Game on: Triple Threat begins Esports season January 13

Esports season is here and Triple Threat is ready. Over the last month, there have been ongoing practices and pre-season games to prepare the entire co-op consisting of New Rockford-Sheyenne, Hazen and Garrison for their regular season starting on Monday, Jan. 13.

So far Triple Threat has played two pre-season Valorant games with a record of 1-1, as well as a few Fortnite games. One of Triple Threats’ Fortnite duos, Stephen Sogge and Landen Anderson, took first place in both of the matches they played.

Coach Brady Eichelberger said this was a great indicator as to how the season may play out for the duo, as these pre-season games are now done with other schools in a private lobby, giving them a chance to see how they’ll fare against other teams later this season.

This year, Triple Threat has roughly 25 players, divided up into teams for Fortnite, Rocket League, Valorant and online chess. The General Managers, or “coaches,” who have helped give Triple Threat an edge that other schools don’t have consist of Brady Eichelberger of New Rockford-Sheyenne, Lisa Maki of Garrison and Karl Osterman of Hazen.

Having coaches that want to compete with the players during practice have helped to increase the players’ abilities and help them find any issues in the team so that they can solve it before playing in games. They also have alumni that are willing to hop on the game with current players to help them get experience against seasoned vets.

A fellow teacher at New Rockford-Sheyenne, Steven Stutlien, has also been assisting the chess team to help them learn the game and develop strategy.

Some other strengths the team possesses is their passion and desire to win the game. This helps to propel Triple Threat toward their main goal of not only qualifying for the state tournament but also placing high up in the ranks while there.

In addition to having a winning record, Eichelberger said he hopes to see growth in communication and skill set for each individual player as well as chemistry among the teams throughout the season.

Although the team has many strengths, they have one major obstacle, Eichelberger said. Coming from three small schools they don’t have as many players as other teams do.

Due to this fact, Triple Threat must navigate how to put their best foot forward when trying to build successful teams. “We are going in with the mindset we can do our best against any school, big or small,” Eichelberger said.

Triple Threat is excited about the upcoming season and is ready to start competing. Triple Threat is intending on streaming Valorant games during the season. Watch the NR-S School Facebook page for more information. the Transcript will also publish streaming information as it’s made available to us.