Moeller E-Sports

The Moeller E-Sports team consists of students who play multiple games including Super Smash Bros., Ultimate, and Fortnite. The Smash Bros. team is currently undefeated and will be defending the state title. The team is headed to regionals on Saturday at the University of Cincinnati, and the boys need to place in the top two to qualify for the state tournament once again. Due to winning their division, they gained an automatic bye into the second round.

The Crusader interviewed E-Sports moderator Mr. Gray regarding the season and the upcoming tournament.

Crusader: What has made the Smash Bros. team so successful this year?

Mr. Gray: They all returned. We lost two seniors from last year, but all the guys that are left were varsity players. They were able to step up.

Crusader: What are the expectations you have going into the regional tournament?

Mr. Gray: This is where stuff kind of gets real. In the divisional tournament, you play some schools that are freshman with no club level experience. The guys we’re playing this weekend all deserve to be there, so it’s going to be a lot more challenging on a competitive level. We’ll be playing in person, which brings another element to the game. I think our guys play better in person than remote, which gives us a little bit of an edge. I think we’ll play well and hope to place first or second, which will get us to state. That’s the goal.

The Fortnite team finished in tenth place in the pre-qualifying rounds, failing to make it to regionals. They missed out by a narrow margin as the top eight teams qualify. During team meetings, they practice at first to warm-up, then hop straight into competitive matches and tournaments after preparing.

The Crusader had the opportunity to talk with Moeller Freshman Christ Elie N’Guessan-Miller, who’s a member of the varsity Fortnite roster. 

Crusader: How would you describe this season?

N’Guessan-Miller: Playing with my E-Sports buddies, it was pretty fun. We got to bond, and I made a lot of new friends. The season itself wasn’t that great, as Fortnite has added many things that makes the game not that fun to play.

Crusader: What are the expectations for the E-Sports team next year?

N’Guessan-Miller: My expectation is we’re going to qualify for regionals. The only reason we didn’t this year is we missed out on two weeks of playing time due to technical issues.

The Crusader thanks Mr. Gray and Christ Elie for taking the time to speak with us! Good luck to the Smash Bros. team this weekend!