Transylvania University’s esports program has won two conference championships in only two seasons of competition.
The school’s Valorant team beat PennWest Edinboro last night to claim their conference title in the National Association of Collegiate Esports Varsity Plus Division. A total of 16 squads competed in the tournament.
“We’re very excited after last night,” coach Dylan Osborne said. “It was a big victory.”
This past April, his Overwatch 2 team won its conference tournament in the program’s inaugural season. Since then, Transy esports has more than tripled in size, expanding from one team to four (League of Legends and chess are the other two). Osborne, who is looking to add Rocket League and Smash Bros., encourages students to email him if they’re interested in joining a team or would like to see another game added.
Having a larger program means more leadership opportunities for students. Osborne specifically singled out Valorant in-game leader Cameron Horine and team captain David Schwab for displaying a variety of talents — from quick thinking in the heat of a game to coordinating competitions with other teams. “It’s a good resume builder for them,” Osborne said.
He also pointed out how the team — along with the program overall — has solid gamers focused on working hard to win. “All of the team players have put in a lot of dedication and time, even outside of practice for our matches, just to focus on improving.”
The teams will compete in new tournaments during winter term, and the Valorant players will receive a plaque for their title win at next year’s NACE convention in Indianapolis.
The other students on the victorious squad are Lucas Bosch, Patrick Stiltner, Madalyn Stump and Nicholas Tan.
“Our victory last night was nothing short of the hard work and dedication shown by our players,” Osborne said.