{"id":227749,"date":"2026-04-11T17:06:25","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T17:06:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/227749\/"},"modified":"2026-04-11T17:06:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T17:06:25","slug":"watsco-center-hosts-south-florida-first-robotics-regional","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/227749\/","title":{"rendered":"Watsco Center hosts South Florida FIRST Robotics regional"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Watsco Center was filled with something other than basketball games on Friday. Students participated in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s campus in Coral Gables. The winners earn a spot to compete in Houston at the 2026 FIRST World Championship, which is the World\u2019s Largest K-12 Robotics Event.<\/p>\n

According to FPL, which was a sponsor of Friday\u2019s event, the 47 teams from South Florida, other parts of the U.S. and the world competed at regionals that included hundreds of high schools. The competition pairs high-school students with professional mentors who help them design and build robots. The matches that the robots compete in test their effectiveness. .<\/p>\n

\"Students Students from Team 79 Krunch and Team 4010 PrepaTec-Nautilus participate in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Madilyn Madilyn Myers, 18, left, and Julia Brooks, 17, both members of Electrotechs, a 4-H team from Western Pennsylvania, drive their robot, Project Digger, as their coach, Alex Caldwell, gives instructions during the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Cocoa Cocoa Beach High School students with Team 1592 Bionic Tigers participate in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Ismail Ismail Eruz, 15, left, and Burak Pektas, 17, both members of MASAL, a team from Marmaris Sabanci High School in Mu\u011fla, Turkey, drive their robot, Fairy Tale, as their coach, Ismail Pektas, gives instructions during the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Palm Palm Beach Central High School student Riley McLaughlin, 15, a member of the Bionic Broncos, pushes his team\u2019s robot, Bucky Barnes, as he and his team compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Middleton Middleton High School student Anderson Sears, 16, a member of Minotaur, works on repairing a wheel on his team\u2019s robot, Endeavor, as they prepare to compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Suncoast Suncoast Community High School students Jason Pitchford, 18, center, in green, and C.J. Crawford, 17, far right, drive their team\u2019s robot, SwampThing, as they compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Students Students from Team 79 Krunch, Team Robo-Rays Robotics and Team 1523 MARS (Mega Awesome Robotic Systems) participate in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Artiom Artiom Ryabkov, 20, a member of Kraken, a Polish team from Technikum New Technology, participates in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Student Student Ranfi Serra Guzman, 17, center, a member of Team Force from Comunidad Educativa Lux Mundi in the Dominican Republic, pushes his team\u2019s robot as they compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Palm Palm Beach Central High School student Kareem Ahmed, 18, a member of the Bionic Broncos, troubleshoots his team\u2019s robot, Bucky Barnes, as they prepare to compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Student Student Andre Ronquillo, 17, far right, a member of Nautilus from Tecnol\u00f3gico de Monterrey in Mexico, troubleshoots his team\u2019s robot, El Santo, as FIRST technical advisor Will Davies, center, assists before the team competes in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Student Student Andre Ronquillo, 17, left, a member of Nautilus from Tecnol\u00f3gico de Monterrey in Mexico, troubleshoots his team\u2019s robot, El Santo, as FIRST technical advisor Will Davies, center, assists before the team competes in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Ismail Ismail Eruz, 15, right, and Burak Pektas, 17, both members of MASAL, a team from Marmaris Sabanci High School in Mu\u011fla, Turkey, push their robot, Fairy Tale, before competing in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Students Students from Team 9404 Forge and Team 8859 Bora Robotics participate in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"William William T. Dwyer High School students with Team 1523 MARS (Mega Awesome Robotic Systems) participate in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Middleton Middleton High School student Anderson Sears, 16, right, a member of Minotaur, helps push his team\u2019s robot, Endeavor, as they prepare to compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"South South Dade Senior High School student Christian Diaz, 16, right, a member of Buccaneer Robotics, troubleshoots his team\u2019s robot, Placidusax, as they prepare to compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Middleton Middleton High School student Roshan Maha Balaji, 16, a member of Minotaur, wears various pins as he participates in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Coral Coral Park Senior High School student Erick Fernandez, 15, far right, a member of Ram Tech, waits alongside his team\u2019s robot, Rico, as they prepare to compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Dillard Dillard High School students with Team 108 SigmaC@T Robotics lift their robot after they participated in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Students Students from Team 6743 Tiger Engineering and Team 11267 MASAL participate in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"William William H. Turner Technical Arts High School student Shayna Smith, 17, right, a member of Iron Eagle Robotics, and her coach, Jervin Thompson, center, overlook their team\u2019s robot, Iron Ruckus, as they prepare to compete in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com \"Students Students participate in the 2026 FIRST Robotics South Florida Regional Competition at the University of Miami\u2019s Watsco Center on Friday, April 10, 2026, in Coral Gables, Fla. Participants from local school districts, surrounding states, and international teams are competing for an opportunity to earn a spot at the 2026 FIRST World Championship. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Watsco Center was filled with something other than basketball games on Friday. 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