by Rebecca Berggren | Apr 7, 2025 | Blog, sacramento
The FIRST Robotics Competition Sacramento Regional, held March 14-17, 2025, featured 34 teams and 1,100+ students from California.
Feel free to download and share any of these photos. You can tag FIRST California at @firstroboticscalifornia on Instagram and use hashtags #FIRSTinCA, #morethanrobots, #omgrobots, #REEFSCAPE and #FIRSTDIVE.
LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!
The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the San Diego Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 16-19, 2025.
FIRST Impact Award
The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.
The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture. The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.
This year’s winning team has built a remarkably sustainable program, empowering students year after year to excel in STEM fields. With an impressive outreach program that has reached over 6,000 students, they’ve partnered with local schools and a museum to spark curiosity — even creating a memorable yellow bug robot for children to explore engineering concepts. Known for their unwavering commitment to promoting women in STEM and proudly representing their red, white, and blue colors with the strength of true patriots, this team’s impact has left a lasting mark.
- Team 4135, Iron Patriots from Modesto, CA
Engineering Inspiration
The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school or organization, and community. Inspiring others to respect science and technology requires passion, knowledge and commitment, and we recognize these qualities through this award. This team will advance to the Championships.
This year, the Engineering Inspiration Award is presented to a team that has truly exemplified what it means to be an ambassador of STEM education in their local community through numerous impactful outreach efforts. This team has engaged in a wide variety of initiatives that have significantly advanced not only their program but have had quantifiable impact with many students in their community. This team have SWOOPED down from their NEST and impacted over 3000 students, significantly raising awareness about the importance of STEM. Their commitment to inclusivity ensures that every student, regardless of their background or abilities, has the opportunity to explore the exciting world of engineering. They partner with local schools, providing mentorship and guidance to younger students. They have host numerous outreach events, including FLL tournaments, co-host an off-season FRC competition, developed a six week summer camp for low-income, minority families, and a program to educate students with disabilities centered around STEM and robotics. For their outstanding commitment to fostering a love for engineering and technology within their community, and for their unique and impactful outreach programs, we are proud to present the Engineering Inspiration Award to Team 2073, EagleForce.
- Team 2073, EagleForce from Elk Grove, CA
Regional Winners
- Team 1678, Citrus Circuits from Davis, CA
- Team 254, The Cheesy Poofs from San Jose, CA
The Dean’s List Finalist
In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.
- Aarav P, Team 199, Deep Blue
- Yunah B, Team 6665, C-Otters
Woodie Flowers Finalist Award
FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.
In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.
Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.
- Kenneth Davis – Team 3598, SEStematics Eliminators
Additional Awards
Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Sacramento Regional! See the list here.
by Rebecca Berggren | Apr 10, 2024 | Blog, sacramento
Congratulations to the 38 teams PLUS all the mentors, volunteers, sponsors, friends, and family members from all over California, Hawaii, Chinese Taipei, and China who participated in the FIRST Robotics Competition Sacramento Regional from March 13-16, 2024.
We were honored to have guest speakers from California GovOps, the Department of Technology, Elk Grove Unified School District Board, and our generous sponsor PG&E, who brought invaluable insights and support to the event. Additionally, we were delighted to have the Sacramento Bee out to help highlight the incredible talent and hard work of all involved. You are find the coverage here.
We’d like to extend an immense THANK YOU to all the sponsors, mentors, and volunteers who contributed to this very successful Regional. Your dedication and support are what make this event so impactful.
We hope you too had a memorable experience and are inspired by the creativity and innovation demonstrated by all the teams. Thank you for making the Sacramento Regional a resounding success!
AWARDS
FIRST Impact Award
The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.
The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture. The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.
Engineering Inspiration
The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community. This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.
- Team 4159, CardinalBotics from San Francisco, CA
Regional Winners
-
Team 604, Quixilver from San Jose, CA (Championship Qualifying Award)
-
Team 254, The Cheesy Poofs from San Jose, CA (Championship Qualifying Award)
-
Team 4135, Iron Patriots from Modesto, CA
Dean’s List Finalist
In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.
- Jason M – Team 254, The Cheesy Poofs
- Angel F – Team 8048, HH East Palo Alto Churrobots
Woodie Flowers Finalist Award
FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.
In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.
Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.
- Bryan Cooley – Team 4159, CardinalBotics
Additional Awards
Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Sacramento Regional! See the list here.
by Rebecca Berggren | Apr 5, 2023 | Blog, sacramento
Attended by thousands of fans, families, educators and industry leaders, the Sacramento Regional awarded 16 teams with honors that rewarded design excellence, competitive play, sportsmanship and high impact partnerships between schools, businesses and communities. Held at the University of California Davis Pavilion at the ARC from March 16-19, 2023, 46 high school student teams competed to earn a spot at the FIRST Championship.
With the hope of winning one of the several coveted awards, high school students worked with professional Mentors to design and build a robot over a six-week period that solved a problem using a kit of parts and a standard set of rules, while also developing high-impact partnerships between schools, businesses, and communities.
Each team clearly demonstrated teamwork, professionalism and strategic thinking in solving the competition’s challenges. The noise level from the audience cheering on the teams was tremendous. Students, school groups, community members and professional team mentors filled the stands and helped to bring a level of fun and excitement to the competition. With the sustained support of the Sacramento community, this robotics competition will continue to grow and inspire students to study math, science and engineering.
LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!
The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Sacramento Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023
FIRST Impact Award
The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.
The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture. The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.
Engineering Inspiration
The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community. This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.
Regional Winners
- Team 254, The Cheesy Poofs from San Jose, CA
- Team 1678, Citrus Circuits from Davis, CA
- Team 3189, Circuit Breakers from Placerville, CA
Regional Finalists (wildcards)
Dean’s List Finalist
In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.
- Sanaya Bhasin from Team 1458, Red Tie Robotics
- Hongfei Liu from Team 6941, IronPulse Robotics
Woodie Flowers Finalist Award
FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.
In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.
Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.
- Ryan Cahoon from Team 766, M-A Bears
Additional Awards
Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Sacramento Regional! See the list here.
by Rebecca Berggren | May 4, 2022 | Blog, sacramento
Congratulations to the 44 Teams PLUS all the Mentors, Volunteers, Sponsors, Friends and Family members who participated in the Sacramento FIRST Robotics Regional Competition from March 23-26, 2022.
TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!
The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Sacramento Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 20-23, 2022.
Regional Chairman’s
The Chairman’s Award represents the true spirit of FIRST. It honors the team that best serves as a model for other teams to emulate and that embodies the goals of FIRST. It remains FIRST’s most prestigious team award. The Chairman’s Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants, school, and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season or school year. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture. The recipient will be invited to the FIRST Championship where it will compete for the Chairman’s Award against the winners from all the other qualifying events.
Engineering Inspiration
The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community. This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.
- Team 8033, Highlander Robotics from Piedmont, CA
Regional Winners
- Team 254, Cheesy Poofs from San Jose, CA
- Team 1678, Citrus Circuits from Davis, CA
- Team 5458, Digital Minds from Woodland, CA (wildcard)
Regional Finalists
- Team 973, Greybots from Atascadero, CA (wilcard)
- Team 7157, μBotics from Brea, CA (wildcard)
Dean’s List Finalist
In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.
- Emily Xia from Team 1678
- Peter Choi from Team 4904
Woodie Flowers
- Duane Murphy from Team 701
Additional Awards
Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Sacramento Regional! See the list here.
Support
An immense THANK YOU to all the sponsors, mentors and volunteers who contributed to this very successful Regional.
We hope you too had a memorable experience at the Sacramento Regional!
by Rebecca Berggren | Oct 28, 2019 | Blog, sacramento
Congratulations to the 59 Teams from California, Hawaii, Nevada, Idaho and China PLUS all the Mentors, Volunteers, Sponsors, Friends and Family members who participated in the Sacramento FIRST Robotics Regional from March 20-23, 2019!
ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!
The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Sacramento Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston in April.
Regional Chairman’s Award
Team 701, RoboVikes from Fairfield, CA
The Chairman’s Award represents the true spirit of FIRST. It honors the team that best serves as a model for other teams to emulate and that embodies the goals of FIRST. It remains FIRST’s most prestigious team award. The Chairman’s Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants, school, and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season or school year. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture. The recipient will be invited to the FIRST Championship where it will compete for the Chairman’s Award against the winners from all the other qualifying events.
What the judges had to say …
“With a solid, sustainable plan for in-house & outreach success, this team is the backbone of support for numerous FLL, VEX & FRC teams in their region. Maintaining a strong relationship with sponsors, they give business, technical & financial assistance to numerous First teams. This financial support also extends throughout the community to non-direct FIRST programs such as the District migrant educational school programs. Notably, they have mentored numerous Chairman Award nominees & regional alliance winners. Their respect within the community not only emphasizes the four values of FIRST but a dedicated willingness to “Always be there for Support ”.
The ship sails through rough seas, the journey is long & at times uncertain. Their Wind-swept sails are tightly rigged, the crew well disciplined – ready for the adventure ahead.. Even with a new captain, this Viking team’s course travels straight and true – their mission is just – encouraging others – knowing that they will follow.”
Engineering Inspiration
Team 3598, SEStematic Eliminators from Sacramento, CA
The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community. This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.
What the judges had to say …
“This outstanding team looked around their community in search of diverse opportunities to spread a passion for STEM. In multiple partnerships with community leaders and organizations, they provide opportunities to youth who have been underrepresented in STEM programs. Through an exciting STEM night, FLL, FTC, and FRC teams, and more than 35 workshops held in local libraries, they have systemically impacted youth in YMCA, the probationary department, and the society for the blind.“
Regional Winners
Team 1323, Madtown Robotics from Madera, CA
Team 1678, Citrus Circuits from Davis, CA
Team 3859, Wolfpack Robotics from Elk Grove, CA
Rookie All-Star Award
Team 7663, Sleuth Robotics from Fresno, CA
This award celebrates a 1st year team demonstrating an early but strong partnership effort, implementing the mission of FIRST. Its winner understands what FIRST is really trying to accomplish and realizes that technical work is fun and challenging, made better by building a partnership among team, community and school. This is not an easy challenge for a rookie team but the judges want to recognize and reward one team that got it right.
What the judges had to say …
“This small rookie team has already started to inspire students with outreach through FLL Programming Workshops. Their ability to solve problems on the spot is note-worthy of Sherlock Holmes. This robot sneaks by their competitors and fills the cargo ship.“
Regional Finalists
(Advancing to Championships because of a Wild Card)
Team 3250, Kennedy Robotics from Sacramento, CA
Dean’s List Finalist
FIRST Dean’s List Finalist – Katie Stachowicz from Team 1678
What the judges had to say …
“This student showcases leadership and an entrepreneurial spirit in everything she does. From leading relationships with sponsors to organizing any of her team’s most prominent outreach programs, without her the team would be unable to achieve such a high impact on the community.”
FIRST Dean’s List Finalist – Sarah Bergendahl from Team 701
What the judges had to say …
“This student exemplifies what it means to be a leader. Her skills in programming scouting software and effective communication with sponsors and team supporters through a monthly newsletter are a few examples of her impact on both the team and the local community.”
In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List.
This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.
Woodie Flowers Finalist Award
Randall Lam from Team 1458, Red Tie Robotics
Additional Awards
Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Sacramento Regional! See the list here.
Press
Link to the above video and article here.
First place and more awards for Citrus Circuits
Kaprekar’s Constants compete in Sacramento Regional 2019
Support
An immense THANK YOU to all the Sponsors who contributed to this very successful Regional with funding, mentors, volunteers and enthusiasm! Regional Sponsors include the Brin Wojcicki Foundation, UC Davis College of Engineering and the US Army.
We hope you too had a memorable experience at the Sacramento Regional. We’d love to hear your stories. Please consider sharing them with us here in the comments below or on our facebook page. Photo and video links welcome!
