[SkitzoSmurf]

I would not blame the coincidence on FIRST. There were MANY good teams at UTC, and picking the best partners was very tough. It all depends on the choosing teams strategy. For example my team has a meeting and ranks each team to our specifications, and then ranks whom we wish to pick first, followed by the next ranking team in case our first choice is picked by someone else.
Also, the game this year ranks team by their number of wins, AND THEN qp's. This may be a flaw in FIRST, but I still wouldn't point fingers. I mean, if your team wins all of their matches, GREAT, but if you won by only five points or so, not so impressive, however that puts you up in the ranks. I think teams don't look at ranks, but at qualities, and effectiveness. And if it's not up to their standards, or isn't as great as other teams, your lower on the list to pick from. Now I'm saying this in general to give an example, and have nothing whatsoever against your team. I saw you guys out there, and you were good, so I don't know what happened. On a second note; the alliance captains of the top seeded teams did not seem to be prepared or aware of the alliance choosing rules, so this might have also had an impact on why your team wasn't chosen. I don't know what happened out there. This is a one time instance for your team, and it just happpens. I am sure that your team won't be on a streak of bad luck, so cheer up, and good luck in the future!