The University of Southern Maine ESports club captured second place in the Eastern College Athletic Conference’s League of Legends championship match yesterday and, more importantly, established the nascent program as a force to be reckoned with in the coming season and beyond.
USM ESports teams compete in the ECAC in 15 different games. Last semester, only two teams made the quarter finals, and neither advanced beyond that round. This semester, ESports Club Chairman Michael Brown said, three squads made the playoffs in three different games, and two competed in the finals for the ECAC championship on Thursday, Dec. 14, vying for the top spot in both League of Legends and Madden24.
Brown called out the League of Legends game as particularly exciting.
“This was the best that anyone on our team has ever played,” Brown said of the League of Legends play against Sacred Heart University, who came in as the Number One seed. “They (Sacred Heart) were 10 and 0 coming in, and they lost only one round all season. To do that well against them was amazing. We showed the conference that our teams are good, no matter what the game.”
Ultimately, the USM team lost in a fiercely competitive match, but Brown said the team is well positioned to build on the success they achieved this season. And with the Fall season in the rearview mirror, the focus will turn to fielding a team for the Spring semester’s competition.
“We’ll be holding tryouts after the Winter break,” Brown said, adding that the USM team will compete in both the ECAC and the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC). “Anyone who wants to try out is welcome.”
Tryouts will be Jan. 19-21. Details, Brown said, will be available after the break.