1028A and 1028T Compete Among the World’s Best at US Open

The US Open Robotics Tournament has quickly grown to the largest and most competitive robotics tournament in the world, drawing 138 teams from across the United States and beyond. While 122 represented the US, international competitors traveled from China, Canada, Kazakhstan, and Turkey to take part in the event. Unlike US and Canadian teams, who must qualify for the event through regional competitions and recognition, international teams are selected and invited to attend, adding a layer of global recognition to the event.

With such a large array of teams, the competition was split into four divisions: Red, Blue, Green, and Orange, each one containing high-level engineering, strategic gameplay, and intense matches. Across all divisions, teams were compelled to demonstrate not only on-field performance but also advanced technical knowledge in interviews. Brownell Talbot teams 1028A Washed and 1028T Toxic displayed both of these abilities, taking home both Technical Awards and Judged Awards. 

1028T Toxic competed in the Red division and quickly distinguished itself during the tournament’s rigorous interview process. Preliminary interviews were held via Zoom before the tournament date, and teams that provided a well-rounded overview of their teams, technical processes, and impact in and out of the lab advanced to the second round of judging, held on the first day of the tournament. During the second round of interviews, 1028T highlighted their team’s engineering excellence, programming knowledge, innovative logbook, and significant community impact. Their strong performance secured them an interview that focused heavily on programming. Judges examined their autonomous strategy, PID control, sensor integration, their unique method of documenting the programming process, and rounded it off with outreach efforts directly tied to furthering programming knowledge throughout Nebraska.

Their efforts were rewarded with the Amaze Award, recognizing the team’s overall excellence in engineering and design.

On the field, 1028T advanced to the divisional quarter finals with alliance partner 2448W Samuryq. However, their elimination run ended under difficult circumstances when 2448W Samuryq became stuck on an odometry wheel, limiting the alliance’s ability during a difficult match. Despite the setback, the 1028T’s overall achievements and award recognition marked a highly successful tournament.

Meanwhile, in the Green division, 1028A Washed, delivered one of the strongest performances of the tournament, winning their division with alliance partner 5813R Allen Keys.  After such intense elimination matches, 1028A secured their spot against Red Division’s 7868A ISLANDERS and 95071V Saratoga High Velocity. Both alliances battled it out in a best-of-three match schedule, where both alliances seemed evenly matched. During the first round, 1028A took home a decisive win, demonstrating an in-depth understanding of game strategies and outmaneuvering 868A ISLANDERS and 95071V Saratoga High Velocity, effectively descoring any game elements of the opposing color. Facing a formidable alliance that included 7686A ISLANDERS and 95071V Saratoga High Velocity, 1028A fought to maintain momentum but ultimately lost the second match to a close 43 – 53, and a third deciding round 29 – 42, finishing the tournament as division finalists. 

From intense interviews to high-pressure elimination rounds, the US Open tournament continues to highlight the expanding scale of robotics’ competitiveness. Both 1028A and 1028T demonstrated the resilience, innovation, and adaptability that define elite robotics teams. 

Awards:

Excellence Award – 7405R Millburn Riptide (Millburn High School – Millburn, New Jersey, United States)

Tournament Champions – 95071V Saratoga High Velocity (Saratoga High School – Saratoga, California, United States)

Tournament Champions – 7686A ISLANDERS (Tiger Robotics – Harrisburg, South Dakota, United States)

Tournament Finalists – 1028A Washed (Brownell Talbot College Preparatory School – Omaha, Nebraska, United States)

Tournament Finalists – 5813R The Allen Keys (Abraham Lincoln High School – Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States)

Tournament Semifinalists – 2567P Porta-Botz! – Particle Effect (Portage High School – Portage, Indiana, United States)

Tournament Semifinalists – 499R Razer Edge (Mundelein Cons High School – Mundelein, Illinois, United States)

Tournament Semifinalists – 91416N SWAT (Wahoo Robotics (Saunders Catholic Schools & Wahoo Public Schools) – Wahoo, Nebraska, United States)

Tournament Semifinalists – 95071X Saratoga High Extremity (Saratoga High School – Saratoga, California, United States)

Design Award – 6104G Tempest – (Shorecrest Preparatory School – St. Petersburg, Florida, United States)

Robot Skills Champion – 59218B Cedar Grove Panthers (Cedar Grove High School – Cedar Grove, New Jersey, United States)

Robot Skills 2nd Place – 7009X //Xcceleration// (Tech360 – Suwanee, Georgia, United States)

Robot Skills 3rd Place – 7405R Millburn Riptide (Millburn High School – Millburn, New Jersey, United States)

Amaze Award – 1028T Toxic (Brownell Talbot College Preparatory School – Omaha, Nebraska, United States)

Judges Award – 22204V Vanguard (Wylie High School – Wylie, Texas, United States)

Innovate Award – 66954A Circuit Girls (Ponte Vedra High School – Ponte Vedra, Florida, United States)

Think Award – 95071X Saratoga High Extremity (Saratoga High School – Saratoga, California, United States)

Build Award – 7686X Phoenix Rising (Tiger Robotics – Harrisburg, South Dakota, United States)

Sportsmanship Award – 2501S Shenanigan’s (Thomas Jefferson High School, Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States)