Millburn Push Back Competition (2025)
At the 2025 Millburn Push Back Competition, rookie Team 4611S arrived with nerves, excitement,
and zero expectations — except maybe to just not break anything.
Qualifications
From the very first match, we made a statement. Our autonomous program, simple but rock-solid,
scored one block every time. Not flashy, not high scoring, but consistent — and in VEX,
consistency counts.
- Each auton hit its single block perfectly.
- Drivers cycled efficiently, placing blocks in goals and snagging zone points.
- Every match ended with a win.
By the end of qualifications, rookie 4611S had gone undefeated, finishing 6th out of 63
teams — a jaw-dropping result for our first competition.
Elimination Rounds
Elimination was tougher. Against more experienced teams with optimized auton routines and
aggressive strategies, we faced challenges:
- Our single-block auton, though reliable, wasn’t enough to counter opponents scoring 7+
blocks and winning AWPs.
- Defensive play and fast cycles from veteran teams outpaced our rookie coordination.
We fought hard but ultimately lost in the first elimination round. Still, for a rookie squad,
this was far from a failure — it was proof that we could hold our own under pressure and execute
cleanly every time.
Takeaways
The story of 4611S at Millburn wasn’t about winning trophies, although we won the VEX V5
Middle School Excellence Award. It was about rookie confidence (going 6–0 in
qualifiers), auton mastery, and competing with the top tier.
Robot Revolution Invitational: Middle School Only (2026)
January 2026 - February 2026
At this invitational, skills scores were as important as match wins. High skills scores define a
team's potential independent of alliance dynamics.
League #1 (Weeks 1–2)
Team 4611S started off steady. We played 4 matches, winning 3, showing early consistency. In
driver skills, we scored a solid 20 points, establishing a baseline. The bot performed reliably,
and we utilized this league to iron out minor bugs.
League #2 (Weeks 3–4)
Performance ramped up. We went 3–0 in matches and set a personal record of 81 points in a single
match. Skills scores jumped to 34 (driver) and 20 (auton), reflecting improved precision. We
finished our "Ruiguan" front-back bot setup during this time.
League #3 (Weeks 5–6)
The bot’s debut in League #3 was spectacular. We opened with an 81–16 victory, setting a record
winning margin of 55 points. Auton routines hit 2 out of 3 attempts, scoring 3 balls. We went
3–0 in matches, dominating this portion of the competition.
Eliminations
Team 4611S chose team 4611A as our alliance partner. In the first elimination match, we shocked
the field by knocking out the third-strongest alliance. In the finals, we narrowly missed the
championship, losing 33–35 by a single block to the top-seeded team.
Takeaways
- Remarkable growth over six weeks, improving from a baseline to dominating matches.
- Consistent skills improvement reflecting precision and reliability.
- A finals loss by one block proved we are one of the most strategically sound rookie teams.