Two Howard County Teams Excel at Robotics Competition

Howard County, Maryland - Two teams from Howard County won top honors at the For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) World Championship in Detroit in April. The Water BuffaLEGOS, based in Ellicott City, and the Einstein Narwhals, based at St. Louis School in Clarksville, competed against more than a hundred other teams and each ultimately won a Judges Award, recognizing their efforts to develop innovative solutions to problems plaguing firefighters.

The teams competed in the FIRST LEGO League (FLL) division, intended for children ages 9 through 14 in the United States. Each year the FLL organization introduces a real-world challenge, encouraging students to research, design, prototype and test potential solutions.

Out of more than 33,000 FLL teams, including 400 from Maryland, the Water BuffaLEGOs and Einstein Narwhals both won at regional and state competitions, earning the right to represent Maryland in the World Competition.

The World competition included over 100 FLL teams from the United States and 40 other countries. Teams competed in a series of events over the course of four days, culminating in a ceremony where each team was presented with their respective award.

While in Detroit, the teams realized they were geographic neighbors representing Maryland and subsequently cheered each other on, proudly displaying the Maryland flag. For more information contact Zulma Whiteford at zwhiteford@stlouisparish.org

Water BuffaLEGOS

Alex Patrone, Benjamin Yu, BJ King, Joshua Hull,
Nik Anna, Otto Schlanger

Coaches: David Schlanger, Laura Anna and David
Patrone

Einstein Narwhals

David Reed, Alex Sleeman, Sofia Fassolakis,
Kirsten Reed, Caroline Habiger, Gabrielle Lewis,

Marina Fassolakis and Maggie Reed

Coaches: Anne Reed and Jenn Sleeman