This past weekend, the Central Minnesota Robotics Conference Championships took place at Big Lake High School, with 25 teams competing for the conference title.

The event kicked off Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. and ran until about late afternoon.  In the end, the ROCORI Ratcheteers, The Coalition of Independent Students (Becker Robotics), and SpudInc (Big Lake Robotics) emerged with the conference title honors. 

The day started off hot for Becker, as the locals went 3-0 in qualification matches before lunch.  Becker would go on to a 5-1 record in the preliminary rounds, losing only in a tough matchup where both teammates suffered connection issues, ranking them second to ROCORI. 

For alliance selection ROCORI picked Becker up with the first overall pick, from there it was a clear cut choice to pick up the Big Lake team to round out the #1 ranked alliance. The trio made a quick run to the finals, winning two matches in the top of the double elimination bracket against the #4 alliance (123-65) and the #2 alliance (118-92). The #2 alliance consisting of STMA, New London-Spicer, and St. Francis came back to meet the #1 alliance in the finals. In final match number one, the #2 alliance brought a new strategy in to win that first match by just one point giving them the advantage in the best of three series. 

The #1 alliance persevered to win final match number two by three points with a minor adjustment to their strategy tying up the series at 1-1. In a thrilling final match,  Becker and its partners prevailed by 18 points and became conference champs, making Becker back to back winners of the event.

According to Becker coach Alex Jurek, the Central Minnesota area is a hotbed of quality teams. 

“At this tournament there were four former state champions competing: Becker, New London-Spicer, ROCORI, and Dassel-Cokato,” Jurek said.  “The finals were as competitive and exciting as they could have been.”

Jurek went on to explain the rivalries that have been built in robotics, with similar foes creating a great deal of excitement.

“This was a fun experience just due to our alliance partners as everyone knows how competitive Becker is with ROCORI and Big Lake in all things,” Jurek said.  “For us to team up with these two incredible and well-coached teams made for a great atmosphere as we competed together through the playoffs.”

Jurek lauded his team members, noting their strong start to the season.

“I couldn’t be more proud of my team, as we are a little smaller than usual, but this group of seniors is starting to grow into new leadership roles,” Jurek said.  “There will be a lot of opportunities for younger and new students for this coming season, no experience necessary!”

Registration for FRC4607, Becker’s varsity team, will be on Tuesday, November 12 at 7 p.m. in the small auditorium at the high school.