Columbia, Mo. – The No. 3 ranked Columbia College eSports varsity team made their season debut Saturday. The Cougars kick-started the 2019 College League of Legends season with a victory over the Park University Pirates, 2-0.
The eSports program is in new hands this season. Head Coach Doruk Hacioglu is at the helm and brings professional experience to Columbia. The team's new jungler Joshua "NintendudeX" Atkins also has professional experience having recently played for Echo Fox in the NA Academy League 2018 Summer Split. The two coupled with an already veteran team makes the Cougars season look promising.
Here's a look ahead at the 2019 CLoL Season format. Much like last year, the regional conferences play a Swiss-style bracket where each round the teams are re-seeded to ensure the most competitive matchups. Each week teams will face opponents of similar records.
North Conference Regular Season Schedule:
- Round 1: Jan 26
- Round 2: Jan 2
- Round 3: Feb 9
- Round 4: Feb 16
- Round 5: Feb 23
- Round 6: Mar 2
Conference Playoffs Schedule
- Round 1: Mar 9
- Round 2: Mar 16
- Round 3: Mar 23
- Round 4: Mar 25 - Apr 3
Default Match start time 3:00 p.m. CST
The Cougar Junior Varsity team defeated Boston University for their second victory of the 2019 spring season. The JV team also has a new face onboard, freshman top laner John "Haebaragi" Choi, a transfer student from Saint Ambrose University. Coach Doruk is excited for the future of eSports at Columbia College and shared a bit of his plans. "We are increasing our practice and engagement this season with both rosters. We want to demonstrate we are a top program in the collegiate environment."
