It seems to be the club that prospective students are most curious about. It is relatively new to Marist and growing quickly in popularity. Many are curious about the Marist Esports Club and it is not too late to join.

The club started three years ago by computer science teacher Ms. Fey and her son at the end of his junior year. There were tournaments held where students could come in and play Super Smash Bros, and it ended up becoming a hit amongst students.

Senior year,  Fey’s son continued to be a part of the club. Since he had many friends, he had many
people by his side running the club with him. The club would recruit students who were interested, and
they would play tournaments, creating room for student involvement and a place to make new friends, or
just to play video games.

Posters were created as a way to advertise to students with times for club meets and what games would be
included, and Google forms were made for students to sign up for teams for different games that would be
played during the club meetings.

The club mainly plays games that are registered under the IHSEA (Illinois High School Esports
Association). The games they play are the following:

Rocket League
Valorant
Fortnite
Overwatch
League of Legends
Mario Kart/Mario Kart 8

These games are mainly played on the Nintendo Switch, as well as computers.

Fey’s son graduated in 2023, but she continues to run the club. Her background in digital media education can be very helpful for troubleshooting and installing games, but Fey claims “anyone can do it.”

Fey has played games with the members before, and has had a lot of fun, although she admits she is not
very good at playing the games. So far, she’s played Rocket League, Valorant, Overwatch, and Super
Smash Bros.

What do the members gain from the club?

“I think they can improve communications among themselves. They work in a team, it helps you problem solve, but really it’s for your mental health,” Fey says.

Fey further explains that it helps reduce stress one may have from the school day, supports critical thinking, and provides the camaraderie of being on a team which reduces depression and loneliness – all things to take into account if one is thinking about joining the club.

The Marist team has gone to state, and Fey says the overall atmosphere of the event was very exciting. At that event, there was a big room set up for the gamers to compete on computers or Nintendo Switches, and many different students from various schools were present.

The esports club prioritizes friendship, fun, and expressing your interests. Meetings take place in room 200 on Wednesdays. All are welcome.