Striking Vikings wrap up competitive 2023 season

Downey High School’s first robotics team, the Striking Vikings, finished their 2023 competition season at the Hawaii Regional Tournament held in Honolulu, Hawaii last month, competing against an international field of 38 teams from Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, Australia and many Hawaiian teams. In fact, the Striking Vikings were only one of two teams from the mainland USA, the other being from Washington State. The Vikings ended up with a 4th place finish along with winning the Design Creativity Award.

The week before they left to Hawaii, they competed in the Utah Regional in Salt Lake City. They advanced to the semi-finals and ended up placing in 3rd place of 44 teams.

“This year was amazing being able to travel and compete against so many teams from all over the world,” said senior team captain Gio Aguirre. “This is something I’ll treasure for the rest of my life.”

Katrine Dagundon commented “I love going to competitions and giving back to the community when we go to the elementary schools. Being on this team is like being part of a big family.”

Senior and lead fabricator, Ismael Zuniga, stated that “being part of robotics was the best decision I’ve ever made. The skills I learned on this team will help me in my future goal to be an engineer.”

The team is advised by Downey High teacher Glenn Yamasaki and can be followed on Instagram @strikingvikings