaped like circles, squares and triangles on racks. At the end of the match, mini robots are deployed by the host robot to climb a vertical pole for additional points.

The WildStang team was undefeated in 10 preliminary matches then, partnered with teams from Oshkosh, Wis. and Ontario, prevailed through the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals.

The team, based out of Rolling Meadows High School, includes 68 students mentored by engineers from Motorola. Most of the students on the WildStang team go on to engineering and technical careers.

The team will participate March 25 and 26 in the Midwest Regional at the UIC Pavilion, where they’ll face 51 teams from eight states and Istanbul, Turkey. The team also will attend the national championships April 28-30 in St. Louis.