Freshman Claims BVU Super Smash Bros. Esports Title
Michael Schreck, who played esports competitively before coming to BVU, takes the first title in a BVU esports tournament.
Michael Schreck came to Buena Vista University this fall intent on playing in the marching band and tennis for the Beavers.
He made history as BVU’s first esports champion. Schreck, a freshman from Willey, topped 12 fellow BVU students in the University’s fall Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament, an esports offering directed by Trevor Berneking, who coaches BVU esports as well as linebackers for the Beavers football team. BVU esports partnered with the University’s Anime Gaming Society in organizing the event.
“Michael went 18-1 on the weekend and came through the loser’s bracket to win the title,” Berneking says. “He had played competitively before, and it showed.”
A portion of the tournament, including the final match, was broadcast by BVU gamers/announcers Tanner Frost and Omar Alcorta, digital media majors. There were 200-some viewings of the finals, a match between Schreck and Kalani Wagner, the only Beaver who defeated Schreck during the tournament.
“It’s cool to play a sport in a state-of-the-art space where we get to know other students with similar interests.”
Michael Shreck
“We Livestreamed the match on Twitch with Omar providing analysis,” says Frost, a senior who has now called the following BVU sports: men’s basketball, women’s basketball, softball, baseball, wrestling, soccer, volleyball, intramural flag football, and intramural volleyball.
For Schreck, the title helps highlight his first semester on campus, one that began with daily practices in marching band, a co-curricular activity that attracted him to BVU.
“I really liked the atmosphere here on campus, which is a big reason I chose BVU,” says Schreck. “Plus, being here gave me the opportunity to keep playing percussion in band while also playing tennis.”
Being a part of esports history on campus represents a bonus for the Kuemper Catholic High School graduate, who seeks to join his BVU peers in international service opportunities in the future.
“Lots of attention has been paid to esports, especially during the pandemic as other sports couldn’t be held. ESPN began broadcasting tournaments. It’s cool that attention is being brought to it, and that people see ‘gaming’ as something pretty positive.”
BVU has nearly 20 students who’ve shown interest in competing for the Beavers in esports, including Corey Nichols who also represented BVU in a Street Fighter V tournament hosted by the Collegiate Star League over the weekend. This fall, BVU esports had three teams competing in a Rocket League and League of Legends charity tournament hosted by Hawkeye Community College. Schreck indicates he’ll start a Super Smash Bros. team for competition next fall, if not sooner.
Frost, a senior gamer who also plays linebacker for the football team, is excited about the possibilities to broadcast another sport, one that takes place in the Esports Arena, a site quickly emerging as his go-to spot on campus.
“It’s great we have the Esports Arena,” Frost says. “I come here to play, to watch others play, and to get some homework done.”
Esports has allowed Schreck to widen his circle of friends on campus. He met more and more people as the activity grew more popular this fall.
“I knew a couple of esports players before the tournament, and then I met eight to 10 others, they’re all super nice,” he says. “It’s cool to play a sport in a state-of-the-art space where we get to know other students with similar interests.”