The Liberty High School Robotics Team, the Robo-Lions, participated in the Chesapeake Regional Competition, March 19-21, at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis.

The team placed second in the competition and won the General Motors Industrial Design Award and recognition for an outstanding safety program.

The competition was sponsored by FIRST (For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), an international organization that involves nearly 200,000 high school students.

FIRST introduces a new engineering game challenge every year and teams have six weeks to design and build a robot to accomplish the task.

This year's game, "Lunacy," required robots to take special balls and throw them into baskets pulled by other robots. The game commemorated the 40th anniversary of the moon landing.

Liberty scored 142 points and holds an international record for most points scored in one match, besting scores from teams in countries such as Great Britain, Chile, Israel and Canada.

The team scored second in the qualifying rounds of the competition, remaining undefeated for almost two days straight, and then only losing the first place position by a matter of a few points.

In the finals, an elimination tournament among the top eight robots, the Robo-Lions breezed through the first round, won soundly in the second, and lost by only three points in the finals.

The Robo-Lions also received the General Motors Industrial Design Award, which celebrates form and function. Judges included representatives from engineering companies such as BAE and Lockheed-Martin, as well as the new Secretary of the Navy. According to the judges, "This team's robot roared like a lion!"

Robo-Lions attending the competition were: Aaron Carteaux, captain; Kelly Heyden, public relations chair; Glenn Maskell, drive team; Nick Canada, junior captain; Nick Caviglia, drive team; Robert Doyle, Zach Huff, Shashvat Patel, Andrew Pearman, Becky Rubin and Michael Young, CAD lead; Adam Degenhardt, scouting lead; Brittany Flanagan, Alex Hazlett, Andy Horn and Pat Marsden, drive team; Johnathan Mayo, programming lead; Katie Miles, pit captain; Alex Bratchie, Alex Elliott and Preston Fuller, safety officer; and Sam Young.

The team is mentored by teachers Jim Deitrich and Rose Young with help from Mark and Heather Goldman, Mark Eastman, Glenn and Diane Maskell, Bob and Jeanne Mayo, Larry Rubin, Matt Carteaux and Wayne Fuller, among others.

The team also thanked its sponsors, NASA, BTR Capital Group, VoiceMetrix, Carroll County Public Schools, Bowles Fluidics, TreSys, Verizon, the Baltimore Area Alliance, Waganer Digital Video and Signature Special Event Services.

For more information on the team, see www.robo-lions.org.

"Lady Pirates" -- Oklahoma Road Middle School students will present the musical, "Lady Pirates of the Caribbean" by Craig Sodero. The play will be performed Friday, April 3, and Saturday, April 4, at 7 p.m. Tickets are $6 (students need a signed permission slip) and may be purchased in the main office. No tickets will be sold at the door. Contact Kate Ferguson, teacher and Drama Club sponsor, at 410-751-3600 for more details.

"Rocky Redbird" in flight -- The Carrolltowne Elementary Cardinals welcomed their first mascot, Rocky Redbird, at the Fifth-graders v. Faculty basketball game on Feb. 26. The mascot costume was purchased after a PTA fundraiser at Ledo's Carrolltowne night.

Students voted on the mascot name and Rocky Redbird won with 43 percent. Other names in contention included Soarin', Carroll Cardinal, Big Red and Charlie Cardinal.

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