Point Park University esports team makes its debut

The newest sport in Point Park University’s athletic program is similar to soccer, except the ball is giant, the players are replaced with rocket-powered race cars and the action takes place on a computer screen instead of in real life.

The university’s new esports team made its debut this week, going 1-1 in back-to-back matches of Rocket League, a popular video game of vehicular soccer.

“I’m definitely proud of the guys, I think they definitely worked hard,” said coach Chris Gaul.

Point Park University announced the creation of its esports team late last year, and hired Gaul in March to help make it happen. Then the pandemic hit, making it uncertain whether esports would debut in the fall semester.

“I really didn’t know if we would be here right now,” said university Director of Athletics John Asholu.

Despite the hurdles, the team was ready in time. The university spent nearly $300,000 renovating a former yoga studio on campus into a high-tech space with 16 gaming computers and the equipment necessary to livestream the matches, Asholu said.

Gaul recruited players. Members of the esports program are eligible for the same scholarships as traditional athletes, according to Asholu.

There are 18 students in the program. Five play Rocket League, seven play the wildly popular action-strategy game League of Legends, and six help broadcast the matches.

Asholu said he compares esports to track and field. There is one team, but members compete in different events.

“You can’t just say to someone, ‘I’m on the track and field team,’” he said. “What event do you do?”

Esports are still relatively new, and even experienced teams face a lot of uncertainty, Gaul said.

“Right now, the water is just muddy,” he said.

While traditional college sports are overseen by a single governing body — the NCAA — there are multiple esports organizations jockeying to dominate virtual college athletics.

No NCAA equivalent in esports

Additionally, college esports programs must deal with the private companies that make the games they play.

“The big challenge is that people own these games,” Gaul said. “A company has developed the games that we’re playing, and the games that we’re competing in, and those companies have the rights to say whether they want people having tournaments.”

Point Park University’s Rocket League team is under the jurisdiction of the National Association of Collegiate Esports, while its League of Legends competitions are organized by Riot Games — the company that makes League of Legends.

There are more than a dozen popular competitive video games. Point Park University had decided to focus on two, at least for now.

The university wants to win, and believes keeping a narrow focus is the way to do that, Asholu said.

“We do aspire to win and do really well,” he said. “So we didn’t want to just dive into five or six games.”

However the program will remain adaptable, and will likely introduce new games in the future, he said.

A growing number of local colleges have added esports to their offerings, including the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg and Robert Morris University.

In its debut effort Tuesday, Point Park defeated Penn College in Rocket League, then fell to Arcadia University.

Point Park student Brandon “NinjaB” O’Toole led the team, scoring seven goals in the first match.

Point Park University broadcasts its matches at twitch.tv/pointpark_esports.

The next Rocket League match starts 8 p.m. Tuesday. The League of Legends season starts Oct. 19.