Esports 10/31/2024 11:28:00 AM

Buccaneers pick up Overwatch victory while League of Legends team falls to Dallas College Richland

Blinn Overwatch defeated Grayson College to improve to 4-1 in NJCAA Esports matches this fall

Esports 10/31/2024 11:28:00 AM

Buccaneers pick up Overwatch victory while League of Legends team falls to Dallas College Richland

Blinn Overwatch defeated Grayson College to improve to 4-1 in NJCAA Esports matches this fall

The Blinn College esports team earned a victory in Overwatch play while falling in a League of Legends match Wednesday.

In NJCAA Esports Overwatch action, the Buccaneers team of Kyoung Lee, Haluk Tanriseven, Matthew Hutchings, Donnivan Straight, and Dhruv Pandrangi secured a 3-0, best-of-five series win over Grayson College.

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.

Blinn, ranked 13th by the Overwatch Collegiate Rankings Association, is now 4-1 in the NJCAAe Central Conference.

"From the outset, it was clear that our team was firing on all cylinders, controlling the pace and tempo of each map with ease," Bucs assistant coach and Overwatch manager Kyle Murto said. "On the first map, we set the tone early, securing the objective and dominating team fights with a level of coordination that left Grayson with few openings to counter. From start to finish, it was a solid performance, and our team's confidence and communication on the field really made the difference."

Up next for Blinn Overwatch is an NJCAAe tilt against Wichita State University Tech at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 6.

Blinn's League of Legends team faced Dallas College Richland in NJCAAe on Wednesday and dropped a 2-0, best-of-three decision.

The Buccaneers were represented by Brian Shi, Jonathan Nguyen, Alejandro Aular, Anthony Fullerton, and Alec Chojecki.

League of Legends is a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) where teams of five players select champions with unique abilities to work together to gain control over a map. The game's objective is to destroy the enemy Nexus while securing objectives like turrets, inhibitors, and neutral monsters. Teams must control a map and destroy a Nexus while contesting neutral objectives such as Dragons and Baron Nashor for powerful boosts.

Blinn fell to 4-2 in the NJCAAe Central Division.

"We were really excited for this match going in as both teams were 4-0 and the outcome would determine who gets the top seed in our group going into playoffs," Blinn assistant coach and League of Legends manager Ryan Lucich said. "We started off well with an early kill advantage, however, we played to our weaker side of the map and got punished. Once we lost a few plays it became really hard to come back into the game. We will likely play Richland again in our conference playoffs, so we look forward to making adjustments for the rematch."

The Buccaneers conclude their NJCAAe League of Legends regular season with a bout against Lake Michigan at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 4.

Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 49 national championships since 1987.

Print Friendly Version