press releases
Electrogator Robotics Team Competes in Nebraska's FIRST Tech Challenge Championship
(DESHLER, Neb.) – Congratulations to the Reinke Sponsored Electrogator Robotics team for achieving third place in Nebraska’s FIRST Tech Challenge Championship! This impressive event took place on Saturday, March 1, at the Metropolitan Community College in Omaha, and featured 13 teams from across the state.
Since the team's inception in 2017, Reinke has proudly supported the Electrogator Robotics team, providing students with opportunities to gain essential skills relevant to the tech industry. These experiences are invaluable and will greatly benefit students throughout their high school and college years, and as they transition into their future careers.
The Electrogator team secured several wins during scrimmages and the qualifying rounds, demonstrating their technical talent and teamwork which led them to finish with 5 wins in Omaha. The competition, themed "Into The Deep," consisted of two distinct periods. The first segment, known as the autonomous period, lasted 30 seconds, during which the robots operated independently without any driver control. The second segment, lasting two minutes, was the teleoperated period, where students actively controlled the robots. During this time, they maneuvered their robots to retrieve and score samples, hang specimens, and achieve points by parking in designated zones or ascending rungs.
This year's dedicated team members included Jaydin Mackey, Haylyn Mackey, Gavin Endorf, Trinidi Oswald, Johnnie Zucker, and Kaidan Robinson. The team was expertly guided by coaches Will Baden, Mike Oswald, and Mandi Oswald.
Russ Reinke, First Vice President at Reinke Manufacturing and a proud sponsor of the team, expressed his commendations by saying, “Congratulations to the ELECTROGATOR Robotics team for their placement at the state meet. We are all very proud of you. You did an outstanding job representing Reinke and we are thankful for that. We look forward to next year!”
The top two teams from Nebraska will advance to the 2025 FIRST Tech Challenge Championship in Houston, scheduled for April 15-19, 2025. Although next year’s competition will require the design and construction of a new robot with different specifications, the experience gained from working with Reinke Manufacturing and competing against other top-tier teams will undoubtedly enhance the students' abilities to collaborate and innovate.
For those interested in learning more about the competition, please visit ftc-events.firstinspires.org. If you or someone you know is interested in joining the Electrogator team, please email [email protected]. This is open to all 7th-12th grade students in the surrounding area.
About Reinke Manufacturing: With hundreds of dealers in more than 40 countries, Reinke Manufacturing is the world's largest privately held manufacturer of center pivot and lateral move irrigation systems. Family-owned since 1954 and headquartered in Deshler, Neb., Reinke develops products and technology designed to increase agriculture production while providing labor savings and environmental efficiencies. Reinke is a continued leader in industry advancements as the first to incorporate GPS, satellite-based communications, and touchscreen panel capabilities into mechanized irrigation system management. For more information on Reinke or to locate a dealership, visit Reinke.com or call 402-365-7251.
Since the team's inception in 2017, Reinke has proudly supported the Electrogator Robotics team, providing students with opportunities to gain essential skills relevant to the tech industry. These experiences are invaluable and will greatly benefit students throughout their high school and college years, and as they transition into their future careers.
The Electrogator team secured several wins during scrimmages and the qualifying rounds, demonstrating their technical talent and teamwork which led them to finish with 5 wins in Omaha. The competition, themed "Into The Deep," consisted of two distinct periods. The first segment, known as the autonomous period, lasted 30 seconds, during which the robots operated independently without any driver control. The second segment, lasting two minutes, was the teleoperated period, where students actively controlled the robots. During this time, they maneuvered their robots to retrieve and score samples, hang specimens, and achieve points by parking in designated zones or ascending rungs.
This year's dedicated team members included Jaydin Mackey, Haylyn Mackey, Gavin Endorf, Trinidi Oswald, Johnnie Zucker, and Kaidan Robinson. The team was expertly guided by coaches Will Baden, Mike Oswald, and Mandi Oswald.
Russ Reinke, First Vice President at Reinke Manufacturing and a proud sponsor of the team, expressed his commendations by saying, “Congratulations to the ELECTROGATOR Robotics team for their placement at the state meet. We are all very proud of you. You did an outstanding job representing Reinke and we are thankful for that. We look forward to next year!”
The top two teams from Nebraska will advance to the 2025 FIRST Tech Challenge Championship in Houston, scheduled for April 15-19, 2025. Although next year’s competition will require the design and construction of a new robot with different specifications, the experience gained from working with Reinke Manufacturing and competing against other top-tier teams will undoubtedly enhance the students' abilities to collaborate and innovate.
For those interested in learning more about the competition, please visit ftc-events.firstinspires.org. If you or someone you know is interested in joining the Electrogator team, please email [email protected]. This is open to all 7th-12th grade students in the surrounding area.
About Reinke Manufacturing: With hundreds of dealers in more than 40 countries, Reinke Manufacturing is the world's largest privately held manufacturer of center pivot and lateral move irrigation systems. Family-owned since 1954 and headquartered in Deshler, Neb., Reinke develops products and technology designed to increase agriculture production while providing labor savings and environmental efficiencies. Reinke is a continued leader in industry advancements as the first to incorporate GPS, satellite-based communications, and touchscreen panel capabilities into mechanized irrigation system management. For more information on Reinke or to locate a dealership, visit Reinke.com or call 402-365-7251.