Three Kettering University Esports teams won a regional championship and three divisional championships in matches Dec. 4-6.

The “Valorant” Grey team earned the National Esports Collegiate Conference (NECC) Great Lakes Regional Championship with wins against Indiana Wesleyan, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and Union College in Kentucky. The “Valorant” Grey team also won the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) Divisional Championship by defeating Baldwin Wallace University in Ohio and Saint Xavier University in Illinois.

The “Valorant” Blue team and “Overwatch 2” Blue team each also earned NACE Divisional Championships. The “Valorant” Blue team defeated North Central University in Minnesota and Texas A&M International University while the “Overwatch 2” Blue team defeated Nicholas College in Massachusetts and Northern Michigan College.

“Our teams worked so hard this season, and since we also took a new approach to team construction this year, I didn’t want to create any expectations,” Esports Coach Dan Nowaczyk said. “As the season went on, it started to look like the new approach worked really well since all of our rosters qualified for playoffs in at least one conference. Bringing home some championships after it’s all said and done just shows how much work these students are putting in and how much they’ve grown as players and academics this year.”

“Overwatch 2” is a multiplayer game in which teams defend their areas on a map against one another. “Valorant” is a multiplayer game in which teams play a set of agents who are assigned to either attack or defend. The attacking team tries to plant a bomb and detonate it while the defending team’s goal is to defuse the bomb if it is successfully planted. 

Because the players’ skills were similarly matched this year, Nowaczyk eliminated the traditional varsity and junior varsity system and instead created evenly matched teams based on personalities. 

“I couldn’t be more proud of everything our Esports students have accomplished over not just this season but over the last year,” Nowaczyk said. “These students do so much, not just within Esports, but all over campus, and it’s so awesome to see their work in Esports paying off.”

Aaron Spengler ’23 said it felt amazing to win the championship. Spengler, who majors in Mechanical Engineering, is the captain of the “Overwatch 2” Blue team. 

“I’ve been on the team for about two years now, and this is our first season win outside of one other small tournament win,” he said. “This is also my second-to-last season on the team, so it feels great seeing my hard work being rewarded. I’m so proud of the team and am so happy I get to be a part of this experience with them.”

Spengler co-ops at Our Next Energy (ONE) in Novi on the Battery Management Systems Mechanical team. He said participating in Esports has helped him better his teamwork skills.

“I’ve learned that I need to be flexible working around others’ strengths while applying people to what they excel at,” Spengler said. “At the same time, I’ve also learned that while I’m the leader of this team, I’m also still a player. I learned there’s a time to lead and a time to follow when in that dual-focused role.”

Robert Lim ’24 agreed that the skills he learns participating in Esports are applicable to life outside of gaming. Lim is the team captain and in-game leader for the “Valorant” Grey team. In this role, he analyzes how the competing team is playing and adjusts his team’s style accordingly. Lim will start his next Co-op as a project manager at Bosch.

“As a Management major, much of what I do in Esports is practical for my Co-op and soft skills,” Lim said. “Being the coach and overall leader for the players, I can enhance and adapt my leadership style. Coaching them in gaming has allowed me to become a better teacher. Esports also improves everyone’s soft skills in teamwork, communication, time management and, for some people, emotional intelligence.”

Ernest Reschke ’25 echoed his fellow gamers. The Computer Engineering major plays on the “Valorant” Blue team. In his role as the “initiator,” he helps create opportunities for his teammates in the game. He co-ops at Detroit Diesel.

“The skills I have learned in Esports translate greatly to the work environment through Co-ops,” he said. “Communication, planning and execution are all pivotable parts of being on an Esports team. Learning these skills through an environment that I really love helps me in my Co-op because it just feels like second nature to create a route for success, just like Esports.”

Reschke wasn’t surprised the team earned the win after they put in a lot of hard work this season, he said.

“It feels great to win the division with my team,” he said. “I have grown close to them over the years being in the program with them, so it felt awesome to take home the victory.”

The Kettering University Esports program started in January 2020 with teams for “Overwatch,” “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” and “League of Legends.” “Rainbow Six Siege” was added a month later, and “Rocket League” teams formed in August 2020. “Valorant” teams started in summer 2021. Nowaczyk hopes to add teams for “iRacing” and “Counter-Strike 2” in summer 2024. 

In June, the “Rainbow Six Siege” team earned the NECC National Championship. In July, two members of that team were named All-NACE at the NACE National Convention in Indianapolis.

“From the inception of the program, I thought it would be a fun extra thing for 25 to 30 students with just a few game titles,” Nowaczyk said. “Now, having over 100 students as part of the program and reaching beyond just the walls of Kettering to help K12 programs find their footing; work with those programs to host events for K12 players to get extra competition; help the community raise money for good causes; and collaborate with nonprofits to spread the word about Esports and what it offers kids from both a career perspective and educational one every day, I’m in disbelief of how far we’ve come in such a short time and the things our students have accomplished. I wouldn’t change any of it.”

Kettering University offers Esports scholarships of up to $5,000 a year. To learn more, click here. To learn more about the Kettering Esports program, click here.