News
VALPARAISO ESPORTS TEAMS ACHIEVE PLAYOFF SUCCESS AT GREAT LAKES ESPORTS CONFERENCE
4/13/2024
The Valparaiso University Esports program saw strong representation at the recent Great Lakes Esports Conference (GLEC) Playoffs, held April 12-13, 2024 at the Hall of Fame Village in Canton, Ohio. Read More…
VALPARAISO UNIVERSITY ROCKET LEAGUE CLAIMS NECC MIDWEST CHALLENGER CHAMPIONSHIP
4/12/2024
The Valparaiso University Varsity Rocket League team secured a decisive victory in the National Esports Collegiate Conference (NECC) Midwest Challenger division on April 12, 2024. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS HOSTS MANCHESTER UNIVERSITY FOR GLEC COMPETITION
2/24/2024
On February 24, Valpo Esports hosted Manchester University’s Esports team for their Great Lakes Esports Conference Competition. Valpo competed against Manchester in two games: Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS JOINS THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE
2/19/2024
In a groundbreaking move for collegiate esports, Valparaiso University’s esports program has joined the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC), for its Inaugural season. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS OVERWATCH 2 TRAVELS TO BETHEL UNIVERSITY
2/17/2024
Saturday, February 17, 2024, Valpo’s Varsity Overwatch 2 team traveled to South Bend, Indiana, to take on Bethel University. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS HOSTS INTRAMURAL SMASH TOURNAMENT
12/2/2023
Saturday, December 2, 2023, Valpo Esports Partnered with the Department of Campus Recreation and Well-Being to host an Intramural Super Smash Bros Ultimate Tournament. Read More…
SENIOR CAPTAIN JUSTIN “JAKIMBO” BLANCO RECEIVES MVP AWARD
11/7/2023
The Great Lakes Esports Conference gave post-season awards at playoffs this past weekend. Justin Blanco, a senior accounting major from Crown Point, Indiana, received the “mid” most valuable player award. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS TRAVELS TO CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
11/4/2023
On November 3-4, 2023 Valpo Esports League of Legends and Super Smash Bros Ultimate team traveled to Game Arena in Columbus, Ohio to participate in the Great Lakes Esports Conference Playoffs. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS HOSTS BETHEL FOR SUPER SMASH BROS ULTIMATE
9/30/2023
On September 30, 2023 Valpo Esports Hosted Bethel University to play their in-conference Super Smash Bros Ultimate competition. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS PARTICIPATES IN LURIE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL GAME ON EVENT
9/27/2023
Cristian Pagan (Senior Psychology), and Joshua Magnall (Senior Mechanical Engineering and German) were selected to represent Valpo Esports at Lurie Children’s Hospital’s Game On Event in September. Read More…
A LOOK BACK FOR OVERWATCH COACH JONES
12/8/2022
Ever since its inception, Bryce Jones was drawn towards the esports program. During Welcome Week his sophomore year, he passed by the original esports lab and immediately became interested. Read More…
IN A HISTORIC SEASON, VALPO LEAGUE OF LEGENDS IS ON THE PRECIPICE OF PERFECTION
12/6/2022
Perfection is the pinnacle of any sport, but a peak that few reach. When Valpo Esports’ League of Legends team faces off against Bradley University on Wednesday, they have the opportunity to join the few at the top. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS & RIG GAMING PARTNER TO LEVEL UP GAMEPLAY
10/26/2022
Valpo Esports and RIG, part of NACON Gaming, have entered into a partnership for the 2022 – 2023 academic year. Read More…
FOUR-YEAR STARTER, KOLE JOHNSON, REFLECTS ON HIS GROWTH IN ESPORTS
10/10/2022
When Kole “Kolerocks” Johnson first started playing Rocket League almost six years ago, he never imagined himself where he is today. The captain of Valpo Esports’ Rocket League team only played the game once in a while at first. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS SEEKS CONTINUED GROWTH IN NEW FACILITIES
09/01/2022
With students swarming back to campus this fall, the Esports program is also roaring into action in a big way. The program, comprised of six different competitive teams, moved into a brand new lab for the 2022-23 season. Read More…
Overwatch Beacon Finds Success, Overall Team Looks Towards Future
4/14/2022
Almost six months ago, Valparaiso’s Super Smash team started off the year with a narrow 1-2 loss against Manchester The room is dead silent, only the familiar clicking of keyboards fills the lab on a cold December night. Suddenly, the room comes alive and gold jerseys erupt into madness. Valpo’s Beacon Overwatch team just defeated Western Colorado University to secure their fall division title. Read More…
Smash Team Completes Upset, Remains Undefeated
3/4/2022
Almost six months ago, Valparaiso’s Super Smash team started off the year with a narrow 1-2 loss against Manchester University. After the season opener, Valpo lost once and Manchester continued their untarnished record since joining the Great Lakes Esports Conference (GLEC). So when the two powerhouses finally rematched this past Saturday, it was a much anticipated fight for the top of the conference. Read More…
Demien ’22 Reflects on Esports Career
2/25/2022
From the very beginning, Dawson Demien was captivated by the magic of video games. Now the senior plays a crucial role on the Overwatch Shield team. Read More…
Valpo Alumni “Coach Chase” is Developing Sustained Success
2/11/2022
Throughout Chase Ludington’s adult life two things have remained constant: Valpo and video games. In 2019, he merged the pair together to become the League of Legends head coach for Valpo Esports. Read More…
Rocket League Gold Reaches the NECC Navigators Championship in Overtime Thriller
12/01/2021
Heading into the game against a familiar foe, they had won eight straight matches. However, trailing two games to zero in their best of five semifinal, Rocket League Gold team’s chances at reaching the title game were bleak. In an unlikely turn of events, the young squad clawed their way back into the series and clinched the 3-2 reverse sweep in an electrifying game five. Read More…
Xaifou FuHongtian Dominates the Top Lane While Studying Abroad
11/18/2021
On August 14th, 2021 Xiaofu FuHongtian flew over six thousand miles from the Xinjiang province in China to Valparaiso University. Halfway through his degree in mechanical engineering, FuHongtian had decided to capitalize on an opportunity to study abroad. Unfortunately his timing could not have been worse. The global pandemic had already prevented him from obtaining a visa to make the journey for over a year. Read More…
Ricky Paz Steers iRacing Team as Lone Driver
10/19/2021
Sophomore Ricky Paz is a music education major and the founding member of Valpo Esports’ new iRacing team. On top of participating in drumline, pep band, and two jobs, Paz finds time to compete as the unique team’s only driver. The game differs from most esports due to its close connection with a traditional sport. Being a lifelong racing fan, Paz still only started his journey as an iRacing driver thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Read More…
Laird Takes Seven Stocks From Mount Union to Extend the Smash Team’s Win Streak
10/04/2021
The Valpo Esports Smash team had a wild ride Saturday morning in Week 4 of Great Lakes Esports Conference play. With their backs against the wall, down 7 stocks to 2, freshman Keegan “Laird” Thompson put on a near perfect performance to topple undefeated Mount Union Esports in two straight sets. Read More…
Rocket League Reverse Sweeps to Secure Opening Win
9/22/2021
The Rocket League team started the NECC Conference regular season off with an emphatic couple of wins this past Tuesday night. Valpo Brown made things even more dramatic with a 3-2 reserve sweep over Murray State in the second matchup of the night. Read More…
SENIOR HIGHLIGHT: RYAN OGORZALEK
5/11/2020
After graduation, senior electrical engineering major and Esports team member Ryan Ogorzalek ’20 plans to pursue a career with Navsea Crane in Crane, Indiana. His time at Valpo gave him the experiences and tools to prepare him for the future. Read More…
SENIOR HIGHLIGHT: BOBBY FARENKOPF
5/11/2020
Involvement in Valpo’s mechanical engineering program, Esports team, and more have prepared Bobby Farenkopf ’20 for life outside of college. “Being at Valpo was the first time I was really on my own, and it offered me the college experience that I had always wanted,” Bobby says. Read More…
DANIEL MURPHY ’24 EMBARKS ON A METEOROLOGY AND ESPORTS PATH AT VALPO
4/22/2020
While the meteorology program at Valparaiso University attracted Daniel Murphy ’24 to an Admitted Student Day, it was the campus feel and Esports program that made Valpo the perfect fit. Originally from Livonia, Michigan, Daniel committed to play Esports at Valpo beginning in fall 2020. Read More…
ETHAN DECATUR ’24 CONTINUES VALPO FAMILY TRADITION THROUGH ESPORTS
4/22/2020
Long live family traditions of attending Valparaiso University and leaving a legacy. Ethan Decatur ’24, from Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, has signed to play Esports at Valpo and will be the 20th member of his family to attend Valpo. Read More…
ESPORTS TO CAREERS
4/17/2020
From a collegiate sport to entertainment and rewarding careers, Esports serves as more than just a competitive game. Valpo is in its first year of its Esports program and has found great interest among current and prospective students. Like many sports and extracurricular opportunities at Valpo, Esports team members have found crossovers between their extracurricular involvement, academics, and future careers. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS LEAGUE OF LEGENDS GGLEAGUES PLAYOFFS
4/6/2020
The Valpo Esports League of Legends team will be heading to the GGLeagues playoffs, finishing the regular season with a record of 5–2. They secured second in the standings by defeating Team Infernal in the final game of the season. Read More…
ESPORTS: MORE THAN JUST A GAME
3/10/2020
There is more to her than being the only woman on the Valpo Esports team. Shannon Hollinrake ’22 is a computer science major with a minor in music. While Super Smash Bros. is her expertise, she decided to join the League of Legends Esports team. This only hits the surface of her dreams and passion to impact the gaming world. Read More…
YOUR ESPORTS TWITCH STREAM TEAM!
3/5/2020
The Valpo Esports Twitch Stream Team helps students connect their classroom academics to real-world experiences. Twitch is a live-streaming platform for gaming, artwork, music, and talk shows and has gained popularity in the gaming world because gamers can stream their games, and non-gamers can watch others play. Read More…
VALPO ESPORTS LEAGUE OF LEGENDS COMPETES IN FINAL GAME OF THE SEASON
2/28/2020
The Esports League of Legends team competes in the last game of its inaugural college season this Saturday, Feb. 29, against Marietta College. After facing opponents such as the University of Nebraska and the University of Northern Kentucky, the team heads into the game with a record of 2-3 and is hoping to finish the year at .500. Read More…
Valpo Esports compete in cLOL tournament
1/24/2020
Let the games begin at Valparaiso University. This time Valpo swaps the field for the lab with the launch of Esports in the fall of 2019. Saturday, January 25, marks an opportunity where the Valpo League of Legends team can prove themselves against tougher competition in the college League of Legends Championship (cLOL). Read More…