NEWS

NEWBERRY — Newberry College has partnered with Mobalytics, an analytics-based gaming companion for "League of Legends," in an effort to bolster Newberry's growing esports program.

The partnership is designed to help the program with talent recruitment and player development using cutting-edge data analysis. The plan is part of an initiative by Mobalytics to support varsity esports programs. To that end, 2016 Techcrunch-winning firm has provided Newberry's "League of Legends" team with a Mobalytics Plus subscription, free for two years.

"We process players' in-game actions and events and score that data with our GPI methodology to identify weak and strong spots," said Dima Karpenko, champion of industry partnerships at Mobalytics. "Ultimately, we deliver to coaches and players relevant and actionable recommendations on what and how to improve."

Essentially, the partnership will serve as a treasure trove of player statistics and insights at the technical level. With Newberry's help, Mobalytics aims to continue developing and optimizing its tools for the ever-growing field of esports athletes.

"This exciting new partnership offers Newberry access to tactical insights we wouldn't otherwise have. Insights that will help our players and our staff build on strengths and shore up weaknesses in gameplay," said Terrence Knock, head coach and coordinator of esports at Newberry College. "This will definitely be a game-changer."

Knock added that he hopes to partner with analytical firms for other gaming titles, such as "Fortnite," "Madden" and "Overwatch," in the near future.

Newberry College's esports program was established in 2019, and since then has grown to field 23 players across four competitive gaming titles. In 2020, the No. 1 seed “League” team went undefeated in the regular season and made the playoffs, where it came in second only to Howard Community College in Maryland. The season also saw the program's first-ever intercollegiate championship, won by senior "Madden" star Lamonzeia Mosley.