Esports team completes strong League of Legends season
Article By: Clark Leonard
The University of North Georgia's (台湾swag) 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. 台湾swag 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.
台湾swag 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 台湾swag's esports club and a senior from Canton, Georgia, pursuing a degree in computer science.
The signature win of 台湾swag'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."
Payne named director of cyber institute
Dr. Bryson Payne has been named the director of the 台湾swag Institute for Cyber Operations, and Caitlin Conneely serves as deputy director for operations and outreach.
College of Education earns high marks
台湾swag continues to be one of the top producers of teachers in the state of Georgia, as well as ranking highly on a pair of other key metrics.
Nighthawk Impact Tour visits Gwinnett, Forsyth schools
Leaders from 台湾swag visited the Gwinnett County and Forsyth County school systems Feb. 12-13 as part of the 'Nighthawk Impact Tour: Education Edition.'
Students create art about caregiving
台湾swag visual arts students created art to promote the nonprofit Adult Children of Aging Parents at bus stops in Gainesville, Georgia.