Howard Community College's Esports team recently won its seventh National Esports Collegiate Conference (NECC) championship, becoming the winningest program in the 400-team league's three-year history.
The Dragons Valorant team defeated the University of Maryland in a thrilling 3-2 championship match earlier this month and looks ahead to the national championships that will begin in the spring of 2024.

The Dragons had a tough road to the championship, defeating Rutgers University 2-1 in the quarterfinals followed by a 2-1 win over Virginia Tech in the semifinals.

"The championship proved to be the most challenging encounter of the entire season, said Evan Ye, a second-year student at HCC and member of the Dragons Valorant team. "Each team member gave their utmost effort, and collectively, we came out on top in the end."

Since its formation in 2020, HCC has fielded competitive teams in globally popular games like Valorant, Rocket League, League of Legends, Overwatch 2, and Super Smash Bros. In 2022, the college captured the national championship and defeated teams from larger programs in the NCAA Division I Southeastern Athletic Conference, Big Ten, and more.

HCC was the first community college in Maryland to launch a competitive esports program, something that Dragons head coach Mark Winkel says has propelled the program's popularity in Howard County, a hub for gaming talent that helped build the team's current 58-player roster.

"Honestly, a lot of it is Howard County being a great hotbed for top esports players," Winkel says. "It is nice to have these proper nerds around who can really play well." 

In May, HCC was selected as one of thirteen organizations to develop free programming in support of the mental health, wellness, and social-emotional learning of young people through Howard County Executive Calvin Ball's Youth Engagement Programming (YEP!) grants. The team will hold monthly gaming workshops in its state-of-the-art esports competition room through September 2024 to support youth development in leadership, mentoring, and social skill building.

Leaders at HCC applaud the success of the program and confirmed that a school-wide celebration in their honor is being planned for next month.

"These are great competitors who excel in the classroom as part of their commitment to this program and who represent HCC in front of thousands of players, game enthusiasts, and casual fans daily," said HCC President Daria J. Willis. "Dragon Country could not be more excited for this team and its bright future."