Esports 2/4/2025 10:48:00 PM

Blinn Overwatch opens NACE Superconference play with win over No. 10 Converse

Joseph Mares, Haluk Tanriseven, Matthew Hutchings, Dylan Payne, Dhruv Pandrangi earned the win

Esports 2/4/2025 10:48:00 PM

Blinn Overwatch opens NACE Superconference play with win over No. 10 Converse

Joseph Mares, Haluk Tanriseven, Matthew Hutchings, Dylan Payne, Dhruv Pandrangi earned the win

The Blinn College esports Overwatch team opened its spring National Association of College Esports (NACE) season with a 3-1 victory over Converse University on Tuesday.

The 13th-ranked Buccaneers (Overwatch Collegiate Rankings Association) topped 10th-ranked Converse in a best-of-five series.

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 round Tuesday included a different win condition 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.

The Bucs' Joseph Mares, Haluk Tanriseven, Matthew Hutchings, Dylan Payne, and Dhruv Pandrangi earned the win by prevailing in the Control, Flashpoint, and Push play modes. Converse earned a win in Hybrid.

"This was an incredible performance across the board, and while we're still shaking off rust from the winter break, the team is finding its form," Blinn assistant coach and Overwatch manager Kyle Murto said. "Joseph, our newest DPS player, played out of his mind. On paper, he's nowhere near the level of his teammates or the players he's facing, yet he's routinely out-dueling top talent and performing at an extremely high level. For his first match against a top-20 school, his performance was nothing short of impressive. We are going to look to continue this performance going into next week where we will take on second-ranked Winthrop University."

Blinn faces Winthrop in a best-of-five NACE tilt at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 11.

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Players Mentioned

Haluk Tanriseven: Sophomore; Overwatch

Dhruv Pandrangi: Sophomore; Overwatch

Matthew Hutchings: Sophomore; Overwatch

Players Mentioned

Haluk Tanriseven
: Sophomore; Overwatch

Dhruv Pandrangi
: Sophomore; Overwatch

Matthew Hutchings
: Sophomore; Overwatch