Esports 11/6/2026 5:07:00 PM

Blinn faces challenging competition in three matches

Overwatch, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Valorant compete in collegiate league play

Esports 11/6/2026 5:07:00 PM

Blinn faces challenging competition in three matches

Overwatch, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Valorant compete in collegiate league play

The Blinn College esports program faced a challenging slate of competition Thursday, with the Buccaneers competing in Overwatch, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Valorant matches.

Blinn came up short in all three contests, with Overwatch falling to UCLA, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate dropping a match to Texas Tech University and Valorant losing to Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College

OVERWATCH
The No. 11-ranked Blinn Overwatch team suffered a 3-1 loss to UCLA in Collegiate Overwatch competition Thursday. The Bucs are now 4-3 in league play and remain 6-0 in NJCAA Esports (NJCAAe) competition.

Donnivan Straight, Jose Soliz, Antony Luna, Dylan Wiley and Salvador Castaneda competed for Blinn.

Overwatch is a team-based first-person shooter in which players select heroes with unique abilities and work together to complete objectives across several game modes.

Blinn dropped the opening map, Busan, 2-0, before falling 3-1 on New Junk City. The Bucs answered with a 2-1 victory on Esperança, but UCLA secured the match with a 3-0 win on Watchpoint: Grímsvötn.

The match came during the second-to-last week of the Collegiate Overwatch Swiss Stage, with teams competing for playoff positioning. Blinn entered the contest after going toe-to-toe with No. 2-ranked Winthrop University.

Head coach and Overwatch manager Kyle Murto said the loss was particularly frustrating because he did not believe Blinn was outmatched mechanically.

"What makes this loss particularly disappointing is that it was not a case of being outmatched mechanically," Murto said. "Our roster consists of players competing at the highest ranks in Overwatch, with several consistently performing among the top players in the country. The issue was execution."

Murto pointed to communication, scouting enemy positions, tracking win conditions and playing with discipline as areas that must improve. He said the loss likely puts Blinn's hopes of reaching the Round of 32 out of reach, although the team still has one week of Swiss Stage competition remaining.

The Bucs will return to NACE competition at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 9, against an opponent to be determined in the Swiss Stage

SUPER SMASH BROS. ULTIMATE
Blinn's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate team dropped a 2-0 decision to Texas Tech University in NACE competition Thursday. The Bucs are now 2-2 in NACE play.

Braeyelyn Mitchell, Christiano Persad, Alexander Pieratt, William Rychetsky, James Rinehart and Jaden Pereira represented Blinn.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is a platform fighting game featuring characters from a variety of video game franchises. Players attempt to knock opponents off the stage, with crew battles featuring team lineups and stocks carrying over as competitors are eliminated.

Texas Tech relied heavily on Ryu and Terry throughout both crew battles, using an aggressive approach to turn openings into eliminations. Blinn struggled to establish momentum and consistently finish opponents after creating opportunities.

During the opening round, Rychetsky and Mitchell looked for opportunities to challenge Texas Tech up close, while Rinehart attempted to control the pace with spacing and projectile pressure. Pieratt looked to punish overextensions and take advantage of the knockout power of heavier characters. Blinn took four stocks but could not eliminate the entire Texas Tech lineup.

The Bucs took a more patient approach in round two but continued to have difficulty converting opportunities into eliminations. Texas Tech punished small openings and eventually eliminated Blinn's lineup after taking three stocks.

Assistant coach and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate manager Patrick Daley said the team must improve its patience and defensive decision-making against opponents capable of capitalizing quickly on mistakes.

"Moving forward, we need to focus on playing more patiently against characters with explosive punish games, improving our defensive decision-making, and making sure we are converting damage into stocks," Daley said.

Blinn's next NACE match is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, against an opponent to be determined in the Swiss Stage.

VALORANT
Blinn's Valorant team fell 2-0 to Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College in NJCAAe regular-season competition Thursday.

The Bucs are now 4-2 in NJCAAe play.

Michael Pint, Ahnaf Khan, Tyler Hartman, Samuel Long and Brian Yang competed for Blinn.

Valorant is a tactical, team-based first-person shooter featuring five-player teams. Attackers attempt to plant a spike at designated sites, while defenders work to prevent the plant or defuse the spike. Teams must win 13 rounds to claim a map, with overtime played if the score reaches 12-12.

NEO took the opening map, Lotus, 13-4. Blinn had extensively prepared for the opponent's preferred setups and tendencies but struggled to win individual gunfights and secure opening eliminations. NEO also found opportunities to take players out without committing much utility, limiting Blinn's ability to capitalize even when it anticipated the opponent's positioning.

The Bucs faced an early 6-0 deficit on Bind but rallied through several clutch rounds, showing improved patience, communication and confidence. NEO eventually regained control through aggressive timing and successful gunfights, catching Blinn during rotations and repositioning. The score reached 11-7 before Blinn called a timeout, but the Buccaneers could not complete the comeback.

Daley, who also serves as Valorant manager, said the team had prepared extensively for one of its biggest rivals but struggled to translate that preparation into results.

"Knowing what an opponent wants to do means very little if we cannot execute when the opportunities present themselves," Daley said.

Daley said the team's communication and motivation were encouraging, but individual gunplay and avoiding unnecessary deaths remain areas for improvement. He also pointed to the comeback on Bind as evidence of the team's ability to compete, while emphasizing the importance of avoiding early deficits and preventable mistakes.

The Bucs will return to NACE competition at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 11, against an opponent to be determined in the Swiss Stage.

Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 53 national championships since 1987.

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Players Mentioned

Dylan Wiley: Freshman; Overwatch

Donnivan Straight: Sophomore; Overwatch

Jose Soliz: Freshman; Overwatch

Salvador Castaneda: Freshman; Overwatch

Antony Luna: Freshman; Overwatch

Jaden Pereira: Freshman; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Alexander Pieratt: Freshman; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

William Rychetsky: Freshman; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

James Rinehart: Sophomore; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Braeyelyn Mitchell: Sophomore; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Players Mentioned

Dylan Wiley
: Freshman; Overwatch

Donnivan Straight
: Sophomore; Overwatch

Jose Soliz
: Freshman; Overwatch

Salvador Castaneda
: Freshman; Overwatch

Antony Luna
: Freshman; Overwatch

Jaden Pereira
: Freshman; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Alexander Pieratt
: Freshman; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

William Rychetsky
: Freshman; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

James Rinehart
: Sophomore; Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Braeyelyn Mitchell
: Sophomore; Super Smash Bros Ultimate