CHEYENNE, WY – With the regular season wrapped up and the postseason in progress, the Laramie County Community College esports are gearing up for national tournament action with two teams still on the bubble of punching a ticket into nationals beginning on December 14th.
The highlight of the season was once again the Rainbow 6: Siege team which was able to run the table, going 6-0 in competitions and were the only team in the NJCAAe to not drop a game, going a perfect 12-0 in their best of three contests.
“There isn’t much to say about this team except that they are dominant, and they get better with every match,” second year Head Coach John Kershaw said. “They are riding an incredible win streak that extends to week three of the Fall 2023 season. They are the team to beat in this league and for them, their goal is another national championship this season.”
Rainbow 6 has already punched a ticket into the national bracket after defeating Hawkeye Community College 2-0 (7-0, 7-2) in the opening round of the district tournament. With postseason seeding on the line, they will face Wichita State University Technical on Friday at 6:00 pm in the District Championship game.
Also having punched a ticket into the national tournament is Jesse Wardle, who finished his regular season 12-1 and picked up the second seed in the Mario Kart 8 district bracket. Wardle made it to the winners bracket final before falling to Southeast Community College’s Jigglyboi 4-1.
“Jesse had a phenomenal season, only taking one loss in the regular season and another to the same racer in the postseason,” Kershaw said. “I fully expect the national final to be a rematch between the two again and Jesse is hungry for that win.”
Wardle is still guaranteed to be a top three seed and will take on Bones out of Iowa Western Community College in the Loser’s Bracket finals on Thursday night at 5:00 pm. If he wins that match, Wardle will move on to face Jigglyboi for a third time in the best of seven finals at 6:00 pm. He would have to win a pair of matches in the double elimination bracket to take the top seed from the Central District.
One other team has qualified for the national tournament for the Golden Eagles. The Fortnight team of Kiara and Victoria Kershaw entered the postseason as the fourth seed after a 4-3 season, winning the tiebreaker with Northwest Community College to qualify for the four-team field.
LCCC then proved the idea of just making it to the dance regardless of seed is all that matters as they toppled the #1 seeded Missouri State University – West Plains team 3-2 to guarantee a top two finish and qualify for the national tournament.
“The Kershaw sisters really took off as the season went on and taking down the number one team in the country in the first round helped fuel their hunger even more. They have already punched their national ticket and are looking to keep getting better with this new map that was recently released and look to go all the way,” Kershaw said.
They will take on the #3 seed WSU Tech in the finals. The Golden Eagles fell to them 2-0 in the regular season in competitive games. Action begins at 5:00 pm on Monday night. The match will not be streamed due to the players being off-site for the match.
Two other Golden Eagle teams are on the edge of making the postseason in Call of Duty: Warzone.
The team of Isiaha Ahrens and Tyler Soffe finished the regular season as the top seed in their district with a 6-1 record but were knocked off in the first round of the postseason 3-0 by the Coastal Bend – NAVY squad.
The due still have a chance to qualify for the national tournament if they can beat the Hinds Community College White team who they beat 2-0 (15-5, 3-1) in the regular season.
In the same situation is the Warzone team of Windy Boy and David Cox who finished the regular season as the fourth seed in their district. After falling in the opening round to the undefeated team from Dallas College – North Lake, the Golden Eagles will take on the Hinds Community College Maroon team who were the #2 seed but fell to Northeast Oklahoma in the opening round.
LCCC faced the Maroon squad in the opening match of the year falling 2-0 (10-2, 7-5) but they finished the season winning three of their final four matches so there is momentum behind them going into the deciding match.
“Both of the Warzone teams had good seasons but it’s hard coming into the playoffs with a new map and movement style. While we took those first round losses, both teams are in the hunt and have been putting in serious time with the new game. I expect some good wins for them this week and qualifying for nationals,” Kershaw said.
Three teams and individuals finished outside of the national field after their seasons wrapped up.
Two Golden Eagles competed in Super Smash Bros Ultimate with both qualifying for the district postseason.
Sydney De La Cruz qualified as the #4 seed in the postseason and quickly dispatched the #5 Salt Lake Community College player Bluebit 3-0 without allowing a win in the match to the Bruin.
De La Cruz dropped their next match to the top seeded WSU Tech player Noodle 3-1 to fall to the loser’s bracket where they were challenged by another SLCC player, Mlp_Derpy and after a match that went the distance, De La Cruz took the 3-2 win. A win in their next match would have punched a postseason ticket to the national tournament but the third time was the charm for SLCC as Boxolotl was the only Bruin to take down De La Cruz in a 3-1 match that ended the season for the Golden Eagle one spot shy of the national field.
Brandon Steely had a tough time in the postseason after qualifying as the #7 seed in his district and after finishing the regular season 5-6. After falling 3-0 in the opening round to Southeast Community College, Steely took on WSU Tech in the first round of the loser’s bracket. After falling behind 2-0, he did force it to a fourth with a 3-2 win in the third game but was still eliminated from the double elimination bracket.
“The Smash fighters both had great seasons that unfortunately didn’t go the way we wanted in the playoffs. SSBU is one of the most competitive titles in the league, so we’ll spend the offseason working on our fighter matchups and learning some new characters,” Kershaw said. “We will be ready for the spring season and Brandon will be hungry to get some redemption.”
The first year Valorant team also made it into the postseason after the team ahead of them had too many forfeits to compete. The Golden Eagles fell to the top seeded SLCC team to be eliminated with only two teams from each division making the national field in the title.
“The Valorant team had a slow start to our season, but we really ended on an upswing as far as playing and tactics. They are hungry for the spring and are already practicing for it. There have been some character reworks in the game that will probably help us be even more competitive and be in the hunt for the playoffs again. I couldn’t be prouder of both the teams, and they have all put in serious work that is going to play off in the spring,” Kershaw said.
They will still have one more match coming up on Thursday, December 5th at 4:00 pm against Arizona Western College. LCCC fell to the Matadors in week three by a 2-0 score, 13-4, 13-11 and but had won three of their final four after that match.
Information on the schedule can be found at www.golccc.com or you can visit njcaae.leaguesos.gg and searching the members tab for Laramie County Community College.