The St. Edward’s Call of Duty esports team faced off against Oklahoma Christian University on Sept. 20. OCU was the most formidable team they have faced this season.

The match consists of five different rounds with the winner being the best of three. The match is composed of three different playstyles. The first is Hardpoint, in which the teams face off as they attempt to control different objectives areas on the map. The next round was Search and Destroy, where both teams face-off with the objective of either killing all enemy players or destroying one of the objective areas, point A and B, with a single bomb. The final round, Control, has the mission of capturing or defending two zones without running out of respawns. 

The first match was on the AL Bagra Fortress map. With less than five minutes left, OCU tied up the game and took the edge. St. Edward’s almost came back to win it, but ended up losing the match 250-210.

Before the next map, Head Coach Sterling Henderson emphasized that the team needed to play together and communicate. The second match took place on the Breenbergh Hotel map. Going back and forth, it took 11 rounds before OCU defeated St. Edward’s. 

The third match was on the same map as round two. Each team was given 30 team respawns. St. Edward’s played a total of five rounds but lost 2-3. 

All the matches were close. St. Edward’s almost came back from defeat multiple times but ended up losing the edge to OCU. With miscommunication issues, the team gave up multiple lives that otherwise would have been held. 

The COD esports team is fresh off of a national championship, but this loss does not deter them from their upcoming games. 

“It doesn’t matter how badly we lose,” sophomore David Sauseda said. “We can always come back and win next week.”

The team is still eligible for the Lone Star Conference playoffs as the season continues.