The Krypton Cougars, a robotics team composed of high school students from the Hershey and Palmyra region, had a very successful season, qualifying to compete in the 2023 FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) World Championship in Houston, Texas.

The competition, which ran from April 19 to 23, involved more than 600 teams from more than 25 countries. Leading up to worlds, the Krypton Cougars had taken first place in their first two competitions of 2023, then at the districts championship competition the team climbed to first-place alliance captain for the finals rounds. As alliance captain, the team chose two additional robots (teams) to be part of its three-robot alliance that competed in each subsequent finals match against other three-robot alliances. In the Mid-Atlantic District Championships, the Krypton Cougars were an alliance captain in playoffs and were ranked first for individual performance. The team finished as finalists and scored the highest unpenalized score of the competition.

Worlds was marked by fierce competition, with a tremendous amount of damaging hits taken by all of the robots. A lot of the losses came from robots breaking down or falling over. The Krypton Cougars' robot, however, was one of the most resilient robots on the field, successfully competing in 16 matches and suffering minimal injuries.

The team successfully finished its first day of the competition ranked first out of 77 teams in its field. Other first-day rankings, based on wins and points scored, included 12th-best robot in the world out of more than 3,000 robots; 11th in the United States out of more than 2,500 robots; first in the Mid-Atlantic District out of 127 robots; and first in Pennsylvania out of 58 robots.

During the second day, the team suffered its first loss in a close match against two of the top teams. The final score of this match shifted the Krypton Cougars into third place. However, the team had an upset win in a match in which the Cougars had a predicted 40% chance of winning. Team members also persisted through a second highly disadvantaged match and, although they lost, they scored enough points to secure the ranking of first rank and first alliance captain.

The third day consisted of alliance selection and the playoff rounds. The Cougars' first-ranked alliance worked its way through the bracket without suffering a loss, securing a spot in the division finals. In the finals, the Krypton Cougars alliance was up against the second-ranked alliance. The Cougars had previously beaten this alliance, tallying a personal high score. The Cougars' alliance won its first match of the finals with a new personal high score. However, the alliance suffered unanticipated mechanical issues and it ended as division finalists.

The Krypton Cougars finished the 2023 season as the first-ranked team out of the 77 world-ranked teams on the field and a season record of 58-15-0. This was the team's best-ever year in its 16-year history.

For more information about the team, visit http://www.team2539.com or http://www.facebook.com/FIRSTTeam2539 or email kryptoncougars2539@gmail.com.