James C. Falcon | Williston Herald
TRENTON — On any given afternoon, tucked away in the corner of Trenton High School's home economics classroom is a row of five computers. Here, you'll find Trenton's newest batch of athletes.
While they won't be running, jumping, or throwing — at least physically — they will be exercising their gaming prowess, all in a bid — like their athletic counterparts — to make it to the state tournament.
In this case, it is Trenton's Esports team hoping to make it to Grand Forks next month.
The inaugural season for Esports in Trenton launched in November, explained Christopher Lind, a librarian and STEM teacher for the school district who serves as the Esports advisor.
Around September 2022, Lind brought the idea of Esports to the Trenton school board.
"At that time, they wanted to have more information, but they were very supportive," he said.
That support helped launch the team, which started with 10 students. The team could have grown halfway through the season — it runs through the end of January — as more students expressed an interest.
"There's a lot of interest now, once the season started. It's not something you can join in the middle of," Lind said, noting the limited technology available for students, who are currently practicing on five computers in shifts. "We would need at least five more computers — and I think that's a possibility. If we had 10 computers now, they could have longer practices. It'd be easier."
Between the number of computers and the quantity of the team, they divided up into two teams of five to play Valorant, a first-person shooter game that contains elements of magic.
Four days a week after school, the team practices in shifts, each an hour and 15 minutes. Then, every Thursday, they compete against other schools.
"They are playing against well-established teams," Lind said.
To make it to the state tournament, they need to be in the top 12, he said. So far, the two teams are ranked twenty-first and twenty-second in Valorant.
Christian Zaste, a senior at Trenton and a member of the Esports team, usually spends his off time playing video games. When the opportunity for Esports presented itself, he signed on.
"It gives me a chance to hang out with my friends more, talk, and play against people," Zaste said.
The dynamic that the team has is "very sports orientated," Lind explained.
"They have headsets on and they're talking to each other and encouraging each other," he said. "The dynamic of the students is just really a neat thing to see."
Gabriel Vannett, another senior and team member, agreed that Esports "opens up a lot of opportunities" for communication and teamwork. Gabriel Hobbs, also a senior team member, has previous Esports experience, having participated during his freshman year at Williston High School. He noted his desire in being a team leader.
Esports, Lind stated, is "just like any other sport."
"They are working together for a purpose," he added. "My job is to keep them positive and what we want to work on next time, that kind of thing, just like a typical coach."
Lind has seen the Esports program grow across the state, not only in high schools, but also at the university level — so much that the University of North Dakota offers a Bachelor's in Esports.
"An Esports degree will give you the foundation to step into the gaming industry in a variety of ways," the university's website states, adding that it is an "innovative, challenging and at the cutting edge of new developments in academic programming across the country." It is also the first degree of its kind in North Dakota.
"It is a serious thing," Lind said. "It's not just a 'we're playing video games' type of thing."
"I think people should try Esports if they have the chance," Zaste said. "It does give a lot of social interaction for those that are not great at it. It helps with communication amongst people. It makes you think a lot on how to do something."
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