For the second year in a row, a robotics team of Santa Cruz County high school students earned third place at the prestigious MATE ROV Competition World Championship, held June 19-21 at the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary in Alpena, Michigan.
The Hephaestus Robotics Team, part of the Santa Cruz COE X Academy Robotics Clubs, competed against 39 high school teams from 12 countries in the Ranger Class.
“Collaboration and perseverance are qualities that this team consistently exemplifies, and they were the qualities that allowed us to win,” said Sophia Casalletto, CEO of Hephaestus Robotics and a rising junior at Pacific Collegiate School. “This experience has been pivotal for me as a person, an engineer, and as a leader. It taught me how powerful a motivated, collaborative team can be, and I’ll carry that with me long after the competition. I am so proud of this team and of everyone’s contributions and growth.”
The Robotics Clubs program, now in its second year, is a partnership between the Santa Cruz County Office of Education and nonprofit X Academy. It offers high school students from across the county hands-on experience in designing, building, and piloting underwater robots—at no cost to participants. This year, 52 students 
from 17 schools participated in weekly build sessions in Watsonville and Santa Cruz, guided by 14 volunteer mentors.
“The MATE competition gets more challenging every year, and this team continues to rise to the occasion,” said Tim Sylvester, X Academy founder. “We’re proud to be the only team to place in the top five for three consecutive years—a testament to how well our students mentor and develop new team members. With a strong group of returning students, I’m excited about the future of this team.”
The MATE ROV World Championship challenges students to solve real-world marine conservation and technology problems, from tracking invasive water species, identifying shipwrecks and lost cargo, and maintaining solar and offshore wind energy infrastructure. The Hephaestus Robotics Team earned their place at the championship after qualifying at the MATE Monterey Bay Regional Competition in April.
“As the first in my family to be part of this robotics program, this experience was an opportunity of a lifetime and eye-opener for technology in my future,” said team member Carlos Ortiz-Lopez, a rising senior at Sequoia High School in Watsonville. “The team proved great ability working together to get us to third place. We gave it our all through hard work and dedication to get on the podium.”
Fifteen students from seven schools represented the Santa Cruz COE X Academy Robotics Clubs at the World Championship:
- Anthony Arguello, Sequoia High School
- Blaise Benoit-Corey, Santa Cruz High School
- Daphne Bingham, Pacific Collegiate School
- Sophia Casaletto, Pacific Collegiate School
- Rowan Delander, Sapphire School
- Arthur Guihaire, Santa Cruz High School
- Matthew Hofmann, Soquel High School
- Nathan Hofmann, Soquel High School
- Sam Imahara, Kirby School
- Nathanael Marcus, Soquel High School
- Bennet Menzer, Santa Cruz High School
- Carlos Ortiz-Lopez, Sequoia High School
- Arlo Tatum, Aptos High School
- Julia Tick, Pacific Collegiate School
- Amber Williams, Pacific Collegiate School
To learn more about the Santa Cruz COE X Academy Robotics Clubs, visit cs.santacruzcoe.org/robotics.