The University of Wisconsin-Superior celebrated the addition of esports to its list of extracurricular activities on Thursday, March 28, with a showcase event in its new esports gaming room.

“We are proud to offer one of the first formal, extracurricular esports programs in the region that has professional coaches, a dedicated gaming room with Alienware PCs, monitors and chairs, and that will compete with collegiate teams throughout the nation,” said UW-Superior Dean of Students Harry Anderson. “In the past couple of years, interest in esports has grown tremendously, transforming competitive gaming into a widely recognized sport. That same trend can clearly be seen here among our students.”  

The custom-designed and branded gaming room will serve as the competition venue for the esports team. It will also have regular open hours for all UW-Superior students to take a break from studies and enjoy the state-of-the-art equipment and games.

“Over the last two years, we’ve been working very hard to get this program started, and today is a very special day to be able to show off this new facility,” said William Taff III, co-esport coach at UW-Superior.

UW-Superior’s first official esports team is off to an electrifying start as one of the top teams in Wisconsin Collegiate Rocket League play. UW-Superior is also a member of the National Esports Collegiate Conference (NECC). While competing as a club team this semester, UW-Superior will transition to a full varsity program for the Fall 2024 Semester.

The team, comprised of Aiden Downing, Alex Koshak and Jasen Bruzek with Aman Weldemeskel serving as a substitute, holds a 6-1 record in Wisconsin Collegiate Rocket League (WCRL) play. Downing has already earned WCRL Player of the Week recognition. Already, 30-40 additional current and prospective students have expressed interest in being involved in esports.

“Our students can build friendships across our campus due to having similar interests,” said Brady Stocker, co-esport coach at UW-Superior. “Without this space and club, who knows if these team members would have connected?”

The showcase was highlighted by student team members competing against Anderson and UW-Superior Vice Chancellor of Administration & Finance Jeff Kahler in a friendly game of Mario Kart.

“My hopes for the team in the future are to simply get as many people involved as possible, have more games fielded with teams to play across the leagues, and build a bond amongst the community of UWS esports that will grow for years to come,” said Martin Jezierski, esport club president and a student at UW-Superior.