Whether it's figuring out how to efficiently collect leaf specimens from treetops for global warming research or building a device that can safely transport an Olympic torch from one hole to another, the crew can design just about anything.

The six-member group participated in the 17th annual Tech Challenge competition on April 24 and came out as a winner once again.

"We didn't think we were going to win," says team member Joey Carolan. "We kind of gave up toward the end when we didn't hear the judges announce our team name. We were the last team to be called."

But they placed first in the Best Entry Grand Prize category, beating 66 other teams in the seventh- and eighth-grade group. For their hard work, each team player received a behind-the-scenes ticket to Monterey Bay Aquarium, a scientific calculator and a $150 savings bond. Their mission was to build a device that is able to safely separate and remove northern pike fish from a lake containing native species in three minutes or less.

For four months, the team created its own version of the Discovery Channel's Monster Garage. Meeting every Friday for three hours or more, they brainstormed possible contraptions, from vacuum-like ones to devices resembling plush-toy-crane machines commonly seen in arcades and spear guns.

"We fiddled a lot with these ideas," says Los Gatan Kerry Scharfglass, who was the team's spokesperson. "It took a lot of time and fine-tuning for us to come up with the final product. It's all about trial and error. If something didn't work, we took it apart and did it over."

Feeding off of each other's ideas, the team's members came up with a machine powered by four motors and a 12- and a 9.6-volt battery. Directed by remote control, the machine would scoop up fish via a net-covered crane. The fish would then travel down the crane and land on a conveyor belt, where they are to be spread apart via brushes attached on the sides. The brushes were made by gluing the fibers from a broom to blocks of wood. Once the fish were spread out, the operator would then be able to dump the native fish in one pile and the pikes in another by rotating the conveyor belt.

"It sounds complex, but when you see it in action, it all makes sense," says Ethan Martinez, the team's wiring expert.

Kerry admits the team was a bit nervous showing the machine to the judges, considering all of the errors they ran into during the practice run-throughs. For instance, they were concerned about the fish getting caught in the net, which would affect time, the conveyor belt slipping off its wheels and water ruining the electrical equipment. The crew was able to fix the water problem by heat-sealing the motors and using plastic tubing for the batteries.

"Fortunately, everything worked out perfectly at the event," Kerry says. "We ran the machine at least 70 times a couple days before the actual competition to make sure everything ran smoothly."

The project would not have been as successful without teamwork. Every team member had some type of responsibility, from scheduling meetings to recording progress and taking measurements.

Joey, who held the title of mechanical engineer, says he gained a lot from working on the project, in addition to learning about different tools and wiring techniques from Ethan.

"I learned that nothing could be accomplished without teamwork," he says. "Everybody took the project seriously and contributed an equal amount of work."

Ethan, who likes to spend his time fiddling with stereos and remote-control cars, jokes that the good part about working on the device is that "it's an excuse to get out of doing homework and to hang out with friends," but adds, "it's nice to work with friends on achieving a common goal."

Although members will be moving on to high school next year, they say they plan to continue competing in the Tech Challenge for as many years as they can.