Robotics Teams Surge Mid-Season: Middle Schoolers Clinch Top Honors, Upper School Builds Momentum

Belmont Hill’s Vex Robotics Teams are midseason and are having a great year. The competitive season began on campus for five Belmont Hill teams in early November with a local competition. Belmont Hill hosted nearly two dozen teams for the Vex “High Stakes” challenge. “The Robotics program has grown by leaps and bounds, doubling in size since last season,” said Director of Makerspace Matthew Ziff.  

In early December, the Form III and Upper School (US) Robotics teams competed at the WAVE at WPI signature event. The students competed admirably in an incredibly difficult tournament and ended the event in 42nd and 61st out of 80 of some of the best teams in the country. Teams will now focus on qualifying for the State Championships in February 2025. Earlier this season, the US Team (35075B), received the Innovate Award, which recognizes an effective and well-documented design process for a novel aspect of the team’s robot design or gameplay strategy. 

The Middle School (MS) Robotics teams competed in Framingham on December 7, 2024. The MS1 team (35075A), won the event outright, taking home both Tournament Champions and Excellence Awards, and coming incredibly close to a rare "triple crown," narrowly missing the Skills Champion award by just two points. Through this win, they have qualified for the State Championships, and are currently ranked #2 in the state, top 25 in the USA, and top 100 in the world out of approximately 2,000 middle school teams. The MS 2 team (35075C), also competed admirably, finishing in the semifinals after getting knocked out by the MS1 team, and taking home the Design Award.

The four competitive teams will now prepare to compete in tournaments throughout January and February, in advance of the State Championships. “The Makerspace is always packed with students building, coding, and practicing! “We are incredibly proud of the hard work of all the students and are looking forward to a strong second half of the competitive season,” said Mr. Ziff.   

About Belmont Hill Robotics
Vex Robotics at Belmont Hill offers both Club and Competitive teams for all students. Club teams meet once per week, while Competitive teams practice 3-4 times weekly in the Makerspace under the coaching of Mr. Ziff and Dr. Maureen Courtney.
About the Awards

About the Awards
The Design Award recognizes an organized and professional approach to the Engineering Design Process, project and time management, and team organization. Student demonstration of the Engineering Design Process is fundamental to the educational value of REC Foundation programs. The Design Award recognizes a team's ability to document and explain their Engineering Design Process via an Engineering Notebook and Team Interview. 

The Excellence Award recognizes overall excellence in both the Judged Award and the Performance Award categories. The Excellence Award incorporates all the criteria of the Design Award, plus the added component of a team’s on-field performance at the event. It is the highest award given at a Vex Robotics Competition.