After only four years of existence, the Normal E-Sports team won yet another IHSA state championship.

They won three medals: first place in Mario Kart, second place in both Super Smash Bros. and Rocket League, and three out of the six medals in Super Smash Bros. solos.

“Lane Tech was able to bracket reset us, so they won that match, and then it goes like a grand finals, which is the last match, as it’s double elimination, so the [team] had to reflect on themselves mentally and go back out there for the Grand finals,” Normal E-Sports team and Normal West Science teacher, Jarrod Rackauskas explained.

While the team may not have placed first in every event, Rackauskas was still proud of the team for placing, as there’s only one division for the Illinois e-sports team.

“Schools coming home with a single third is considered success because those students are competing against 200 high schools,” Rackauskas said.

Not only has the team succeeded at state, but also at sectionals.

At the sectionals championship, the team took five out of the six events.

The team has had many experiences together, but West seniors, Anselm Bruce and Dane Schlipmann both agree that winning the state championship was their favorite moment this season.

“It took a bit for us to enter it for the specific format I like playing, and I’m very, very happy to have taken home a win with my team,” Bruce explained.

Schlipmann had previously won second at state his freshman through junior year, so taking first was a huge moment for him: “It felt relieving to finally win a state title,” Schlipmann stated.

While the team is victorious in many video games, there is still room for improvement: “Sporting games (…) we need to make sure we’re planning on doing more tournaments monthly and practices to hopefully [get better],” Rackauskas added.

Rackauskas will be working with the students he has on the team already to improve their skills in Madden and FC. He’s still scouting for students who are skilled in sports games.

“I think there are better kids in the building that haven’t played, if you don’t want to play or maybe are waiting to play, and I have to get them off the sideline, and [I’m going] to get [them] competing so that we can use them at the state level,” Rackauskas explained, “We need Madden and FC players.”

While the team overall has triumphed, Rackauskas also noted many players who have been doing exceptionally well. For example, Rackauskas explained that West senior, Dane Schlipmann, is a consistent player who is calm under pressure.

“We took our [loss against] Lane Tech, and [we had to come back to the] finals and win the next game to win at all. [Dane] was very confident, and I think the team needed that kind of subtle confidence in them,” Rackauskas said.

The team has faced many struggles, but overall, they have worked hard to overcome any obstacle that comes their way.

“There were a couple of times when I wouldn’t be performing to the best of my ability, so having my teammates there to help pick me back up helped me to get back on track,” Schlipmann said.

Not only were the upper-classmen successful, but also a few lower-classmen, such as Asahel Mendoza and Zachary Senn, who are both freshmen at West.

At the state championship, they were able to push through to second place in Rocket League.

The team is losing a good number of players due to graduation, while Rackauskas isn’t worried for the future of the team, graduating seniors are still saddened that they have to leave the team behind.

“I’m going to miss the team itself a whole lot. I really liked playing and messing around with the guys, so it’ll be a bit sad to leave for college. I wish them the best for the next season and hope they can win IHSA next year,” Bruce explained.

Schlipmann and Bruce had been on the team since their freshman year, and they’ve curated many memories over the past four years.

“I’ll miss the memories I’ve made and the people I’ve met. We were all a close group of people, and everyone was always so positive and fun to be around,” Schlipmann explained.

Two West seniors, who had stuck with the team all four years of high school, also succeeded at the state championship. Rackauskas described Anselm J Bruce and Jacob Neblock as the outstanding players on the Normal E-sports team.

“[They helped us] get to state. (…) For them to take the third at state, is a huge deal (…) for them to get a team together and build them up a little over the last four years, it’s pretty awesome,” Rackauskas explained.