FRESNO, Calif. - In their second year of competition, Fresno Pacific Esports Overwatch team secured the NECC Division 8 Championship title! The Sunbirds came into nationals as the 12th seed and fiercely climbed their way up to the championship match, winning it all in a 4-0 sweep over University of Evansville.
Overwatch: National Champions
The Sunbird's Overwatch team had a strong finish this year. Wrapping up regular season with a 7-3 record, top three in conference and 7th in the division. In playoffs, the Birds won their first-round match against Waldorf University (3-1), lost the semifinals to Fort Lewis College (2-3) and won third place after defeating Bethany College (3-2) earning another trophy for the program.
The Sunbird's performance from this season and last fall qualified them for the 14th seed out of the top 16 teams in the division. The first match up gave the team a shot at a rematch with Fort Lewis College. Hyped to possibly win a trophy, the Blue and Orange played like a different team and swept Fort Lewis 3-0, moving the Fresno Pacific to the next round. Another 3-0 sweep against Carthage College advanced them to the semifinals versus Waynesburg University.
"The energy of the team leading up to the match was palpable as players trained hard and cooked up some new strategies for the match. Watching film of Waynesburg revealed that this was going to be a tough match to win," mentioned Esports Director Chris Carlson. "Losing two of our starting players to other responsibilities prior to the match shook the team's confidence a bit and was evident in the first match."
Running Control on Busan the 'Birds and the Yellow Jackets traded captures, but Waynesburg's Invochi on Mauga played a very aggressive area control and took the first game (1-2). The 'Birds were unable to clear Waynesburg off the robot in overtime, so the second game went to the Yellow Jackets. Being down 0-2, FPU had to get it together and win, or it was another third-place trophy for them. FPU chose Hybrid on their favorite map, Eichenwalde, as either their redemption or doom. Against all odds, the team held the first corner with an iron grip. Solid communication and team synergy kept Waynesburg from advancing beyond 57 meters and the Birds took game four tying up the series. Flashpoint at Aatlis was chosen as the final map and the momentum stayed in the birds favor as they locked in the victory (3-0) and the reverse sweep. The room was lively with cheers and excitement at the unexpected turn of events as the Birds moved to the finals.
Fresno Pacific were hungry for the win against the final opponent, University of Evansville. After such a close match, the 'Birds were expecting more of a struggle. The team was operating at their peak and wrapped up the best-of-seven match 4-0, becoming the first FPU esports team to win a national title! Going from getting a single win the entire Spring 2025 season to winning it all Spring 2026 was a huge victory for both the team and the program. FPU Overwatch will be coming back in the fall with two competitive teams looking to surpass their current record and continue to make history.
Rocket League: Bronze Trophy
The FPU Orange Rocket League team finished 2nd in conference and faced Tarleton State in the first round of playoffs. The Texans started off strong taking game one (1-4) and two (1-3) putting the pressure on the 'Birds. The team rallied with Keith (Luke Young) leading with two quick goals and swinging the momentum back towards the Sunbirds. Smokie (Estevan Gonzalez) and Shiginoku (Rene Meza) followed up with a goal each taking set three (4-2). FPU continued to fight in set four with Smokie dominating the field scoring the only two goals of the game and winning it (2-0) and tying up the series. However, Tarleton was not ready to throw in the towel and snagged game five (1-2) with s3An_25 scoring both of the Texan's goals while being a defensive wall with three saves. Smokie went off in game six with four goals with Shiginoku right there with one goal and three assists winning the set for the birds (5-3) and once again tying up the series. With the seventh set becoming a regular occurrence this season, the Birds entered in with confidence and drive to win. Tarleton couldn't keep pace with the Birds leaving six goals unanswered as FPU took the seventh set (6-0) and won the match.
The Sunbirds played New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology in a tough semifinals match of playoffs. The 'Birds took an early lead, winning the first set by a hair (3-2) despite nine shots on goal and a much more aggressive play style from NMT. Set two was again almost evenly matched and swung the Miners' way towards the end (2-3). The offense from NMT continued to be relentless with 13 shots on goal and a majority of the round spent around the Sunbirds goal. Some great saves by Smokie and a few windows of opportunity allowed the birds to snag the third set (2-1). Fresno Pacific gave everything it had in those first matches and NMT began to pull ahead winning game four (2-5), game five (1-3), and finally game six (2-6) sending the Sunbirds to the third-place match.
The Birds once again met the Seawolves in a rematch against University of Anchorage Alaska. Technical difficulties at UAA's end delayed the match and left their players a little frazzled going into game one, but the Sunbirds showed no mercy and swept the first set (7-0). The Seawolves rallied in set two and scrapped out a win (0-1) with player Whsprd controlling the game for UAA. Whsprd continued to be an issue for the birds in game three scoring two of UAA's three goals taking another game (2-3) from the Birds. Hungry for a trophy, the Birds rallied and sent the Wolves howling winning game four (2-1), five (4-3), and six (4-0) for third-place and a bronze trophy in Division VI West Playoffs.
The Wolves were not out for long as a rematch loomed in the first round of Nationals. Fatigue from a long season caused the 'Birds to lose the rematch (0-4) despite each game being lost by only one point.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: 4th in Nationals
After finishing their season going 4-2 and finishing third in conference, the Sunbirds made the 5th seed heading into playoffs. The Birds faced off against Kansas State in the first round and put up a good fight but were unfortunately defeated 2-1 and eliminated. Despite the loss, consistent performance across both semesters earned the 'Birds top seed in Nationals which comprised of the top scoring 16 teams across the nation in Division V. The Birds went up against the University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy St. Louis in the first round and blew through their team pretty quickly going 12-9 in the first set and 12-7 in the second.
Moving on to the quarter finals, the Sunbirds played Drury University and needed to win to continue playing. The matchup here was the closest the team had seen all season. FPU and Drury traded stock for stock in the first set until Drury's Krystal on Falco began to pull ahead. FPU's Forsaur (Forrest Gray) put a stop to the Falco while losing a stock himself but recovered nicely going 3-0 Dury's Bobbitwizard on Mewtwo. Drury's captain Cocomaster on Ness proved to be a challenge for both Forsaur and Sososa (Sam Ramos) as FPU lost the first set 11-12. Going into the second set, FPU changed the order and Sososa followed up Airvaulter (Jackson Paramo) to soften up Drury's starters in the hopes of getting a captain-on-captain fight between Forsaur and Cocomaster. The plan played out and both players had a rematch with Forsaur being at full stocks this time around, he was able to take Cocomaster out with one stock remaining and wipe up Bobbitwizard without trouble winning the second set for FPU 12-8. Set three was tense as both sides fought with all they had to pull ahead. The Birds had a stronger start with Airvaluter going 3-2 against Bobbitwizard and 2-1 against Drury's usual starter Stealer on Dark Pit. The lead was continued by FPU's Shadowman (Chris Clark) as he wiped up the Dark Pit but fell to Drury's Falco. Krystal on Falco proved much harder for Sososa this time around losing 1-3 but Forsaur was able to make up the lost ground without giving any. The final matchup of the final set was again Forsaur on Mario against Cocomaster on Ness, both a full three stocks. Palms were sweating as both players traded blow for blow and stock for stock until it was one stock each with both being well over kill percentage. It was anyone's game until Forsaur saw an opening, grabbed and threw /cocomaster into position to spike him off stage for the win.
FPU's semi finals match against Waynesburg University was a different story. Waynesburg's Ecliptic on Banjo and Kazooie proved to be on another level for the Birds and almost 12 stocked the entire team, singlehandedly. The Sunbirds were swiftly defeated 5-12 in the first set and 8-12 in the second. Waynesburg went on to win Nationals in the division.
Fresno Pacific entered the Bronze match against some old friends from Kansas State. The match was cordial with both teams having fun playing one another. However, the Wildcats proved once again to be the stronger team, defeating the 'Birds 0-2. The Sunbirds finished fourth overall in Nationals.
The team congratulates seniors Forsaur, Sososa, Shadowman, and Airvaulter on their final season and is thankful for their contributions to the program. Next year's team has some strong freshman recruits ready to get this team soaring to new heights.
Follow along with the Fresno Pacific Esports Team on socials: @sunbirdsesports and watch live on Twitch at twitch.tv/esportsfpu
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