Two local schools go to championships, RoboCats gets world-class - WFMJ.com News weather sports for Youngstown-Warren Ohio

GIRARD, Ohio - Canfield and Girard high schools Robotics Teams are headed to the World Championships.

Nearly 550 students at Girard High School lined up on Tuesday night, all in support of the "RoboCats;" members of the Girard Robotics Team.

A group of 30 students poised with the potential to be ranked the best in the world as they head to compete in the World Championships in St. Louis.

"I think it's really exciting," says freshman robotics team member, Kada Williams. "I've never seen the school come together this much. Everybody's so supportive and so excited."

This team began building a robot in January using what they've learned to construct a successful model that works.

The group has already been honored with two regional championships, and they're hoping their skills and teamwork will give them the winning edge as they compete this week against 398 other teams from all over the world.

"They must determine their offensive and defensive strategy and then design, build and program, as well as prototype the robot, and test it. And they just have a 6-week time frame to do that," says head coach of the robotics team, Judy Barber.

Senior and four-year member of the team, Kelsey Snyder, says, "Just learning what we used in calculus, math, science, all of our classes, it's really fun. It's a different experience than any other sports team."

Along with the support of their teachers, and classmates, the community has played a major role in getting the RoboCats to this point.

Residents helped them raise $30,000 for the effort, and it's paying off for these students with real-life experience in making a product work.

"It's amazing. I'm in cheerleading, soccer, I do a little bit of everything, and by far this is the most rewarding thing," Williams says.