The annual Bellarmine Bay Area VEX robotics tournament took place November 22-23, during which the Bells hosted hundreds of attendees from 60 teams, 41 high schools, and 18 middle schools, all competing for a chance to qualify for the VEX California State Championships. Bellarmine (and Team 254) alumnus Andrew Torrance ‘15 was Master of Ceremonies, and recent alum (also a former Cheesy Poof) Andy Herbert ‘19 was a referee.
According to Ann Johnson, moderator, “For three of our teams, 254W, 254X and 254B, this was their first tournament of the season. As far as results go, teams 254W, 254D and 254F advanced to the elimination round. Teams 254W and 254D partnered together to form an alliance, making it to the Round of 16. Team 254F partnered with Redwood Robotics (Team 95070B from Redwood Middle School in Saratoga), advancing all the way to the semifinals. Although not a win this time out, a strong showing for our team. There is no better test for a team than competing with some of the best robots in the area, and as I listen to our students while we clean up post-tournament, there is a lot of brainstorming on what modifications and refinements they want to make in preparation for our next tournament on December 21.”
Johnson added her thanks to the many volunteers - students, teachers, staff, alumni, parents, mentors and industry professionals - who joined together to make this event possible, with special thanks to Brad Lindemann, “the force behind this tournament,” and to Sachin Salgaonkar and Brian Jeung for their respective roles and efforts.