Top Tier Robotics Team 'Mechannibalism' wins Middlebury Tournament, qualifies for State

Four Top Tier teams compete at 'Torque or Treat' event; next competition hosted locally Nov. 14

A Top Tier Robotics team has qualified for the Indiana VEX Robotics State Championships after winning the "Torque or Treat" Robotics Tournament in Middlebury on Saturday.

Team 34543M, known as "Mechannibalism," won six of their eight qualifying matches to earn a second-place ranking overall. They partnered with the top-seeded team 7701Z, "Zero Gravity" from Zionsville, and battled through the elimination bracket to reach the finals.

The finals pitted Mechannibalism and their alliance partner against an all-Middlebury alliance consisting of teams 55760R "Rubber Duckies" and 55760V "Vulcan's Flame." After close calls and fierce play, the referees ordered a replay.

Mechannibalism came out as an early scorer in both finals matches while their partner handled defense. At one point in the second match, Mechannibalism faced both opposing robots in a battle for control of the scoring zone — but the Top Tier driver dominated the zone despite the pressure, leading to a final score of 142 to 30.

Olivia Wandland, an eighth grader at Lincoln Junior High who serves as the team's notebooker and is competing at the high school level this season, was impressed with her team's performance.

"I'm really proud of what we did today," Wandland said. "We're going to work even harder now and try to do this again at State."

Top Tier brought three additional teams to the tournament:

• Team 34543Z, "Zingbots" — Won five of their eight qualifying rounds to make the elimination bracket and posted the fifth-highest Robot Skills score of the event. Team builder and coder Hayden Barnhart said, "We knew our robot had more potential after our first tournament. Our Skills score proves that our hard work of refining our driver practice and coding is paying off." The team has been named one to watch as the competition season continues.

• Team 34543R, "RoboPhish" — Had the distinction of handing Mechannibalism one of their only defeats of the day. The team built a challenging design that is expected to be highly effective once perfected.
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• Team 34543Y, "Robo-Armor" — Made their debut appearance after finishing their robot in just a few hours to be ready for the competition. The team squeaked into the elimination bracket with a record of three wins and five losses.
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"I'm incredibly proud of our performance today," said Top Tier Head Coach Jed Wandland. "Each team was able to give themselves a moment to shine and show their potential. These kids are going places, and I look forward to seeing where their hard work takes them. I'm glad that we've been able to provide a space where they feel supported and that they can make their goals reality."

Top Tier Robotics will next compete on Saturday, Nov. 14, when they host a tournament at St. Michael's School. The event is free and open to the public.