Blinn Finishes HUE Invitational With 4-4 Record

The Buccaneers finished their tournament run with a 4-4 record and placed third in their five-team group. 

The tournament consisted of eight groups, with the winners of those groups advancing to a championship event in Harrisburg, Pa.

On Friday, the Buccaneers dropped a 2-0 decision to Illinois State University and fell 2-0 to Ohio State University. In a rematch with Ohio State on Friday night, the Buckeyes defeated Blinn 2-0.

The Buccaneers got in the win column with a 2-0 shutout of Sienna Heights on Saturday. Illinois State defeated Blinn 2-0 later Saturday, but the Bucs responded with three straight shutout victories over Sienna Heights and State University of New York-Buffalo (twice) to end tournament play.

“While we got off to a rocky start on Friday with three losses, we bounced back on Saturday with some great performances all around,” said Blinn College assistant coach Kyle Murto, who manages the Overwatch team. “We got put in a very strong group, with Illinois State University being one of the tournament favorites, and Ohio State not being too far behind them. We knew it was going to be an uphill battle from the beginning, and while we still lost to both teams, we put up a fight and almost took a map off both teams. I was extremely happy with my players’ performances.”

Competing for the Buccaneers over the weekend were Gabriel Lopez, Ezekiel Bernheim, William Bowman, William Rossley, George Francis, Anthony Reyes, Connor Frank, and Ezekiel Bernheim.

” I felt like we showed a lot of potential and found our major weakness, which is crucial for improvement,” Reyes said. “We aren’t happy with third, but we just have to continue to demand more from ourselves. My expectations for the season are for us to work together as a unit on a regular basis and contend for the top spots against the best schools.”

The Blinn esports team begins its NJCAA season in September. Dates, times, and opponents have yet to be decided.