UC Irvine emerge relatively unscathed in 2018 Collegiate Championship
EC Irvine beat a major favorite in Collegiate League of Legends fashion for a huge upset at the 2018 College Championship.
UC Irvine took home the League of Legends College Championship over the weekend, handily defeating Columbia College on the back of their jungler, former Team Liquid Academy player Jung “Youngbin” Young-bin.
Youngbin, who previously played AD Carry for TLA during the 2017 season, completely dominated the final match against Columbia. The UC Irvine jungler showcased his impressive objective control, securing every dragon in game one for his team, and helping to snowball the team into a healthy tower advantage. Combined with his constant pressure and fantastic jungle routing, Youngbin was definitely the MVP for UC Irvine over the weekend.
“It’s so rewarding to see all that work pay off,” UCI esports program director Mark Deppe told ESPN. “I think it’s a great sign for collegiate esports to see scholarship teams continue to be on the top stage and continue to demonstrate that smart investment pays dividends.”
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Both UC Irvine and Columbia College had impressive runs at the tournament, boasting a combined record of 10-1 during the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds. The performance of the teams created hype for the finals, but, ultimately, the second seed UC Irvine took a swift three games to zero victory over the fifth seed.
The College Championship is a great place for young North American talent to make a name for itself, and there was certainly talent on display this weekend. Youngbin, while already a name known to the more astute LCS fans, certainly made a case for why he belonged at the highest level of the game this weekend. But players such as Columbia College’s EvanRL and Julien “Julien” Gelinas” had multiple high level performances on their team’s paths to the finals.
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Additionally, James “Lattman” Lattman and Lyubomir “BloodWater” Spasov, also former professional level players, put up memorable performances for UC Irvine as well.
While many thought that the tournament’s number one seed, Maryville University, would potentially repeat last year’s victory, or that Columbia would unseat the favorites, it was ultimately the crisp macro play of UC Irvine that secured them the victory over the weekend.