This weekend, Texas Torque traveled up to St. Louis, Missouri for the final event of the FIRST Robotics Competition season — the FIRST World Championships. The team was excited to attend the championship event for the fourth year in a row, having triple-qualified for the championship this year via the previous World Championship, a Regional Chairman’s Award, and a “wild-card” at the Lone Star Regional.

After the fourteen hour bus ride, Texas Torque team members spent time in both work and play, taking time to enjoy the city in the midst of competition responsibilities. A group of our students and mentors took short walk over to the famed Gateway Arch for some pictures and relaxation before the first day of competition. We were glad to see FIRST take the city by storm; in every restaurant and attraction, another FIRST Robotics Competition team could be found leaving their mark. The Edwards Dome itself was bustling with over 400 FRC teams preparing their robotics for inspection, running practice matches, and generally enjoying the sights, sounds, and attractions of the FIRST World Championship.

The much-anticipated qualification rounds began with excitement, and Texas Torque won their first four qualification rounds handedly. Every member of the team was excited to play with and against some of the best teams in the world. While the first day of qualification matches ended with an astounding 4-1-0 record, communication issues with the robot plagued our performance in the second day, leading to a final qualification record of 6-4-0 and a final ranking of 31 out of 100.

Upon alliance selection, Texas Torque was chosen as part of the 5th seeded alliance, playing with FRC 2590 (Nemesis), FRC 1625 (Winnovation), and FRC 3467 (Windham Windup). The elimination matches were easily the most intense matches that we played during the 2014 season, and in a riveting final match with the 3rd seeded alliance, Texas Torque came out on top of the Archimedes Division, making this the team’s 2nd year in a row advancing to Einstein Field. On Einstein Field, the Archimedes Champions faced off against a powerful alliance led by FRC 254, The Cheesy Poofs, losing against the eventual 2014 World Champions.

Overall, the team is ecstatic with their performance at the World Championship. We would like to congratulate FRC 254, FRC 469, and FRC 2848 for their inspiring play on the field and their new status as the FIRST Robotics Competition World Champions. We would also like to congratulate FRC 27, RUSH, for their induction into the FIRST Hall of Fame and their sustained influence on the FIRST community. Many thanks to our alliance partners for a fantastic run, and to all of the hardworking individuals and organizations that made this Championship possible.