Friendswood programmers competed in a Java programming contest at Trinity University in San Antonio this past weekend. Many 5A schools were represented as well as some of the best teams in the State, according to FHS sponsor Annette Walter.
            The competition is modeled after the ACM collegiate competitions where teams are given a set of problems to solve and all problems are of equal value. Part of the competition is for teams to figure out which problems are easiest (there were few "easy" problems, according to Walter).

            Teams were ranked first by how many problems they solved correctly and then by how many penalty points they accrued. Teams get penalty points by submitting incorrect answers.  There were 50 elite teams from all over the state.
            UIL programming team placed first ousting 5A schools San Antonio Reagan (2nd place) and Katy Seven Lakes (3rd place) by solving nine out of the 10 problems with fewer penalty points than either one of the top opponents. Reagan and Seven Lakes solved only eight problems.
            UIL team members include Andrew Wiley, Noah Kessler and Winston Wu.
            In addition, a second FHS team placed seventh by solving seven out of 10 of the programming programs. Team members are Brandon Goddard, Blake Disiere, and Kyle Wiley. The three are only first year Java programmers and all sophomores.
            Most teams represented at this contest were advanced programmers with two or three years experience.
            “This is a phenomenal accomplishment for this team since there was no novice category. They were up against the big guns!” Walter said.