FTC League G
Nerd Herd 687 runs FIRST Technical Challenge (FTC) teams and competitions for students at the California Academy of Mathematics and Science (CAMS). This program invites students from 9th-12th grade to participate as part of one of our two FTC teams, Team 49 and 51.
FTC League G was created by CAMS in 2022 to hold FTC competitions on their campus. Its main purpose was to allow for the ease of transportation for teams in the Long Beach Area and move the competition day from Sunday to Saturday where most people are available.
Team 48:
FTC Team #48 NerdHerd Locked in, started their rookie year in FTC with strong accomplishments, competing in six competitions. This team placed 1st place at Socal FTC League G – Meet 0, 3rd place at Socal FTC League G – Meet 1, and 3rd place at Socal FTC League G – Meet 2. This team used a linear actuator to pick up the specimen and place them on the low rungs. This team also had two autonomous code that they ran at competitions pushing the samples into the zones. During Teleop, they also achieved level one ascent. During ILT, this team performed extraordinary defense against some great teams. However, we weren’t able to move on but we did get a second chance as we were invited to the Wild Card Tournament to prove ourselves one more time. At the Wild Card Tournament, FTC 48 Locked received the 2nd place Think Award for amazing FTC portfolio and documentation. After the 2025 Into the Deep Season, CAMS has decided to discontinue Team 48 from FTC and give more help to Teams 49 and 51 for more hands on deck, instead of dividing and conquering!
Team 49:
Our FTC Team #49 Seven Squared, had profound achievements from the year 2023-2025 not only dominating on the field during their competition, but also their contribution to bringing back to the community through their various outreach events hosted. Starting off as a newbie team in the 2023 Centerstage, FTC #49 won second place competing at Meet 2 in the California, SoCal FTC League G, in addition to winning Finalist Alliance award, 3rd place for Control Award, winning Design Award, and our member Owen Sun winning Dean’s List Semifinalist in ILT7. Advancing to the California Socal FTC Championship they won the Promote Award ending of their first season.
Moving onto 2024 Into the Deep, Team 49 dominated the field winning 2nd place in Socal FTC League G – Meet 1, 1st place in Socal FTC League G – Meet 2, and 2st place in Socal FTC League G – Meet 3. Later advancing to ILT6, our team won 2nd place while also winning Inspire Award, Alliance Captain, and our member Jiwon Jung winning Dean’s List Semifinalist. Ending off the season with Canadian Rockies Premier Events in July 2025, our team won 2nd place for Think Award, and 1st pick as Finalist Alliance.
Follow Team 49 on Instagram at @cams_ftc49
Awards
2023-2024 season: |
2024-2025 Season: |
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Team 50:
Our FTC Team #50 Critical Point has found success in not just building robots but also people. Their program really focused on the contributions of every member, leaving them with technical skills that would not have been possible without the responsibilities given to every one of them. For example, Ryo, a former member of Team 50, said that “I would never be able to have the same CAD skills nor intuition without the rigorous program that Team 50 had. No matter how bad our robot was, it was worth every time spent, because of the skills we were able to pick up along the way!” During the 2024-2025 season, they won 2nd place Control Award.
Team 51:
Originating from the California Academy of Mathematics and Sciences (CAMS), Team 51 is an FTC team that was revived at the start of the 2023-2024 Centerstage. In their rookie year, CAMS FTC 51, under the guidance of FRC members & mentors, won Inspire 1st place and became the Finalist Alliance Captain at their Interleague Tournament (ILT). Not to be outdone, at the start of FTC’s Decode season from 2025-2026, FTC 51 was a team comprising 1 Junior Programming leader, originating from 687, 5 Sophomore Leaders, and 12 members representing programming, CAD, and Business. At the start of the season, FTC 51 dinos faced hurdles such as poor communication, a lack of members' skills, and limited ability to recognize common design archetypes. To combat this, members of the 687 CAD team were assigned to nurture Team 51's growth. By providing thoughtful insight in design, and providing advice in Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DFMA) in their intake design. 51 quickly rose from being able to score only 4 points in their first scrimmage to scoring 53 points by their 2nd Scrimmage. Thanks to this rapid growth, by the time the ’51 ILT came around, they were able to qualify for a second chance at the “Wildcard” qualifier and receive the 1st Place Reach award. By the time Wildcard FTC 51 grew from a 62-point average at ILT to 138! Allowing them to become a Winning Alliance Captain and be recognized as the 1st Inspire Award winner. The journey of these Dinos continues to the SoCal Championship, where 51 was recognized as the 2nd Place Connect Award Winner and received #10 advancement, allowing them to compete in a premier event in the off-season event!
Follow Team 51 on Instagram at @cams_ftc51
Awards
2023-2024 season: |
2024-2025 Season: |
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