HANCEVILLE, Ala. – Wallace State Community College’s eSports club has its inaugural scrimmage match planned for Friday at 4:30 p.m.
Wallace State will oppose the University of Montevallo’s eSports team, marking the first known eSports match for an Alabama Community College System college. With this new team, Wallace State is joining a nationwide trend toward electronic, accessible sport options. E-sports allow students of all physical abilities with skill in gaming to participate in a competitive team environment.
The colleges will square off in a game of League of Legends, also known as LoL, one of the most popular eSports games.
“This club has become one of our more popular ones,” said Jon Stephenson, Wallace State’s Coordinator of Student Engagement. “Not all students are athletically-inclined. We’ve found this to be a fun recruiting tool.”
Wallace State’s eSports club currently consists of 26 members. During the match against Montevallo, Wallace State is allowed to have five players competing at one time. A maximum of seven individuals make up a match’s roster.
Dylan Brockman, a sophomore from Snead, is serving as the team captain for Friday’s match.
“I’ve always been interested in playing games competitively and being able to enjoy this at college is a win-win,” Brockman said. “It’s exciting and cool to know we’re the first students here to play in the inaugural scrimmage.”
Teams play each other in an online environment, so travel is not a necessity for competition to take place. The Wallace State team has a dedicated gaming lab space in the Student Center.
With League of Legends, the objective is to be the first team to destroy the opposing teams’ base or Nexus in battle using team-based strategy.
Stephenson said the club hopes to play additional scrimmages this semester.
“We appreciate Wallace State President Dr. Vicki Karolewics for her support in this venture. We couldn’t have successfully pursued it without her and our administration backing it,” Stephenson said.
For more information about student activities at Wallace State, email jon.stephenson@wallacestate.edu or visit www.wallacestate.edu.
