Target in Sight- BeeSports Valorant Team: Interview with Charlotte Hoover

Recently I had the opportunity of interviewing Charlotte Hoover, captain of the Valorant group, one of SCAD’s eSports competitive teams. During this interview, Charlotte tells an inspiring story about how she started the team and where the club is now. For those of you who do not know, Valorant is a free FPS (First Person Shooter) developed by Riot Games. In this five-versus-five-character-based video game, players can build their gunplay abilities while using unique agent abilities. Here at SCAD, students have the opportunity of developing a community while playing this prestigious game by being part of SCAD’s BeeSports Valorant team. 

What would be your definition of eSports? How is it organized? 

Charlotte defines this club as a higher level of gameplay generally taken outside the game itself; just an organized team playing at a more cohesive level and not as an official D1 Sport. 

ESports is organized in two teams for each game: Varsity and Club. Varsity teams are recruited through the school with some students based on scholarships; it is a very structured official team. On the other hand, a Club team is student-run and more informally structured. The Valorant team is part of the club category: Charlotte explains how students have to establish a competitive thread and “earn” their spot to be upgraded to Varsity. She is responsible for developing a community and working hard enough to receive the funds needed for the Valorant team to become an official Varsity team for SCAD.

How did you get involved with this club? 

The Valorant captain narrates her story on how she started the Valorant team. She confesses that at first, she did not know that there was an eSports club at SCAD until last year’s Gaming Fest. After emailing Ian, the previous director, and orienting herself on joining the team, Charlotte proved her worth by talking about her experience with eSports and her rankings. The director at the time ended up offering the opportunity to create a Valorant Team from scratch with the goal of transforming it into a Varsity team this Fall 2021.

As the president of the Valorant team, can you describe what your responsibilities are within the club?

Charlotte is responsible for creating a community and gathering up the players to reach the goal of becoming Varsity. In addition, she organizes the team’s scrimmages against other collegiate teams and facilitates practice for the team. Earlier during this Fall quarter 2021, the Valorant team opened up tryouts to everybody at SCAD. It was a 2-week tryout process where Charlotte was responsible for finding the best players. During this process, she developed the V1 team, the top 5 SCAD Valorant players, and the V2 team, the second-best five players that play as alternates during tournaments. 

How many members are in the Valorant Team? 

The Valorant game itself is made out of 5 Players. So V1 and V2 together would have a total of 10 players. In addition to this, there are three alternate players and a whole discord community of about a hundred members. Overall, the Vallorant team is the most prominent eSports team that has not turned into Varsity yet.

What inspired you to join eSports? 

Since she was a child, Charlotte has played FPS (First Person Shooter) games, battling against her dad and little brother in games like Call of Duty and Medal of Honor. She built her first computer in 2014, where she started to develop her competitive skills. With the Valorant game, she learned about the eSports opportunity this game provided and increased her rank up to the top 1% of players. After learning of her accomplishments in the game, Ian, the eSports director at the time, pushed her to create the team and become part of the eSports community. 

How would you encourage others to join? What are the opportunities you offer? 

Charlotte mentions that for people to play Valorant, it is very hard sometimes to find good teammates. By being part of the eSports discord server, the Valorant Team community, or any eSports subteam, students have the opportunity of finding a good teammate. In the Valorant Discord server, there are server games every Saturday at 8 pm where everyone plays together. It is a great place to make friends and create a family. 

Everyone is welcome to join the Valorant Team discord community, no matter the gaming’s ranking or experience level. The dedication you put into the game and the willingness to be better is what really matters. So feel free to click the discord link if interested in joining the Valorant Team https://discord.gg/5mw66T8q5Y, or click the eSports Discord Server to check out other gaming teams. https://discord.gg/mYa669B Charlotte and the whole Valorant family will be happy to have you. So go ahead; the team needs you.