MSHSL Championship

The Minnesota State High School League Robotics Championship is sponsored by FIRST and Presenting Partner, the MSHSL. The season shall correspond with all dates and guidelines outlined by the FIRST Robotics Competition.

Each Minnesota-based FIRST robotics team will be eligible to participate in the MSHSL/FIRST State Championship held on Saturday, May 18, 2013 at Williams Arena, University of Minnesota. Teams will qualify for the event based on their performance at their initial FIRST regional competition.

Robot Requirements: Teams will follow all the rules and guidelines of the FIRST Robotics Competition. Each robot must pass inspection to be allowed into the competition. Teams qualifying for the MSHSL/FIRST sponsored State Tournament will be allowed 8 hours of work time used in a minimum of 2 hour increments between the last competition and the MSHSL/FIRST state event. The State Championship is a bag and tag event. Teams will document their work time as per FIRST rules for bag and tag events. Teams arriving without proper documentation or an unbagged robot can be disqualified at the discretion of the Lead Robot Inspector.

Team Membership: All students eligible for membership on a FIRST Robotics team will be eligible for the State Championship. Students must be in Good Standing as defined by MSHSL rules to participate. Exception: No students in grade 6 or under will be eligible.

MSHSL Eligibility Information Brochure: Prior to participation in the state co-sponsored event, every student and one parent/guardian must sign and return one copy of the Eligibility Information Brochure to the student's school or lead team mentor. All of the required MSHSL information and forms are here. The student and parent or guardian signature will certify they have read, understand and agree to abide by the information provided.

State Competition Format: Teams qualify based on their performance point total in their initial FIRST Regional competition. Click here for the qualifying entry point totals. The exception is for a Chairman's Award submission. By submitting at any Regional competition, the team will be awarded 10 points. A team winning a Regional Chairman's Award at any Regional competition automatically goes to the State Championship. For the 2013 State Championship, 30 teams will qualify. Teams will be notified of their qualification for the MSHSL Championship after completion of the FIRST Regional Competitions.

Alternate Teams: If, prior to the competition, any team is unable to participate, an alternate will replace that team. Teams must accept their invitation to the MSHSL Championship event two weeks prior to the event. If a qualifying team declines an invitation, the next highest qualifying team will be selected from the list of eligible teams.

General Conduct: Competing teams will exhibit the qualities of FIRST's Gracious Professionalism and competition in the spirit of "Coopertition".

Disputes: Any disputes arising during the tournament shall be reported to the Tournament Director for resolution.

Awards: Trophies will be given to the three teams in the Championship Alliance. To the members of the three teams in the Championship and the second-place alliances, each of these teams will receive (25) medals. A certification of participation (25) will be given to each team qualifying for the MSHSL State Tournament.

MSHSL Lettering Patches: The Minnesota Regional Planning Committee has made arrangements with Neff Co. for the production of our Minnesota FIRST Robotics Lettering Patches. Patches can be ordered in individual school colors. Patches look like this. Here is the pricing breakdown for the 3" patch: 

1-5 qty - $10.25/each

6-11 qty - $7.95/each

12-35 qty - $6.95/each

36-49 qty - $6.25/each

50 + qty - $5.75/each

Teams, please contact Tom Glynn directly. Specify your school colors. If your school has more than two colors, you can add a third color at no extra charge. This may be helpful in choosing a third color for the “R” in the design. All shipping and payment details are arranged directly with Tom at Neff Motivations Inc., tglynn@neffco.com. 952.388.3530. Website: www.neffco.com.