PEQUOT LAKES — The Pequot Lakes High School robotics team will advance to world competition in Houston after winning the FIRST Robotics Northern Lights Regional Competition on March 2-5 at the Duluth Convention Center.
The team qualified for the 2022 FIRST Championship slated April 20-23 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas.
A total of 55 teams competed in the regional event representing Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota and North Dakota.
The Championship Regional Match can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDCG4bg7TkM&t=180s . The Pequot Lakes High School robotics team name is the “Patriotics” and numbered 5913.
Students from all over the world get seven weeks to build the robot, from the time of the game reveal to regional competitions.
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“This year, the students have put an extraordinary amount of time into preparing for competitions. They have spent countless hours after school and every Saturday for the last two months designing, building and improving the robot to prepare for competitions,” Pequot Lakes High School robotics Coach Keith Lumley said in a news release. “Robotics is a great way for students to learn new ways and strategies for problem-solving and building.”
The team is “thrilled” and “excited” to compete in world championships. Mitchell Morrison, a Pequot Lakes senior, has been in robotics for four years.
“This year, we have built the best robot in this team's history," Morrison said in the news release. "The regional competition was fun to be a part of as it was good to get back in the swing of competition, since it was canceled last year. It was fun to get back and win. We are excited to go to Houston and compete in World’s.”
After high school, Mitchell plans to be a pilot for the military.
Junior Dana Hammer has participated in robotics for three years.
“I love participating in robotics because everyone has a place. There are so many facets to robotics, such as building, marketing and graphics. It’s amazing to see the final product in competition because everyone has worked so hard and has a piece in it. Robotics is a great place to facilitate a love for engineering,” Hammer said.
She plans to pursue engineering after high school.
Senior Chase Jackson has also participated in robotics all four years at Pequot Lakes High School.
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“The whole event was a roller coaster," Jackson said. "We were dominating the competition in the first practice matches and then struggled a little at the beginning of the competition. We ultimately pulled out the victory at the end.”
Jackson said this year's team is down in numbers from about 40 students his freshman year to 24 students this year. The team practices after school for about two to three hours, although the last three weeks they have met until 9 p.m., he said. A typical Saturday practice is from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Jackson plans to major in mechanical engineering at the University of North Dakota after graduation.
The Pequot Lakes High School robotics team includes Aaron Barnes, Levi Barnes, Aiden Birch, Dana Hammer, Aron Hushagen, Tyler Hushagen, Chase Jackson, Mason Jackson, Cooper Johnson, Eli Johnson, Hunter Johnson, Teagan Johnson, Avery Larson, Brody Lawrence, Ethan Lundgren, Mitchell Morrison, Michael Neumann, Carter Nolan, Charlie Schiessl, Parker Schott, Jacob Schroeder, Cole Sposito, Lucas Taylor, Cordaye Yetzer and Wolfgang Yetzer.
“FIRST Championship is a culminating, international event for our youth robotics competition season and an annual celebration of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) for our community as we prepare young people for the future,” according to the FIRST website.
