Ten Seneca Valley students were on this year's FIRST Tech Challenge Team, including, top row from left, Zach Garcia, Coach Steve Fortunato, Dalton Reese and Jocelyn McNany. Bottom row, from left, are Kyra Rodgers, Bri Buccini, Jocelyn Krieger and Emily Richards.

The Seneca Valley Raider Robotics FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) team ended its season earlier this month with two trips to the semifinals and a second-place finish on Jan. 11.

Coach Steve Fortunato, an applied engineering and technology teacher, said the team worked tirelessly to prepare for all three of its state qualifying matches this year.

This was Seneca Valley's first year starting an FTC team. It consists of 10 students who signed-up as an advanced experience opportunity. FTC is designed for students in grades seven through 12 to compete head-to-head. Students design, build and program a robot to compete in an alliance format against other teams.

“We are now looking to grow our community outreach, develop workshops and camps for our future teammates and prepare for the 2020-21 season,” Fortunato said.