Shenandoah University hosts its first competitive esports tournament with the Shenandoah Esports Collegiate Invitational on April 26 & 27.
Esports teams will play in both a semifinals and finals competition of Overwatch, Rocket League and League of Legends.Â
The event takes place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the basement of the Health & Life Sciences Building on the Winchester campus. It is free and open to the public.
Tournament Schedule
Friday, April 26
- 4-7 pm Preliminary round of League of Legends
- 7-10 pm Preliminary rounds of Overwatch
- 10 pm-midnight Preliminary rounds of Rocket League
Teams will be able to warm up on available computers before the 4 pm start time if they would like.
Saturday, April 27
- 10 am-1 pm Semi finals and finals League of Legends
- 1-4 pm Semi finals and finals Overwatch
- 4-4:15 pm Finals for high school Fortnite
- 4:30-6 pm Semi finals and finals for Rocket League
We will also have a Smash Bros. open tournament happening starting at noon.
There will be a Space Pirate Trainer and Beat Saber VR tournaments going on all day as well.
Tournament Competition Teams Include
- Shenandoah University
- Patrick Henry Community College
- Virginia Tech
- George Mason University
- Radford University
- Averett University
- Randolph-Macon College
- Northern Virginia Community College
The winning team in each competition receives $250. Second place wins $100.
Shenandoah University EsportsÂ
About 15 students on Shenandoah’s esports varsity team will participate.Â
It’s about exposure. We want to showcase not only what we’re doing at Shenandoah, but also what other schools are doing. We want to show that esports is legitimate at the collegiate level, that other schools are passionate about it, and there is a lot of student interest around it.”Â
Joey Gawrysiak, Director of Sport Management and Esports
Come Cheer on the teams!Â
The public is encouraged to watch the students play throughout the course of the day. A large-screen TV will allow viewers to watch the action.
Food trucks will be on hand, along with approximately 10 to 15 local business vendors that will hold meet-and-greets and hand out promotional materials. There will also be giveaways and a 50-50 raffle to benefit the esports program, as well as open play video games for the public.
Shenandoah has 32 students on its esports varsity program. In the fall, the university will launch its esports major, which will have two tracks:
