Competition, Engagement, and Growth | Trojans Esports 2022-23 Recap
CALGARY, ALTA., (May 25, 2023) – The SAIT Trojans Esports program excelled to new heights in the second year of the program.
During the 2022-23 season, the SAIT Trojans Esports program had an average of 25 Trojans that were spread across five different teams – Rocket League, League of Legends, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Dota 2 and Chess – in which they all competed in the North American Collegiate Esports Starleague (NACE Starleague).
The Rocket League team started off slow in the first half of regular season, but gained traction with an 11 series undefeated streak through 8 scrimmage games and 3 regular season NACE games.
In League of Legends, the team finished fourth in the regular season and had a tough first round loss in playoffs.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Dota 2, and Chess are the three new additions to the Esports program. Chesster Danglapan successfully kicked off the Chess team’s first season by placing 2nd in NACE Division 19 Championship. The Super Smash Bros. Ultimate team ended their season in 6th while the Dota 2 team placed 8th.
The SAIT Trojans Esports team had the opportunity to compete at the Alberta Esports Expo during February 2023. Both the League of Legends and Rocket League team placed 3rd while Ali Elrafih, a SAIT Trojans Super Smash Bros. Ultimate player, placed 49th out of 170 competitors. At the expo, the players had the opportunity to engage with educational panels led by industry experts. The expo provided opportunities for the Trojans to promote the growing SAIT Esports program and learn more regarding Esports culture.
During the Alberta Esports Expo, Andrew Tran, Esports Lead for the SAIT Trojans, had the opportunity to present alongside Allyson Cikor, Lethbridge Kodiaks Esports coordinator, Shadi Hanna, Keyano Huskies Esports Head Coach, and Carlo Martin, NorQuest College Esports coordinator, to speak about post-secondary Esports in Alberta.
The Trojans also had the opportunity to co-host the first Collegiate Esports Battle of Alberta charity event alongside Lethbridge College and Keyano College. The event included participants from various post-secondary institutions across Alberta competing in League of Legends, Rocket League, and Valorant. The Trojans participated in both League of Legends and Rocket League. This event raised $556 towards the Extra Life organization – a fundraising program for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospital.
Aside from Trojans competition, the Esports program also provides engagement opportunity for SAIT/AUArts students and staff. The program has its own dedicated Esports studio in the J hall of Senator Burns and a Discord server for online interaction. Students and staff can visit the Esports studio during drop-in hours to play games and interact with one another. From September 2022 to April 2023 the Esports studio saw an average of 100 participants per week and a Discord server of over 500 members that is actively growing.
Starting Monday, May 29th 2023 the Trojans Esports program will be hosting weekly events for the community.
Stay engaged by following us on Instagram and Twitter, interact in our Discord server and watch our games on our Twitch page. For questions or information please email Trojans.Esports@sait.ca
If you’re interested in joining the SAIT Trojans Esports team, click here to fill out the recruitment form.