The Bosch sponsored FIRST Robotics Team 342 was very successful this year at the Florida Kennedy Space Center Regional competition. The team arrived on Thursday to set up the pit area and make a few practice runs with the robot. The team soon discovered that the goals were different from the ones we had used for practice. We quickly made the changes to allow for a better capture of the goal by the robot. This was a key factor for the success of our playing strategy.

On Friday, the team was ready to begin the qualifying matches, and the robot was working according to our plan. Our playing strategy was to cross the bridge to capture the goal from the other side then return to capture the other goal on the starting side and fill the goals with the balls. In addition, the robot would balance with the goals on the bridge in under 60 seconds, which would give us a large multiplier to our score.

As the games began, each team was sure that their robot was the best and they could provide the highest score. There was a learning curve for everyone as we utilized our communication and negotiating skills to reach agreement among the alliance partners. The first two games were low scores for our team as we posted an 80 and a 90. The third game aligned Team 342 with three other teams that gave us a chance to show what we could do. Team 342 quickly crossed the bridge, captured the goal and returned to the starting side of the field to capture the other goal. Our robot also has the capability to control the bridge position for the other teams to cross over. We positioned the bridge so the other robots could cross and they quickly made their way to the end zone. We then balanced our robot with the 2 goals on the bridge with more than 30 seconds remaining. The match score was 336 which was the highest score of the day. The crowd roared with excitement and our pit area was filled with people afterwards shaking our hands and kissing and hugging our robot . We had earned the credibility we needed. Thanks to our alliance partners, we continued to capture goals and balance bridges for the remainder of the games. This flawless execution of a brilliant strategy took our team to the number one seed position.

During the Friday afternoon Awards Ceremony, Team 342 won 2 Judges Awards. A Judge stopped by afterwards to let us know that winning two Judges Awards by one team was not common and couldn't recall it ever having happened before throughout the 10 year history of the FIRST Robotics Competitions. The awards Team 342 earned on Friday were the Leadership in Control Award, for the ability to balance on the bridge consistently, and the Imagery Award, for the professional appearance of our robot, pit area and team members.

On Saturday, our team was ready to get started. Each game we played was a repeat of high scoring. Team 342 finished the qualifying with an average score of 259 points per game. This placed us finishing as the Number One Seed for the Regional.

The alliances for the Final Matches were preset by the seed ranking. Our alliance partners were selected and fierce competition filled the Saturday afternoon. Incredible plays were every where. After the dust had settled, our alliance finished in Second Place for the Regional Competition.

The Saturday Award Ceremonies were good to Team 342 again as we were awarded another trophy for Incredible Play Award. This award means a great deal to Team 342 because it is decided by the teams at the competition voting for the best play of the competition. Overall, Team 342 earned 5 trophies at the Kennedy Space Center Regional Competition. The Chrysler Team 34 recognized Team 342 with a Bridge Master Award forbeing able to control and balance the bridge. Thank you Team 34 for your recognition and the beautiful plaque that we have on display. Team 342 enjoyed playing in alliance with each team and would like to thank you for the contributions you made to make each match so successful.