Before Spring Break, the Hybrid Hornets brought home another regional competition win from Mason High School that locked in their spot at State competitions. Their performance at states, however, was a mixed experience.

Mason High School

The competition at Mason High School went much the way Kettering’s competition played out for an underdog win.

After day one, they had mixed results when it came to alliance wins, but they had played well enough to attract the attention of higher ranking teams with their defensive strategies.

They were matched with “The Feds” from Rochester High School and “The Fast Team” from Fowlerville in the third ranked alliance, and became the first number three ranked alliance in the world to win an event.

When asked what got them the win, Junior Jack Sidebotham said it came down to getting picked by the third rank alliance.

“[It was] the power of scouting.” said Sidebotham.

When the higher ranking teams do their research and pay attention during competitions, they can see the teams with potential regardless of their ranking.

Senior Jacob Callahan gave more credit to their playing ability.

“We were doing what we needed to do and were doing it well.” said Callahan.

States

This was more of a challenge for the Hybrid Hornets.

Because of the more refined pool of competitors, the team was playing against two or three top scorers at a time, rather than one, and because they’re only one robot, they could only shut down one at a time.

Team 5150 made it through their 12 qualification matches with a final rank of 39th, but were ultimately not selected to be on an alliance.

This was a disappointment, but their last match was a satisfying one, referred to as a “unicorn” because they completed the rare feat of earning all four possible ranking points.

On the last day of competitions, team 5150 earned the Judges’ award, designated to a team that deserves recognition for what they’re doing.

Callahan isn’t entirely sure what it was for, but speculated his focus on building the program and preparing for future seasons earned some respect from the judges.

As a senior, this is Callahan’s last year on the team, so his focus has been on transitioning the program to the next group of team members, but he is still willing to help.

“I’ll help where I can, remotely.” said Callahan.

Then the question becomes who the team is being passed down to.

Upcoming team members include current juniors Jack Sidebotham and Chianne Miles, and current freshmen Joey Stallman and Omari Lowe.

Sidebotham is preparing to take up the unofficial leadership role.

“There’s kind of been a role of team captain, said Sidebotham, “I’m really excited to see what next season brings.”