Blinn College esports earned two victories Wednesday as the Buccaneers were triumphant in Overwatch and Valorant play.
The Blinn Valorant team of , Teague Morgan, Michael Rieger, Angelina Wu, and Katie Beene earned a 2-0 best-of-three victory over Converse University to conclude the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) Varsity Premier regular season.
Valorant is a tactical, team-based, first-person shooter set in a near-future world. Teams of five players choose unique agents with distinct abilities, combining shooting skills with strategic use of each agent’s toolkit. Teams alternate between attacking and defending. Attackers aim to plant a spike at one of the designated sites, while defenders try to prevent this or defuse the spike if planted. The first team to win 13 rounds claims victory. If both teams reach a tie at 12-12, overtime is triggered, and the match continues until one team wins by two rounds, with teams alternating between attacking and defending in each overtime round.
The Bucs (6-0) will now enter the NACE Varsity Premier Playoffs.
“We were able to close out an undefeated regular season tonight for NACE, and we feel good about going into playoffs and expect a higher seed going,” Blinn head coach and Valorant manager Aaron Kapiko said. “That should hopefully set us up for a strong run. I am proud of the team’s performance this season and I’m excited to see the damage we can do in the postseason.”
The Bucs’ postseason opponent and schedule have yet to be determined.
Blinn’s Overwatch team was also victorious Wednesday thanks to a 3-0 best-of-five NJCAA Esports win over Hill College.
The Bucs’ team of Kyoung Lee, Haluk Tanriseven, Matthew Hutchings, Donnivan Straight, and Dhruv Pandrangi picked up the win and improved to 3-1 in the NJCAAe Central Conference.
“This victory reinforces our position as a top contender in the NJCAAe league,” said assistant coach and Overwatch manager Kyle Murto, “and our preparation and practice have truly paid off as we continue to refine our skills and elevate our gameplay week after week.”
Overwatch is a team-based, first-person-shooter in which players select heroes with unique abilities and work together to complete objectives across multiple map modes. Each team can strategically choose its maps based on team strengths and opponent weaknesses.
Each of the three rounds Wednesday included different win conditions based on the following modes:
- Control: Teams fight to capture and hold a single point. The first team to reach 100% control wins two rounds in a best-of-three format, where the loser of each round picks the next map.
- Escort: The attacking team moves a payload to its destination while defenders try to stop them. The payload moves when attackers are near it, and the attackers aim to complete the route before time runs out.
- Hybrid: Teams capture a point and then escort a payload. The match is typically one round for attackers, who must secure the point first before moving the payload.
- Push: Teams battle to control a robot and push it toward the opponent’s side. The first team to push it farther than their opponents wins, with the loser picking the next map.
- Clash: Teams capture consecutive points, with the first team to a set number of points winning.
“From the moment the first game started, it was clear that our team was just better tonight as our players executed flawlessly, demonstrating exceptional teamwork that left our opponents struggling to keep up,” Murto added. “Each member of the team played their role to perfection, whether it was with strategic positioning, timely ult usage, or relentless pressure that kept Hill College on the defensive.”
Blinn Overwatch continues its NJCAAe run with a match against Grayson College at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 30. The Bucs are also currently preparing for the NACE postseason, but play won’t begin until the after conclusion of a last-chance qualifying round for teams still looking to punch their postseason ticket.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 49 national championships since 1987.
