Bluestone robot Skrappy qualifies for districts, petrifying team members’ prom dates

   The possibility of competing in the First Robotics Competition district finals in Northern Virginia a mere hours before Bluestone High School hosts prom on April 13 is not something senior robotics team co-captain Kyleigh Brown talks about much with his date.
   “I try not to bring it up,” he said.
   Bluestone’s Team 1413 and its robot, affectionately named “Skrappy,” qualified for the district championship April 10-13 in Fairfax, Va., by finishing among the top 58 teams in cumulative score at a pair of district qualifiers in March. Bluestone ranked 33rd out of 127 teams at the district qualifiers.
   Team 1413 then participated in a third competition March 29-31 to practice for the district championship and “just to make sure everything worked.”
   “It didn’t,” senior co-captain Jared Lejda said.
   Skrappy had connection problems early in the event and was ranked in the thirties among 34 competing teams for a good portion of the qualification matches.
   “It’s better to know now than at the big event,” Brown said.

   Through the hard work of its pit crew and sheer determination, the team eventually bounced back and qualified 15th at the warm-up competition. Team 1413 was then chosen for a three-team alliance by a squad from Maryland that also included the team from Glen Allen High School.
   Team 1413 went 3-1 on the second day of the event, setting a new record for itself in its first quarterfinal match by placing cargo and hatches in 10 cargo holds in the space-themed 2019 First Robotics game.
   “We had time for more, but there was nowhere else for cargo to go,” Lejda said.
   Advancing past the quarterfinals, Team 1413’s alliance was eventually eliminated in the semifinals.
   Team 1413’s next event will be the district championship. Team members are scheduled to leave for Fairfax on April 10.
   To keep its season going and qualify for the World Championship, Team 1413 will need to finish among the top 20 teams at districts. Lejda and Brown think it’s doable, noting they finished one rank away from qualifying for worlds as freshmen in 2016.

   The district finals are scheduled for 2:30-4:30 p.m. on April 13. As soon as Bluestone either wins or is eliminated, Team 1413 members will embark on the three-hour trip back to Skipwith to connect with their dates and attend prom, which begins at 8 p.m.
   Complicating matters in the already complex world of robotics competitions, Lejda said his tuxedo won’t be ready until Wednesday, April 10 – after the team is on the road to Fairfax.
   “That means potentially I won’t get to try it on till 7:30 on prom night,” he said. “I hope it fits.”
   

   Pictured: Through the hard work and determination of its pit crew, Bluestone High School’s robotics team and its robot, Skrappy, overcame a rough start to advance to the semifinals of its competition on March 29-31.