The Bow Valley College Bears took home a pair of firsts, as their first ever varsity team took home their first ever collegiate victory on Feb. 5, in a tight victory over the SAIT Trojans.

The Bears, battling it out in Valorant, one of the titles that is part of the National Association of Collegiate Esports competitions, took a two match victory over the Trojans, that was all but certain throughout the evening.

The team’s shot caller Kyle Caballero, akin to the team captain for the evening, praised both his team and the Trojans at the end of the night.

“Looking at all the other teams, I’d say state was the one that provides the most amount of competition, not to disclose discourage any of the other teams, but they are, I think, the highest average Elo as well—Elo being everyone’s skill base in general. So having a win over SAIT today and a 2-0, especially, feels very good for us. Very good,” he said.

Valorant pits five players on five in a first-person shooter, where both reflexes, character and weapon strategy, and teamwork matter.

The Bears’ Head Coach Nick Olmstead said that the team had been working for several months to come together ahead of the spring season.

“It’s just nice to see that we can come out of it. A little close to the last game there, but to not go to map three is really nice for the first first week,” Olmstead said.

The crowd, which gathered inside the arena and outside in Bow Valley College’s cafeteria, cheering whenever their boys in blue took home a round win, also pumped up the night he said.

“The confidence that they’re going to gain from this after all—the nerves for the last couple months is definitely going to be shaken off a bit, and they’re going to be more confident going into next week,” Olmstead said.

Caballero echoed that sentiment about the crowd, saying that it was amazing to have people both in person and online take in their first collegiate match.

“I’m so proud of them, honestly, from us being able to put this together in really short time with just a few months to us actually getting our schedule—we only got it last Friday. So, being able to share that and have people really be excited and make the time to come out or watch it online has really meant a lot,” he said.

“For [the Bears], I wanted them to be able to play an experience, but also know that they have the support of a community behind them. I think that’s such a motivator, and I’m glad we have it.”

Bears teams also playing League of Legends and Overwatch

Besides Valorant, Bears esports teams are also taking part in collegiate League of Legends and Overwatch.

The lineup of some of the world’s most popular esports titles drew more than 150 people interested in competing for Bow Valley College, said Thelma John, Esports Engagement Strategist with the college.

“It’s been really exciting because we haven’t actually done external recruitment. These are all students who are already at the college,” John said.

“Many of them didn’t really know that we were starting this, or having these kinds of opportunities. As they’ve come in, we’ve been able to really give them a sense of community and also tie them back to the college and instill some pride here.”

Although initially the timeline between the opening the new esport arena and having collegiate teams was thought to be on the order of several years, but under the leadership of John, that was reduced to around six months.

She said that as soon as word got out in the student body, there were non-stop questions about how they could get involved with the teams.

“The first questions were, is there a team? How can I join winter tryouts? What are we going to do? That’s been consistent. I really think everything that we’ve achieved is due to the students and to their interest,” John said.

“We know that there are so many people who play games. This is their hobby, this is their fun, this is their community. And now they can do that while they’re going to school, and while they’re learning, while they’re getting practical experience. So it’s all down to them.”

From the players to the coaches, to the broadcasting staff—students make up all of the aspects of the new Bears teams and are represented from across the college.

Caballero himself is a student in legal studies, while Olmstead comes from esports business management.

“Every aspect of what esports means to us at this college, there is a student involved in it. And whether that students in the esports business management program or they’re in nursing or they’re in legal studies, there’s still a space for them within this arena,” said John.

The Bears play Overwatch and League of Legends on Tuesday evenings, and Valorant on Wednesday. Games can be caught in person at Bow Valley College, or online through Twitch.