Northside ISD was a hub of Esports excitement recently.
At the Spring 2024, NISD Esports Championships students from NISD’s middle and high schools competed for the title of grand champions in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and League of Legends. After a day of steep competition, Folks Middle School and Clark High School emerged victorious as the top Mario Kart teams.
However, the League of Legends tournaments resulted in a three-way tie between the teams at Clark, Holmes, and Warren high schools. Tiebreaker games will be held at a later date to be announced in the coming days.
In addition, on Sunday, Northside students competed against the top teams in the city at the R20 Grand Finals at the Boeing Center at Tech Port. The team at Warren High School made it to the Grand Finals in the Rocket League, but unfortunately, they were eliminated. Jose "Toffy!" Pineda from Holmes High School finished third overall in the city in Super Smash Bros. in the ultimate high school bracket.
Brothers Malcolm (aka Nightmare) and Kantrell (aka Judgement) Thompson from Folks Middle School played each other in the middle school grand finals for Super Smash Bros., with Kantrell winning overall.
This marks the end of the Esports seasons for the 2023-2024 school year. Thanks to all the staff, campus sponsors, and students who volunteered their time and participated in Esports competitions for the 2023-2024 school year.
Esports is a growing and sanctioned sporting event in public schools across the country. It requires a tremendous amount of critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity from players to achieve and sustain success, reaching beyond traditional sports to create an all-inclusive environment that breaks barriers. The National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE), the main governing body for varsity collegiate esports, has awarded millions of dollars in esports scholarships and aid over the last five years.