A Question on Sportsmanship

[Marc P.]

If this thread is referring to what I think it is, then the match in question was in the finals. The finalists were 571, 61, and 1100 on one side, with 181, 126, and 178 on the other. As I recall, 571 and 61 played match 1, and won. The rules state that each robot in an alliance must play at least one match. 61 and 571 had already played, so both could not play in match 2. I'm not sure what happened on 1100's end (I think due to technical difficulties they couldn't get their bot ready in time), but they were unable to field their robot for match 2. From what I heard, it sounded like the question was asked whether 61 could play the second match. I guess the refs enforced the rules and said no, 61 could not play with 571, because both had played in the previous match. I was sitting at the scoring table with Dez, so I didn't hear any of the conversations, but I think the head ref got on the mic to explain what was happening.

What happened then was an incredible show of determination on 571's part... In match 2, two robots vs. one, the score ended up tied, 70-70 (571's amazing ball handling enabled them to score enough balls to counter a hanging robot and 4 balls from the other alliance). In the finals though, ties are not allowed. A match that ends in a tie must be replayed- so the match didn't count as anything for either side. By the time that match was over though, 1100 was ready for action, and stepped in for match 2 second edition. As I recall, 181, 126, 178 won that match, something like 85-70 (Interestingly, 571 and 1100 scored the exact same number of balls as 571 did themselves in the previous match).

So ultimately 571, 61, and 1100 took match 3 (don't remember the score), and ended up winning the first Beantown Blitz. The whole day was filled with exciting matches- especially the eliminations. Even though we didn't see any high score records (highest score was 180), the matches were filled with more than enough offensive and defensive action to make them exciting! Kudos to all the teams involved, and to Erin, Aidan, Dez, Tom, and all the volunteers who made it such a great event!