The 2017 Holton-Arms Robotics Team participated in BotBall: a competition where 24 schools in the DMV area attempt to accomplish difficult tasks on a game board. Typically, Holton has been the only all-girls team, but that does not stop them! Starting in November every weekend, Holton's dedicated girls programmed and constructed two robots that participated in the competition.
The objective of BotBall is to program a robot that completes a task to obtain points. Whichever team's robot(s) manage to rack up the most points wins the overall competition. Every year, the theme of the board changes. While last year's theme focused on space, this year's theme is agriculture, with obstacles like hay stacks, cows, seeds and a water tower. Teams collect and sort items for various points, picking up and depositing them in various places on the game board.
This year, they started with planning and construction strategies, which could earn the most points possible, including avoiding obstacles, collecting "seeds" (pom-poms), and successfully traveling through the board. Although they were faced with many setbacks, ultimately, the 15 Holton girls exemplified the Holton motto "find a way or make one."
The robotics team consists of girls from new freshman to returning seniors with varying skills and jobs. For example, the girls have varying tasks such as programming the robots to do certain job, constructing the physical robots, and arguably the most important, documenting the process. Documentation is a recording of every day's progress. It must be submitted throughout the season and affects the overall score. In addition, the team collaborates to develop elegant solutions to difficult challenges. Using their problem solving skills, team members communicate with one another in offering various solutions to design and programming issues. Luckily, every girl gets the chance to try each role and can pursue the one she is most comfortable in. The team's dynamic ensures everyone partakes in a task that leads to the success of the final goal.
The current Robotics Team's presidents are four year veterans Christine Baca '17 and Sarah Greisdorf '17. Baca and Greisdorf exclaim, "I remember being a freshman and looking up to the seniors. They had so much wisdom, and I couldn't imagine myself in their shoes. Now, as a senior, I'm excited to pass on the legacy to the current freshman."
These future STEM leaders' hard work paid off on April 1, 2017 at the 2017 Greater DC/Virginia BotBall Tournament at Annandale High School where they won the Award for Outstanding Documentation, the Spirit Award, and fifth overall in the competition (the highest they've ever placed)!
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