DOYLESTOWN (PA) – Taking advantage of an emerging trend in student activities, Delaware Valley University is adding Esports as an intercollegiate program under the athletic department. The Aggies will field their first team and compete in spring, 2019.

Esports, also known as electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. They are commonly multiplayer games involving strategy and skill. The popularity of Esports is a phenomenon in the technology industry and sporting platforms such as ESPN are devoting time on their media outlets, including live television.

"The interest in Esports has grown tremendously over the years, especially on college campuses, and it will be a great addition to the offerings we have at DelVal," director of athletics Steve Cantrell said. "Providing this opportunity to current and future Aggie gamers and being in the forefront of this modern trend shows the commitment that the institution has to the development of the whole student experience." 

The addition of Esports at DelVal is in part a response to recent student surveys intended to gauge interests in new programs. It will be a co-ed team and it increases the number of intercollegiate offerings at the institution to 28 (11 men, 15 women, 2 co-ed). Esports is the 10^th new athletics offering in the last five years as the Aggies added women's golf, men's lacrosse, women's lacrosse, men's tennis and women's tennis in the summer of 2013 while the dressage and hunt seat equestrian teams moved to the department in the summer of 2017. Last week, the University announced the intention to add women's wrestling and co-ed fencing for the start of the 2019-20 season.

DelVal will compete as a member of the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE). The only institutional association for varsity Esports, NACE has 80-plus member schools and more than 1,500 student-athletes. DelVal will be the only university in the Philadelphia area to offer Esports as an intercollegiate program and just the third school in the Middle Atlantic Conference (Lebanon Valley College and Stevenson University).

Chris Shriver, data center administrator for technology services at DelVal, will serve as the program director for Esports and head coaches will be hired in the future for various games.
"I'm incredibly eager to get started," Shriver said. "The birth of Esports allows not only those who are fans of the genre a platform to showcase their skills, but it opens the door to many individuals that otherwise may not have had the opportunity to participate in what many would consider to be a crucial part of the overall college experience and that's being part of a team.

"With the Esports program at DelVal, I ultimately hope to provide the type of experience that I wish I had when I was completing my undergraduate degree."

The first game that the Aggies will compete in will be Overwatch, a team-based multiplayer game. Additional competition games will be announced at a future date.

DelVal will provide a dedicated gaming room for the team to practice and compete in. The university's internet partner, Apogee Network Services, will install network equipment into a designated space on campus for Esports and will serve as a proud sponsor of the program.

DelVal will hold informational meetings for current students during the fall semester while aggressively recruiting prospective students as future Aggie gamers. Pages with information and recruiting forms will be added to the DelVal athletics website. Those interested can also follow the DelVal journey into Esports by following the program on Twitch (www.twitch.tv/delawarevalleyuniversity).