MARION, Ind. - Both the Wildcat Valorant and Rocket League teams were 2-0 heading into Week 3 of the NECC regular season.
Valorant got to play first, taking on Fall Semester rivals Wright State. The Wildcats had previously defeated the Raiders 2-0 in the East Conference Tournament Semifinals back in November.
This time, it would be the Raiders that drew first blood, taking a shocking 6-0 lead over the Wildcats at the beginning of map 1. While the Wildcats would gain some momentum, Wright State would ultimately take a colossal 8-4 lead at the side switch. But the Wildcats were not deterred. They fought the entire way and, even though they were behind for most of the map, took the lead with one round to go in regulation, 12-11. The Raiders would force overtime, but it was all IWU in overtime, as the team won map one 14-12.
Map two, Bind, was the IWU's pick. While Wright did give the Wildcats a battle and made the map closer than any other team this season, they couldn't stop the IWU momentum and the Wildcats took the map 13-9. The Wildcats have yet to drop a map this Spring season. That, combined with the one loss record in the Fall semester, has made this year one of the most dominant years in IWU Valorant history.
For Rocket League, they took on Indiana Tech, a team that the Wildcats lost 3-0 to in the preseason. The Wildcats were ready to go, but Indiana Tech came out swinging, taking the first two games. While the Wildcats did win a tight game 3, the Warriors managed to take the final two games. This loss is the first of the Spring season for the Rocket League team. However, it reminds many of the season the Wildcats had a year ago, where they fell in the regular season to Kettering, only to storm back and defeat Kettering in the Conference Tournament. Will the Wildcats be able to repeat that revenge by the end of the Spring? Only time will tell.
Both teams will be back in action next week, with Valorant taking on Northern Illinois and Rocket League facing off against Beloit College. After that, both teams will be on a bye for the first week of March. They will however, be traveling to Midwest Battlegrounds, a collegiate Valorant and Rocket League tournament in Lisle, Illinois.
Upcoming Week
Monday
- Valorant vs. Northern Illinois, 7pm EST
Wednesday
- Rocket League vs. Beloit, 6pm EST
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