Get Excited About Robotics, or GEAR, is a program Frenship elementary and middle school campuses participate in each year. Students work alongside coaches to prepare for competitions by building and coding robots using LEGO Mindstorms and EV3 robotics systems. Through the program, students strengthen their skills in engineering, collaboration, coding, and problem-solving.
This year’s challenge, Mars Station Scramble, tasked teams with designing robots capable of completing a variety of space-themed missions. Students had to program their robots to navigate the game board, complete station objectives, and earn points through precision and strategy.
A total of 149 elementary teams and 208 middle school teams competed this season. In each division, only 28 teams earned invitations to the championship event in Lubbock on April 25.
Frenship students delivered strong performances throughout the competition season, earning top placements and specialty awards. Awards recognized excellence in areas such as coding, engineering design, teamwork, creativity, and overall game performance.
The Programming Award honors teams that demonstrate strong coding knowledge and innovative robot design, while the Young Engineers Award highlights students’ ability to explain the engineering process behind their robot creation. The Pinnacle Award is presented to the team with the highest single-game score, and the Judges Award recognizes teams that complete one of the most difficult challenges of the day.
Below are the placements and awards for the Frenship teams.
Elementary Division
- Oak Ridge 3 – 1st Place
- Crestview 3 – 2nd Place
- Upland Heights 1 – 3rd Place
- North Ridge 1 – Young Engineers Award 1st Place
- Willow Bend 6 – Young Engineers Award 2nd Place
- Westwind 4 – GEAR Head Award
- Upland Heights – Programming Award
- Willow Bend 4 – Judges Award
Middle School Division
- Frenship 2 – Programming Award
- Heritage 6 – Pinnacle Award
- Heritage 8 – Judges Award
Teams qualified for the championship by placing first or second in tournaments with 20 or more teams, winning one of two Young Engineers Awards, or earning a wildcard invitation based on overall performance scores.
Frenship teams advancing to the 2026 GEAR Lubbock Championships include Crestview 3, Oak Ridge 2, Oak Ridge 3, Ridgewood 4, Upland Heights 1, Upland Heights 3, Upland Heights 5, Westwind 5, Willow Bend 6, Willow Bend 1, Alcove Trails 1, and Heritage 6.
With the championship competition approaching, Frenship students are making final preparations and getting ready to showcase their robotics skills on one of the biggest stages of the season.
Good luck, students!