UAM Esports Team Starts Strong in the Online Gaming Scene
In its debut season, the UAM Esports team has proven to be a formidable opponent in the online gaming world.
The UAM Esports team is a group of students from diverse academic backgrounds who represents the University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM) by competing in online gaming. This fall, students have battled ten colleges and universities across the nation and Canada. As newcomers on the scene, UAM had to gain a footing, but performance is improving, and the team is climbing the ranks.
The UAM Esports team is part of the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE), which is the largest association of college- and university-sponsored esports programs. NACE supports the education and development of students through intercollegiate esports.
Devin Burton, coach of the UAM Esports team, said that they are a new program going up against more experienced teams. "We had some close losses at first, but now we are seeing impressive wins," Burton said. "We are positioned for a chance to make it to the fall playoffs."
Kristian Harris, a freshman business major and the captain of the UAM Rocket League team, described the amount of practice required to compete in the matches, stating, "I played in high school, but college is next level. You have to be willing to challenge yourself."
UAM Esports is streamed live on Mondays at 6 p.m. on twitch.tv/uam_esports. For more information about the UAM Esports team, contact Devin Burton at burtond@uamont.edu or (870) 460-1663.