<SC1>
All Scoring statuses are evaluated after the Match ends, once all Balls, Field Elements, and Robots on the Field come to rest. This rule’s intent is for Driver inputs and Robot motion to cease at the end of the Match, when the Match timer reaches 0:00. A pre-programmed routine which causes Robot motion to continue after the end of the Match would violate the spirit of this rule. Any Scoring which takes place after the Match due to Robots continuing to move will not count toward the score and is a Violation of this rule. It is expected that many Rapid Relay Matches will have last-second “buzzer-beater” moments. The key moment occurs when the timer display shows 0:00. At many events, a buzzer sound will also play at T=0:00; however, the field timer display takes precedence in the event of any audio discrepancies. If a Ball is released from a Robot before this moment, it will be allowed to finish its path and the score will be calculated once it comes to rest. However, if it is released after this moment (i.e., the Robot was still moving past T=0:00) it will not count and the Team will receive a Violation as described below. In cases where a last-second scoring attempt is “too close to call,” Teams will generally be given the “benefit of the doubt” and the score will be counted.
Violation Notes
Because scoring that happens after the Match is not counted, all Violations of <SC1> should be recorded as Minor Violations. If a Team receives three Minor Violations within the same event, all future <SC1> Violations at that event will be considered Major Violations and Disqualifications. This count does not reset for any reason within an event (e.g., Qualification vs Finals Matches, one of the Team’s “dropped score” Matches, etc.).