Organized, competitive, multiplayer computer gaming comes to Alvernia as the university launches its 28th varsity team – esports.

 

 

“Esports provides Alvernia with an opportunity to offer an experience that students really enjoy and will add to our overall experience at AU," said Alvernia University President John R. Loyack.  "Our vision for the program is for Alvernia to become the Esports Hub of Berks County with a dedicated, state of the art esports suite as part of Reading CollegeTowne."

 

Alvernia will run esports in their new state of the art facility located in its 401 Penn Street complex in the heart of Reading CollegeTowne.

 

Alvernia will be the 12th school in the Middle Atlantic Conference to sponsor esports and will join most of the schools as a member of the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE). The addition of esports allows Alvernia to play a national schedule against teams the university rarely otherwise competes against--including some larger Division I schools--without leaving campus.

 

Alvernia will take an interdisciplinary approach when engaging with this transformative addition to the world of competitive sports. Students, faculty and mentors will explore ways to learn from this world-wide phenomenon and seek to utilize esports for academic work as well, recognizing the analytical thinking and strategic focus this ever-evolving depth of play requires.

"Our team has a huge opportunity to serve the Alvernia and Reading community through our role in the Reading CollegeTowne initiative." - Joshua Buchanan, Director of Esports

 

Game offerings include:

League of Legends

Developed by Riot Games, League of Legends is one of the most widely played games around the world. League of Legends is a top-down team-based MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena), in which players choose a “Champion” to control as they strategically take out different objectives, with the main goal being to destroy the other team’s “Nexus.” League of Legends is free to play and rated T for Teen.

Overwatch

One of the biggest hits from Blizzard Entertainment, Overwatch is a first-person, team-based shooter. Taking place in a futuristic environment, players choose from a variety of heroes, and help their team to take control of objectives on the map, push a “payload” across the map, or maintain control of an area of a map. Overwatch is about $40 and rated T for teen.

Rocket League

Combining soccer with high speed cars, Psyonix’s Rocket League requires players to drive around an arena to keep control of a ball and score goals. Cars in the game are fully customizable, and the fast paced gaming takes a minute to learn but a lifetime to master. Rocket League recently became free to play on all platforms, and is rated E for everyone.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is a crossover fighting game published by Nintendo. Players choose from a selection of over 80 characters and compete to see who has developed the best mastery of their character. The last character on the stage is the winner. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is about $60 on the Nintendo Switch and rated E10+.

Valorant

The latest offering by Riot Games, Valorant is a tactical first-person hero shooter. Players play as one of a set of agents, characters designed based on several countries and cultures around the world. Teams of five players have a chance to attack and defend with the first team to win 13 rounds taking the victory. Valorant is free to play and rated T for teen.

 

 

Director of Esports - Joshua Buchanan

Picture of Alvernia Director of Esports Joshua Buchanan

Joshua Buchanan joins Alvernia’s as the Director of Esports after three years building the esports program at Ashland University (Ashland, OH). During his three seasons at Ashland, Buchanan led the Eagles to a first place in the AVGL (American Video Game League) Fortnite Tournament Series and a first place in the NACE (National Assocation of Collegiate Esports) Fortnite Spring Cup 2020.


In just three years, Buchanan grew the team at Ashland into a nationally acclaimed program. During his third season at Ashland, the Eagles were nationally ranked in the Top 25 in Overwatch, Top 10 in Fortnite, and 2nd in CSGO.


Prior to his career in collegiate, Buchanan competed in StarCraft 2 professionally, ranking Top 25 in the United States. He is a graduate of Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania where he earned an undergraduate degree in economics and philosophy.

 

 

“I’ve always made it my goal to provide unique experiences and opportunities for my students, and I’m excited to take this goal to the next level with the immense support of the Alvernia administration, students, and community.” - Joshua Buchanan, Director of Esports

 

 

Learn More

For more information about Alvernia’s Esports Program, contact Joshua Buchanan, Director of Esports, at joshua.buchanan@alvernia.edu or complete the below Google form. You can also connect with Josh on Discord at Early#8193.