This past weekend, the Friarbots attended the third annual Orange County Regional at UCI. More than 50 teams of students brought the robots they built and programmed. The students were able to practice on the competition field in the first days of the regional, fine turning their robots. A machine shop was open to the teams. Qualifying matches started Friday and the finals were Saturday afternoon. Teams earned points as their robots successfully completed tasks in video-game themed matches.
The Friarbots went 10-0-0 and ranked 1st among 52 teams. After allying with Team 3476 (from Irvine) and Team 6955 (from Chile), Team 3309 became OC Regional Finalists in the playoffs. FRC Team 3309 had one more accolade to acquire: they earned the Regional Chairman’s Award. The Chairman’s Award is the most prestigious award in FIRST Robotics, and the OC Regional’s twenty judges recognized the Friarbots’ dedication and selfless service to others by giving them this distinctive honor. The Chairman’s award also qualifies the team to compete at the World Championships in Houston, Texas.
Another accolade was presented to Director of Robotics, Mr. Evan Smith. Mr. Smith received the volunteer of the year award for his leadership and contributions to the Robotics Program. Congratulations to Mr. Smith & Service Friarbots!
