Catholic schools embrace esports

By Cliff Gorski
Executive Editor

GREENSBURG – After school, most kids have a snack and then head off to finish homework, or attend after-school athletic practices. Many Catholic school students in the Diocese of Greensburg have another option: They jump into a gaming chair with a handheld controller and take advantage of eSports, a new technology that allows them to use and hone their skills in science, technology, engineering, art and math.

Educators say students who participate in eSports also develop other skills, such as teamwork, sportsmanship, strategic thinking and leadership. 
ESports teams are in full play at Greensburg Central Catholic Junior-Senior High School and Geibel Catholic Junior Senior-High School, Connellsville. There are also middle school teams at Conn-Area Catholic School, Connellsville, and St. John the Evangelist Regional Catholic School, Uniontown.

Teams use the approved popular game Rocket League, which could be described as soccer combined with a demolition derby. Four players guide rocket-powered battle cars to hit a large ball toward their opponent’s goal. Each match takes about five minutes. Teams from Diocesan schools play teams from other Pennsylvania schools. There are leagues and referees, and the season runs through the fall, but matches can occur in both pre-and post-seasons.

Matthew Very teaches educational technology and Makerspace classes at GCC and is coach of the Centurions eSports team.
“Video games are a very strong incentive towards technology,” Very said. “A lot of people go into software development or maybe graphic design because of their interest in video games.” 

Some of Very’s programming students have been developing low-level game design, which he sees as a pipeline into programming careers.

ESports athletes who compete at the top of their game can score scholarships from colleges and universities that have competitive teams. Professional gamers – those who make their living playing video games competitively – can earn a significant payday. According to Statista, Johan Sundstein of Denmark, known in eSport circles as “NOtail,” earned $7.18 million during his gaming career.
GCC senior Ben Tropeano isn’t looking to make a career in eSports. While he says this year was a developmental season for the GCC team, he’s looking for the program to provide life skills.
“What I hope this does for me in the future is make me a better teammate and more comfortable in a leadership position,” he said.

Ben began playing Rocket League at home in 2017, took a break, and got back into the game in school last year. 

His teammate, freshman Owen Ryan, has been playing since 2020 and has over 500 hours of play time.

“I hope this opens us more opportunities in college and to be placed on a resume, too,” Owen said.

At Geibel Catholic, Rocket League is headquartered behind the stage curtain in the gymnasium, where gaming stations with computers, controllers, screens and chairs line the wall. The gaming space was created by Sam Hutchinson, head of maintenance.

Jeffrey Love, whose daughter attends Geibel Catholic, coaches the eSports team, the largest in the Diocese. A gamer in college, he works with young people as a Fayette County probation officer and also coaches the CYO cross country team. 
“Both sports are fast paced and you need to think on your feet,” Love said. “The difference is, when you are handling something as unique as eSports, you really need to be open minded, and you need to be willing to learn on the go.”

Love had a lot to learn in a short period of time: setting up virtual rosters, navigating the Rocket League website, coordinating matches with other schools and downloading the app to stream the games, which includes play-by-play broadcasts.

“This is a real life sport and they have real life events that people pay to see,” Love said.
Geibel Catholic freshman Rosalie Cromwell said she enjoys playing and meeting new friends.

“All of these kids on the team, I may have interacted once or twice in my classes but never actually talked to them or hung out with them until eSports,” she said.

Principal Robert Fetter said the interaction between the students is a critical and tangible benefit for the program at his school and the eSports area in the school is the first place potential students are taken to see.

Fetter said the eSports program brings together students with varied interests or those who don’t participate because they haven’t found an interest.

 “We know we have kids who are athletes. We know we have kids who are artists. Some are both and some are neither. But every kid has to have a place,” Fetter said.

“Now that we’ve brought video gaming into the school, the eSports team makes them all feel like part of things and build camaraderie.”