In the video game world, the past few weeks, the Point Park Esports team played in more competitive Rocket League matches. 

In a best-of-three scenario in the past two weeks, the Pioneers lost four straight against Lackawanna College, Robert Morris University, Lebanon Valley College and Messiah College. It’s tough to start off with a 1-4 record, but the team is clearly showing potential. 

In the series against Lackawanna, it came down to the wire. Both teams won two games and went to a fifth game. Lackawanna won off a goal in overtime. In Rocket League, when the game goes to overtime, it’s a golden goal. 

Lackawanna is currently the #1 team in the standings in Group K with six wins and 12 points. If the Pioneers put together more consistent games, they can easily breakthrough. They’ve shown they can compete with the best. 

“It’s hard being a new program, but we’ve performed well,” Head Coach Chris Gaul said.

Point Park is a new program but a few of these schools have been playing for a few seasons. One of those schools is Robert Morris University. 

“RMU’s team was talked about a lot when they first started,” RMU student  Jesse Stechley said. “A lot of people were hyped for it. They have a partnership with Mountain Dew Amp so they’re serious about the future of Esports. They spent a decent amount of money on all of the equipment.” 

It will be interesting to see if Point Park starts any partnerships with RedBull, Monster, Doritos or any similar company. The energy drink and snack foods tend to get the sponsorship deals with professional Esports teams and players. The Pioneers Esports team already has their own unique logo that is shown in the paper. It has the bison with Esports under it. 

If you’re interested in following the team on social media, they’re @ is @ppu_esports on Twitter and Instagram. Other good accounts to follow are @college_esports and @NACEsports which is the official league for college esports. Give Michael Brooks, @esportsmike a follow as well, as he is the founder of NACE. To see the Point Parks standings, go to challengermode.com/s/skillshotcollegiate. 

Not only are the Pioneers playing Rocket League, they’re now playing League of Legends, also just called “League”. League is a very difficult and complex game. The typical sports fan can pick up understanding Rocket League fairly well, but League is much different. League is one of the most competitively played games across the world. It involves lots of skills, communication and teamwork. 

This past Saturday, the team was supposed to play Ecole de Technologie Superieure, a French university in Canada. Unfortunately, the game was postponed due to technical issues. On October 24, Point Park plans to face Baruch College in League. Esports is fascinating as players can play against opponents across the world. There is potential for global leagues. 

The student/club team for Point Park as well is training to play other games. Look forward to them joining tournaments in the spring semester possibly. 

Make sure to watch the Pioneers play Rocket League every Tuesday night on the Twitch livestream. Famous players and teams play on Twitch. Famous YouTubers have the ability to make decent revenue by playing on Twitch. The Pioneers have brought in consistently an audience of about 75 – 100 people each game.