Adam Ide, Sports Editor & Caleb White, Online Editor

Nearly every student has seen the state-of-the-art esports lounge in the middle of the Hagan Campus Center. Unfortunately, it is rare to see anyone utilizing the space, and if it is in use, then it is usually by a lone gamer. This year the esports team has high hopes for revamping the esports lounge and being a more competitive athletic team on campus.

“I had Eric Gobiel, the director of athletics, reach out to me and say, ‘Hey… we’re looking to revamp this esports program, are you interested?’ And I said, ‘Wow, this could be something,’” said Kadin deRuijter, resident director on campus and the new director of the Assumption esports program. 

Under deRuijter, the esports program has already made significant progress. DeRuijter’s new approach to building the team’s infrastructure has proven to be immensely successful thus far.

“This semester will be spent restructuring and making sure we have a community on campus,” he said. “[We want to be] having an engaged community where people actually come down and get to know people here.”

In order to establish the esports team on campus, deRuijter hopes to open up the esports lounge to the student body. He hopes this will create a sense of community around the team that can be built off of.

“It’s going to make the program much more visible. It’s going to be an outlet for a specific community on campus that can provide for [students] that makes them feel comfortable here at Assumption

By making the program community-centered and then building athletics out of that instead of … [to] make the athletic team and then try to get a community to support those athletic teams encourages people who are just casual gamers who just want to enjoy their evening with friends.” replied deRuijter when asked about the benefits of having the esports lounge open to the public.

Community building will be a staple of deRuijter’s team this year.

“A lesson I’ve learned is that our game is not an individual sport. Even if our matches are played alone, we can all help each other get better. I hope this year, we can form a real sense of community with the esports team, and I think we can achieve it in our new [director]. The creative ideas he comes up with have me looking forward to the rest of the year.” said sophomore team member Joe Mitchell when asked about deRuijter’s focus on community.

DeRuijter hopes he can cut through the bureaucratic red tape to institute the changes to the esports lounge as soon as possible. Once deRuijter’s transformation of the lounge is complete, the space will be reorganized to be a welcoming environment for students. The door will be propped open with live games streaming to large TVs inside and members of the esports team waiting to welcome and play with any student who is looking to get into video games.

As far as athletics go, deRuijter has already made some advancements working on behalf of the team in order to get competitions back up and running.

“We are no longer part of the ECAC, which was our prior conference, we are part of the NECC. Much better competition, much more competition, better rules, the entire conference is way better.” said deRuijter on the advancements the team has made athletically.

However, the divide between the esports athletes and the athletics department is still a little too wide for deRuijter’s liking.

“Unfortunately, [we] are not as close [with the athletic department] as I’d like to be. Now the whole esports industry is relatively new, and there is a stigma that they are not real athletes. My goal is that with this program … is that esports athletes are viewed in the exact same light as your conventional football athlete.”

The esports team has made leaps and bounds already this semester, with many more advancements on the horizon. If you have any interest in joining the team, feel free to contact travis.robie@assumption.edu and kayke.batista@assumption.edu for more information.

Adam Ide, Sports Editor

The Assumption University Greyhounds compete in the Division II New England 10 conference. A large number of varsity sports teams on campus play with some of the best competitors that Division II has to offer. Assumption University is also famous for its many club sports that allow students to compete against their fellow classmates and participate for fun. Starting in the 2019-2020 academic year, however, Assumption University introduced Blue and White Sports that do not count as varsity sports but do compete against other schools in the area.

The first three-sport offerings that were introduced in 2019 were men’s swimming, women’s ice hockey, and esports. This opened up a great option for students interested in these sports to compete against other schools.

“My freshman year was the first year the program existed. It’s been really cool to watch it grow.” said senior assistant captain of the women’s ice hockey team, Caroline McDonough.

Unfortunately, this great opportunity that arose in 2019 seems to have faltered since its creation. Assumption’s athletics website has all but forgotten these three sports. While all of the varsity sports feature countdown clocks preparing fans for the season openers, the Blue and White Sports have not been updated since their creation in 2019. 

This lack in maintenance to the schools athletics site and the lack of attention to the Blue and White Sports program in general may have COVID-19 to blame.

“I actually think the reason why the program needs to be revamped came down to sustainability and organization. I think that because of the fact that COVID made everything online … did disorganize a lot of people. That I think is one of the contributing factors.” said new esports program director Kadin deRuijter when asked about how COVID-19 affected the Blue and White Sports program.

It is clear that the deciding factor of whether or not each individual Blue and White Sport was greatly effected or not by COVID-19 was their relationship with the athletics program.

“We’re overseen by athletics. … Our paperwork all goes through athletics so we are involved with athletics. … During the COVID lock down year athletics did let us practice … twice a week.” said McDonough when asked about the women’s club hockey team’s relationship with the athletic department and how COVID-19 played a role in the team’s progression.

Meanwhile, the esports team has had a very different experience when dealing with the athletic department.

“Unfortunately, [we] are not as close [with the athletic department] as I’d like to be.” said deRuijter.

It seems as though the athletics department and the Blue and White Sports program do not have any guidelines in place as to what their relationship should be. This is a large issue when it comes to the management of the team and also the Blue and White Sports’ community outreach.

Recently, men’s swimming and women’s ice hockey have announced that they will be varsity sports, with recruitment starting in 2023. Although these are big steps forward for the athletics programs and the school, they are not being treated as important as the other sports on the school’s athletics page.

At the very least, the men’s swimming and diving team has been moved to the varsity sports section of the athletics page. The women’s hockey team still sits in the Blue and Withe sports section along with the only other remaining Blue and White Sport, the esports team.

The women’s hockey team has played two games so far this season, both played against UMass resulting in a 1-1 record according to McDonough. However, you will not be able to find this information of the athletics page due to the lack of updates for Blue and White Sports.

The esports team is currently in a rebuilding phase although there has been no news shared with the student body through the athletics department about when or if the esports team plans to compete again soon. 

Since the athletics website has not been providing updates on these teams keep your eyes peeled for informational fliers or members of the Blue and White Sports teams to find out more. 

Kailey Bisbee, Staff Writer

The Assumption football team has always been a force to be reckoned with. Every season, they have a whole team of students and staff that help make games possible. 

Students have an opportunity to be a part of the team through the work studies program. This allows students to gain experience in sport management and health studies as well as support the Greyhounds. This is helpful in preparing both business and science majors for their future careers. It truly is one of the best opportunities Assumption offers. 

A lot goes on behind the scenes. The players endure workouts, 6 am practices, meetings, walkthroughs, and a whole lot more. Students working for the team help support the players in all aspects. This includes helping with physical therapy, restocking the first aid kit, filling water bottles, driving materials from the training center to the field, and most importantly, helping with emotional support. Players need] support from both fans and staff members.  

“They have become like family to me I have never seen such a healthy sports environment,” one student staff member stated. 

The football team is always growing. As players and coaches come through the program, new ideas are brought to the team. Fresh minds help to set up success for the new season. 

“New coaches have brought different ideas that have been implemented for the benefit of the team overall. The defense has made tremendous improvements and is stronger than ever. Overall the team is working really hard, it has been an amazing season so far!” said the staff member when asked about this year’s team. 

Though change can often be scary, it only means big things for the Assumption football team. 

Assumption plays in New Haven at Southern Connecticut State Saturday, Oct. 1, and their next home game against Franklin Pierce on Oct. 9.