An alliance of robotics teams from Waialua, McKinley and Campbell High Schools took first place in the 2010 BAE Systems FIRST in Hawai'i Robotics competition, earning a bid to the national championships in Georgia next month.

Nearly 1,000 students representing 24 local high schools and four Mainland schools participated in the three-day competition that ended yesterday.

The final round of competition, held at the Stan Sheriff Center, pitted the Waialua-McKinley-Campbell team against an alliance composed of teams from Sacred Hearts Academy, Punahou High School and Honoka'a High School.

The two squads squared off in a head-to-head game of "Breakaway," a robotics version of soccer.

In addition to Waialua, McKinley and Campbell, four other robotics teams from Hawai'i have qualified to take part in the 2010 FIRST Championships: Kalani High School (Regional Chairman's Award), Kaua'i Island School (Engineering Inspiration Award), Ka'ū High School (Rookie All-Star Award) and Sacred Hearts Academy, which qualified based on its performance last year.

The Waialua team — dubbed the "Hawaiian Kids" — had already assured itself a spot in the championships with wins at the San Diego and Arizona regional competitions earlier this month.