The University of Southern Maine Esports program captured its first national championship on May 5, defeating Oklahoma City University in the final match of the National Esports Collegiate Conference (NECC) Division VII tournament in the game Marvel Rivals. The Huskies finished the single-elimination tournament with a perfect 3-0 record across eight competing programs, all held online.
The title marks a significant milestone for a program that launched in 2023 and has grown steadily in both participation and performance.
Division VII Nationals brought together eight qualifying schools, including Waldorf University, Morningside University Mustangs, Pace University Cobalt Blue, Minot State University Red, Southern Virginia University Knights, University of Michigan-Flint, and Oklahoma City University.
USM entered seeded second and did not drop a match, sweeping Pace Cobalt Blue in the opening round, defeating Minot State Red in the semifinal, and clinching the title against Oklahoma City University in the championship match.
The roster included Chris Brown, Michael Brown, Eliza Cox, Sarai Cortez, Austin Levesque, Jake Shaw, and substitute Elijah Agbuya. The team operates as a student-led organization under the Club Sport Council, with Cox serving as club president.
Cox, a senior political science major, has been part of the program since it started.
“It’s an incredible feat for this team as most of us played last semester and never won a single game during the fall semester,” she said. “To turn that around into a national championship in the spring is a crazy accomplishment and I’m extremely proud of all my teammates for putting in the work and the time to achieve it.”
The championship comes less than a year after USM opened a brand-new esports arena in the Brooks Student Center on the Gorham Campus, funded by a $750,000 gift from Town & Country Federal Credit Union.
Cox said that space really transformed the program.
“I think it’s crazy that we’ve gone from a room in Bailey Hall to a full blown arena in Lower Brooks,” she said. “I genuinely had no reason to be on campus since I’m a commuter — the arena and esports gave me a place to exist and make new connections.”
The national championship in Marvel Rivals is the program’s biggest win yet, as it continues to compete across multiple NECC game titles.