SUNY Poly held drone soccer national championship: Here's what happened

Edward Harris, Observer-Dispatch
·3 min read

A team from California took first place at the first-ever U.S. Drone Soccer National Championship event held Sunday at the Wildcat Fieldhouse at SUNY Poly’s Utica campus.

Sixteen teams of middle and high school students, ages 12 to 18, from four regional championships in Alabama, California, Colorado, and New York, competed for national honors and an automatic invitation to the International Championship and Exhibition in Denver, Colorado, May 8-11.

“The SUNY Poly Field House provided an awesome host location, right here, adjacent to all the activity in the New York State Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS) Test Corridor,” said Bob Payne, CNY Drones volunteer coordinator, in a statement.

A team from California took first place at the first-ever U.S. Drone Soccer National Championship event held Sunday at the Wildcat Fieldhouse at SUNY Poly’s Utica campus. Sixteen teams of middle and high school students, ages 12 to 18, from four regional championships in Alabama, California, Colorado, and New York, competed for National Honors and an automatic invitation to the International Championship and Exhibition in Denver, Colorado, May 8-11.

“New York State teams are growing at the fastest rate in the country. We plan on continuing to support educators choosing this great STEM sport as we ramp up for a second season this September.”

What is drone soccer?

U.S. Drone Soccer is an indoor "build, program and fly" sport that allows students to learn the technical aspects of unmanned aviation systems while holding interest through a fast-paced team participation.

It is played with flying quadcopters in protective exoskeletons designed for collisions.

Five-player teams fly inside a netted arena, where they ram and block an opposing team to prevent them from scoring.

Students who compete in drone soccer must first learn to build, program and repair the drones as a team.

Following a year of testing with students and teachers, a new drone was developed that could withstand the intensity of Drone Soccer and meet the needs of the modern engineering classroom. The resulting Drone Soccer Ball is affordable, durable, and easily repairable with simple tools.

Open-source software allows students to rebuild and reprogram the drone for depth of learning. Professional development training followed by access to a regional support network, helps educators and mentors find success with no prior experience.

About the national tournament

Lead organization, Drone Sports, Inc., was in attendance to run matches and provide video coverage, organizers said.

Drone Sports, Inc., based in Colorado, introduced drone soccer to the United States three years ago. It brought drone soccer national in 2021.

Aligned with the Academy of Model Aeronautics, U.S. Drone Soccer offers a STEM-based build program with a competitive sports model.

Officials said the national first place trophy went to Team Sato Red, from Sato Academy of Mathematics and Science, in Long Beach, California.

Second place went to the Sky-Blazers from Englewood, Colorado.

Team Sato White, also from Long Beach, took home the third-place trophy.

Locals in international competition

Mohawk Valley Community College’s GEAR UP Program Team, the Rome Free Academy (RFA) Black Knights, have accepted an invitation to travel to Denver for the international competition May 8-11.

Rome’s team placed fifth in Sunday’s national event.

U.S. Drone Soccer will also be featured in a presentation by the MVCC GEAR UP staff and community partners, CNY Drones, at the 2023 National Council for Community and Education Partnerships Conference this July in San Francisco. Drone team members will join presenters to demonstrate their skills and share their stories with other programs from across the country.

This article originally appeared on Observer-Dispatch: Drone soccer national championship in Utica: Who took home top prize