Boise State Esports made a big splash at this year’s Collegiate Esports Comissioners Cup (CECC) championships at the Esports Stadium in Arlington, Texas. As previously reported, Boise State’s Rocket League team made it all the way to the tournament’s grand finals. However, they weren’t the only team that got to compete on the event’s main stage and livestream. Boise State’s Valorant team also got to enjoy the spotlight in the tournament’s group stage.
Pre Game Prep
Boise State’s Valorant team faced some unique challenges at the beginning of the school year. Not only had their roster been shaken up with some new players, but the team was losing multiple games they were expected to win. As a result of this, Boise State Esports head coach, Doc Haskell, dedicated the year to team building and making sure the individualy talented players worked well as one unit. Ian Perfit, also known by his gamertag “Rereiana”, explained in an interview that over the course of a year, the team building led to more victories.
“We experienced a lot as a team,” said Perfit. “We had tough losses early on in the year which honestly should not have happened. But towards the end we were having huge wins.”
The Match
Boise State faced longtime rival Grand Canyon University (GCU) on stage at the tournament. GCU has faced Boise State many times over the years and has become one of the Bronco’s main rivals in the esports space.
“I think that out of all teams that we have played, we have played GCU the most,” Perfit said. “I think we are nearing 10 series against them or more and it is always just so close when we play against them.”
The match at CECC would be no different. Both teams traded blows with each other until the score sat at 11 to 10, with the Broncos leading by only one round. A last minute rally by the Broncos saw the team win back to back rounds and claim the match victory with a final score of 13 to 10.
Reflection
For a few choice players on the team, the victory was extra meaningful. The Broncos had previously competed at the same venue a couple years ago for the Red Bull Campus Clutch finals. For players such as Perfit, it was a welcome reversal from previous losses the team had in earlier years on the same stage.
“It was awesome being able to compete on the mainstage at CECC,” said Perfit. “It was awesome for me and Daimyo to finally get a win on that stage in Texas after having a rough showing there last year for the Red Bull Campus Clutch nationals. It’s always surreal to be able to play on a huge stage in real life after growing up and dreaming of maybe playing in these LAN tournaments that I would watch all the time.”
Written by Jacob Palmer