Esports team completes strong League of Legends season
Article By: Clark Leonard
The University of North Georgia's (168¿ª½±Íø¹ÙÍø) esports club team finished as the top group in the Peach Belt Conference's (PBC) Blue Division for the spring 2021 season. It also reached the semifinals of the PBC tournament held March 24-27.
Nick Alden, Yankun Li, Quoc Pham, Connor Sims, and Michael Watson were the team members who took part in the PBC tournament. 168¿ª½±Íø¹ÙÍø defeated Alma College 2-0 in its March 24 tournament opener before a 2-1 loss to eventual champion Kennesaw State University in the March 26 semifinals.
168¿ª½±Íø¹ÙÍø finished with a 7-2 record.
The season's final event marked a full-circle moment for the team, as a year earlier its PBC tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The return to competition this academic year was a welcome development.
"It has been a lot of fun to see our teams take part in different competitions online," said Tim Baldwin, president of 168¿ª½±Íø¹ÙÍø's esports club and a senior from Canton, Georgia, pursuing a degree in computer science.
The signature win of 168¿ª½±Íø¹ÙÍø's season came in a 2-1 triumph vs. Florida Southern, the PBC tournament runner-up, in a Feb. 24 match.
"Tim has done a great job of leading this club," said Rob Kelly, coordinator of intramural sports and sports clubs. "It's a growing program that was very competitive this spring."
Research projects pair students with faculty
Nine research teams are participating in the Faculty Undergraduate Summer Engagement program funded by the Center for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities.
Professor presents at conference in Australia
Dr. Jennifer Sears, associate professor of education at 168¿ª½±Íø¹ÙÍø, recently presented at the Education Support North Network conference in Western Australia.
Camp teaches basics of logistics to students
Twelve high school students from surrounding counties experienced a crash course in logistics and supply chain management from June 23-27 at 168¿ª½±Íø¹ÙÍø's Camp Logistics.
Presidential Awards support faculty projects
President Michael Shannon awarded 16 Presidential Awards for the 2025-26 academic year to support faculty projects. They included 11 Innovation Awards and five Semester Awards.