Science met showmanship this weekend as 30 teams of high schoolers from across New England battled each other in a FIRST Robotics Competition on the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth's campus.

In the competition, named “Stronghold,” robots stormed castle walls in front of a cheering crowd inside the Tripp Athletic Center Saturday and Sunday.

Loud music, announcers and a large screen televising the action pumped up the crowd. Many spectators wore costumes and held up signs spurring on their favorite teams.

“We strive to create a fun, exciting environment for the teams to compete that’s closer to a sporting event than a science competition,” said Event Manager David Givens.

That said, he noted that advancing sportsmanship is high on the list, too.

“We promote gracious professionalism,” Givens said, meaning that teams are encouraged to help competitors with repairs before a match up should a robot break down.

“Teams realize that a fair match is more satisfying,” Givens said.

The event, part of the New England Division FIRST Robotics Competition, featured 750 high school competitors, including the SouthCoast Corsairs.

Made up of students from five area high schools, the Corsairs are a brand new team that placed well in its first outing.

The team made it into the quarter finals and received the Rookie All-Star Award and the Highest Seeded Rookie Team Award. It placed 17th overall in the event and earned a record of 5-8-1 over two days. The Corsairs will advance to the New England District Championship, set to begin April 1 in Boston.

The Corsairs, alongside all other teams, had six weeks to design and build their robots from scratch before the event.

Those robots were then set loose in a 50-foot long, 25-foot wide enclosed arena. Using controllers, the opposing teams attempted to weaken, breach and capture their opponents tower. To accomplish those tasks, rubber ball “boulders” were snatched up by the robots and launched at the castle walls.

UMass Dartmouth hosted one of 10 qualifying district events within the New England FIRST Region. Of the 30 teams, 14 were from Massachusetts, five were from Rhode Island, 10 were from Connecticut and one was from Vermont.

Founded in 1992, FIRST Robotics is a nonprofit dedicated to inspiring youths to become leaders in science and technology.