BLINN OVERWATCH OPENS SEASON WITH A LOSS

Story by Joe Alberico, Blinn College Sports Information

The Blinn College esports team opened the 2025 fall season with a loss to Minnesota State University-Mankato in a National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) Overwatch match Monday.

In a best-of-five series, the Buccaneers fell 3-0. Blinn is now 0-1 in the NACE Varsity Premier West Central Conference

Joseph Mares, Donnivan Straight, Donovan Hernandez, Trey Vaughan, and Jose Rios competed for the Bucs.

Overwatch is a team-based, first-person-shooter in which players select heroes with unique abilities and work together to complete objectives across multiple map modes. Each team can strategically choose its maps based on team strengths and opponent weaknesses. 

Each round Monday included a different win condition based on the following modes:

• Control: Teams fight to capture and hold a single point. The first team to reach 100% control wins two rounds in a best-of-three format, where the loser of each round picks the next map.
• Escort: The attacking team moves a payload to its destination while defenders try to stop them. The payload moves when attackers are near it, and the attackers aim to complete the route before time runs out.
• Hybrid: Teams capture a point and then escort a payload. The match is typically one round for attackers, who must secure the point first before moving the payload.
• Push: Teams battle to control a robot and push it toward the opponent’s side. The first team to push it farther than their opponents wins, with the loser picking the next map.
• Clash: Teams capture consecutive points, with the first team to reach a set number of points winning.

Monday’s match was contested in the Control, Hybrid, and Escort modes.

“This match was a humbling experience for our squad, as Mankato exposed a number of our weaknesses, and at times we struggled to find our footing, often looking uncoordinated and disconnected,” Blinn head coach and Overwatch manager Kyle Murto said. “For a roster full of fresh faces, it was an eye-opening moment that showed us the gap we need to close to compete at the level we aspire to. The silver lining is that this result clearly outlined the areas we need to improve, and our players are eager to put in the work.”

Blinn Overwatch gets back to work when it takes on Texas A&M University-San Antonio in a NACE match at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 22. The Buccaneer Rocket League team will make its fall debut against Lindenwood University at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday.