Flores earned a 3-1 victory over No. 4 Heartland Community College in the semifinals of the winner’s bracket before defeating top-seeded Bryant & Stratton College 3-1 in the winner’s final to advance to the title match.
“My biggest concern going into this match was Flores’ mental state since this was his first semester ever competing at any level,” Blinn assistant coach Kyle Murto said. “To already be fighting for a spot in the national championship match is a lot of pressure. I have seen the pressure get the best of several players before, but Jaydon did not let it get to him and stayed calm and collected throughout the entire series. With this win, Jaydon has solidified himself as a top player in the nation.”
Flores will compete for the national championship at 8 p.m. on Sunday, April 23.
In other Blinn esports action, the Buccaneer Valorant team advanced to the championship match of the Collegiate Valorant Playoffs and the winner’s finals of the NJCAA Esports Playoffs.
The Bucs topped Ottawa University (Kansas) 2-0 in Collegiate Valorant play before knocking off South Pugett Sound Community College 2-0 in NJCAAE action.
Blinn is in both the Collegiate Valorant title match and the NJCAAE winner’s final for the first time in program history.
Competing for the Bucs were Bruce Nguyen, Hayden Whitaker, Austin Ray, Teague Morgan, and Adam Laamoumi.
“This week is huge for us as a program,” Blinn head coach Aaron Kapiko said. “We are peaking at the right time as we come toward the end of the year.”
Blinn will compete in the NJCAAE championship on Friday, April 21, and the Collegiate Valorant winner’s final on Saturday, April 22.
The Buccaneer Overwatch team was also in action Sunday and saw its season come to an end in the National Association of Collegiate Esports semifinal round. Blinn fell 3-0 to No. 2 Boise State University.
Competing for Blinn were Gabriel Lopez, William Bowman, Jake Langridge, Matthew Hutchings, and Nicholas Behney.
“While every loss is disappointing, I was okay with this one,” Murto said. “Boise State is one of the best teams in the nation, so to be able to go toe-to-toe with them for even two maps was a big accomplishment. My players played their hearts out today and throughout this whole season, but at the end of the day we can hold our heads up high for being able to finish top 4 in NACE. We will be back next Sunday for our final match of the year in the NJCAA National Championship match versus Bryant & Stratton.”
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 43 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
