Students at the Central University of Technology participated in the Red Bull Campus Clutch Valorant (eSports) where more than 50 000 students around the world competed in 400 events. Red Bull brought five gaming computers for students to test (demo) the Valorant video game.

As part of the activation, interested students could sign up to join a five-person team to compete at the Free State qualifier tournament, which took place at House Khayalami residence at the University of the Free State.

Three CUT teams participated in the Free State qualifier tournament and of the three, team Sol Ripper won and punched their tickets to participate in the national finals, which were held at Comic Con Africa 2022, where they further competed against seven other universities.

Sol Rippers came face-to-face with the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) in the playoffs, and the match was played in a best-of-three (BO3) format. CUT lost the game against TUT.

“Although our team did not win in the quarterfinals, I’m immensely proud of them. They displayed a lot of courage and character, and I must say they fought a convincing fight. We will continue practising and be better prepared for next year’s Campus Clutch tournament and the upcoming 2023 USSA eSport season,” said Mr van der Linde, Sol Ripper’s Team Manager and Coach.

Mr van der Linde further highlighted that in 2023, besides the annual Red Bull Campus Clutch competition, “things will be heating up for varsity eSports as more tournaments will be held on behalf of University Sports South Africa (USSA). Games that will feature on the 2023 calendar for USSA include FIFA 23, Rocket League, Clash Royale and Counterstrike: Global Offensive (CSGO).”

“I hope our university will at some point support the eSports by availing a dedicated on-campus eSports facility, with proper eSports equipment such as high-refresh rate monitors, gaming mice, keyboards and headsets. I also wish to call upon students interested in participating next year to reach out to me so we can establish a CUT Gaming student body.

eSports provide an avenue for any student, no matter your gender, culture, or background, to get together, socialise and enjoy playing games together. We need to start identifying the best students for each title, and I need your help to do it,” he concluded.

On behalf of the team, Mr van der Linde extended his gratitude to Ms Gloriah Molefe from CUT Sports, who also played a huge role in the team’s participation at the Comic Con Africa event.

Caption

1: Team Sol Ripper represented CUT at the Red Bull Campus Clutch national finals.
From left: Mr Leon van der Linde, Team manager and Coach; Lecturer: IT Department, Mfanelo Mathye, Diploma: IT, Ikageng Molete, Diploma: IT, Phakiso Mokoena, Diploma: Computer Networking, Lehlohonolo Tsolo, B.Education SP FET Technology and Katleho Morobe, Diploma: Computer Networking.

2: Students playing off at the Free State qualifier event at House Khayalami.