The Ipswich High School League of Legends team is a team of six members who compete in interscholastic games just like any other sports team. Last year they fell to Shrewsbury in their division’s finals, but how did the team fare this year?

The way the team works is that they have five positions. The first is the jungler who collects buffs and abilities for the team by killing monsters and collecting items in the jungle portions of the map. The next role is being in either the top, middle, or bottom lane. These lane positions consist of trying to take out enemy towers and eventually their home base which would grant them a victory. The last position is support which plays all over the map supporting their teammates. For the Ipswich team, Maddox Sardinas is the jungler, Sam Jones and Behnjamin Dessources swap as top lane, Sau-lok Ma is middle lane, Tyler Sardinas is bottom lane, and Alex Wilt is support.

This year the team started off strong going 5-0 before dropping a few games due to forfeit and difficult teams. By the time playoffs rolled around the team didn’t get the best position in the playoff bracket but was able to win their first-round game. In the second round of the playoffs, the team played hard but ultimately fell. Although it may seem like the season was a loss the team was moved to a much larger league this year. So for a new league with way more members, making it to the second round of the playoffs is still a success.

Alex Wilt, the support player for the team, was asked about this year’s season. He responded with, “It’s too bad we couldn’t win a championship before Behnji graduated, but it was still a great season for the team because we were in the playoffs.” Alex’s mindset towards the season shows just how optimistic the team is. Even with a recent loss, they are still looking on the bright side.

The coach of this team is Jim Evans, an IT worker here at the high school. When he was interviewed about the team’s success he had this to say about their dynamic, “I think the team dynamic is where it needs to be. The players collaborate on strategies and characters that give us the best opportunity to win every week. They also lift each other up to bring up morale. Sau-Lok Ma scouts our opponent every week to fill us in on which characters we should ban. Every player has a role to fill and each player does it well.” What Mr. Evans said shows how the team works well together.

Next year the League of Legends team will retain five of its six members and is hopeful for another good season. When Mr. Evans was questioned about the future of IHS League of Legends, he said, “I want to see our current players continue to improve and excel at their positions. Most of our players are Juniors and it’s important to acknowledge that we’ve had so much success with younger players.” Along with the improvement of his current players, Mr. Evans also wants a second League team to form. He encourages anyone who has an interest in the game and wants to take it competitively no matter the skill level.

If you ever want to watch past games of the team be sure to check twitch.tv/IHSesports.