Esports Season Recap

February 20, 2024

ST. LOUIS, Mo - The Fontbonne University Esports team ends the cLoL North Open Division Groups in fifth place with a 3-4 record.

"The players had many strong individual showings, but we struggled to translate our practice success into the high-pressure matches," shared Head Coach Nathan Mosby. "I'd like to thank the players for all of the work they put in this year, we all experienced our own challenges in this unstable time. I appreciate the dedication to push forward even when things got tough."

cLoL North Open Division Round 4: Fontbonne University vs University of Mount Union

Final Score: Fontbonne loses the match, 2-1

After two weeks of BYE's, Fontbonne University is ready to play their first match of the season against University of Mount Union. Both teams match up evenly in skill, and the back-and-forth series was a strong way to kick off the season.

In game one, University of Mount Union came out swinging with a hyper-aggressive composition that specializes in quick skirmishes and snowballing big advantages. University of Mount Union picked up a few early kills, but Fontbonne was able to keep things even for the first part of the game. Entering the mid game, a big fight around the rift herald started by Fontbonne University backfired for the squad as a slick teleport from the Mount Union mid laner turned the fight in their favor. Fontbonne loses three members and the snowball for Mount Union began. The Griffins couldn't get their footing back and eventually lose game one in 25 minutes.

Game two saw strong adaptations from Fontbonne, leaning into more comfortable champions that align with their team fighting style. The game followed a similar path as game one, with Fontbonne behind five-thousand gold by twenty minutes. Mount Union had a formidable composition with three tanks protecting their strong Jinx. Fontbonne had to find the perfect engage with their backs against the wall. In an intense standoff in the mid lane, Jason finds a critical knock-up on Mount Union's Jinx. This fight win for Fontbonne leads to them claiming the Baron Nashor and gaining control over the game. Despite the massive advantages that Mount Union accrued, the teamwork of Jason's Zac and Mylo's signature Gwen was enough to close out game two in their favor after 33 minutes.

Game three is the most crucial in the series, as both teams already showed their prepared strategies. When the cards are on the table, it's important to have the extra trick up your sleeve. With a Senna and Tahm Kench combination from Mount Union and a Darius from Fontbonne, it all came down to who could get the early advantage. The early game went in favor of Mount Union off the back of some strong team movements that created small, but impactful advantages. The combination of Senna and Tahm Kench snowballed the game too fast, and Fontbonne's Darius couldn't get rolling. With a massive ten-thousand gold lead, University of Mount Union shutout Fontbonne and closed out the series 2-1.

Fontbonne is now 0-2 in the group stage of the cLoL North Open Division.

cLoL North Open Division Round 5: Fontbonne University vs MSOE

Final score: Fontbonne loses the match, 2-0

cLoL North Open Division Round 6: Fontbonne University vs DePaul University JV A

Final Score: Fontbonne loses the match, 2-0

Fontbonne University faces the current #1 team in Group 4, DePaul University's JV A team. Fontbonne sits at a 2-3 record and DePaul at a 5-1 record. With the group's standings, this is a must win matchup for Fontbonne to stay in control of their playoff contention.

In game one, Fontbonne came out with their signature style picks. With a Zac and Rell dive composition, they could rely on comfort to help drive them forward. The early game was back and forth between the two teams with the climax of the game happening at 15 minutes, around the Rift Herald pit. Fontbonne puts themselves in a winning position and ready to take a fight. However, DePaul finds a critical collapse onto Captain Dan which turns the fight into their favor. This gave DePaul's Twitch and Lulu scaling duo the jumpstart they needed to take over the game. Fontbonne loses just 10 minutes later.

Game two showcases one of Fontbonne's new strategies. Swapping roles between players opens new possibilities when drafting champions. This strategy was high-risk, high-reward and required a strong early game to survive. Unfortunately for the griffins, DePaul struck fast and hard. They nullified our early game win conditions and handed us a swift loss, 32-6 at 21 minutes into the game.

Fontbonne drops the series 0-2, but they still have one more week left in the cLoL North Open Division. Watch the Griffins fight for their first series win against North Central College this Saturday, March 9^th at 8pm CST.

cLoL North Open Division Round 7: Fontbonne University vs North Central College

Final score: Fontbonne defeated North Central, 2-1

The final match of the regular season showcased the two winless teams in the group in a fight for pride. With both teams eliminated from playoff contention, it came down to the last match. Fontbonne and North Central College fought in two back and forth bloodbaths leading to what ended up being an anticlimactic finale.

Due to a client feature, North Central College's jungler did not take his required "Smite" summoner spell. This led to Fontbonne securing a major advantage and ending the game quickly.

The replays of all the games are available on their Twitch page at: www.twitch.tv/FontbonneGriffins