The Preuss eSports team notch their first win in a League of Legends tournament. They won by forfeit as the first Preuss eSports win in Preuss history. They were slated to play John F. Kennedy high school. League of Legends is a team-based strategy game where two teams of five face off to destroy the enemies base. The Preuss eSports team is led by Reymundo Cedillo, captain of the eSports team.

“I got into eSports around 9th grade. I liked playing Super Smash Brothers on the Nintendo Switch, and wanted to improve in the game. I went to a local tournament, and it did open my eyes a lot.” Reymundo Cedillo (‘22) explained. “It showed me that there is always something to work towards, because you’ll never be the best out the gate.”

The Preuss eSports team is a new one, established just this year. It was created due to the huge gaming culture we have here at Preuss. Online gaming was something that the team had as a hobby for many years prior.
The eSports team is an experiment this year. The two coaches are Mr. Kim, a science teacher, and Ms. Esparza, a history teacher. Both have no experience in coaching eSports but both have experience in the gaming community. Mr. Kim views this team as an experience that can lead to career paths in gaming or the gaming industry itself.

“The benefits of eSports include building communities, finding students with common interests, developing leadership skills, and discovering career paths in the gaming industry” Mr. Kim states. “The goals for 2021-22 are to compete in at least one season tournament, establish a gaming community within the school, and introduce students to career paths and opportunities in the larger gaming industry.”

Members of the eSports team view this decision to make an eSports team a good one, and something that should’ve been done a while ago. Many of the members of the team have been playing for a long time now as a hobby, and for some of them, this is their first time stepping into the competitive gaming scene.

“Being on the team means a whole lot to me, because it is something that I am really passionate about and considering doing in the future” Francisco Silva (‘22) states. “Being on the team is important for me because I feel like I can be able to lead us to victory and I can be a leader.”