Epic Comeback from Valorant Keeps Their Perfect Season Alive
March 27, 2026 - - The Lorain County Community College Esports program continued NJCAAE spring competition with a full slate of matches across multiple titles during the week of March 23–27. The Commodores saw strong performances in Mario Kart and Valorant, while gaining valuable experience across Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Chess play as Division III competitors opened Opt-In Qualifier action.
Chess (Division III)
Austin Lukachko (North Ridgeville, Ohio/North Ridgeville HS) dropped matches against Northeastern Junior College and teammate Robert Smith (Lorain, Ohio/Firelands HS), while earning a bye. Smith rebounded with two wins on the day, defeating Lukachko and NorthWest Arkansas Community College after falling in his opening match.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Division I & II)
Braydon Dobos (Oberlin, Ohio/Oberlin HS) split his matches in Division I play, earning a 3-0 win over Wake Technical Community College after dropping his opener. Lukachko also split his matches, falling to Daytona State before picking up a 3-1 win in his second contest.
In Division II, Traceton Bell (Oberlin, Ohio/Oberlin HS) faced a challenging slate, dropping matches against Northwest Florida State College and Kirtland Community College, including a close 3-2 decision.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Division III)
Jason Thomas (Lorain, Ohio/Clearview HS) went 1-1 on the week, earning a 3-0 win over Iowa Central Community College after falling in his opening match.
Hearthstone (Division III)
Xander Taylor (Elyria, Ohio/Huron HS) picked up a narrow 3-2 win over teammate Veronica Gibson (Sandusky, Ohio/Trinity HS) after receiving a bye. Gibson responded with strong play, earning back-to-back 3-0 wins over Des Moines Area Community College and an LCCC opponent. Additional matches saw LCCC competitors split results in head-to-head play.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Division III)
Braden Reichert (North Ridgeville, Ohio/Avon HS) delivered one of the top performances of the week, going 3-0 in completed races with wins over Finger Lakes Community College competitors, including a narrow 4-3 victory. Reichert also earned a bye during the session.
Valorant (Division III)
The Valorant team of Lukachko, Brody Taylor (North Ridgeville, Ohio/North Ridgeville HS), Braylon Zeman (North Ridgeville, Ohio/North Ridgeville HS), Kylie Zeman (North Ridgeville, Ohio/North Ridgeville HS), Tyler Misconish (Strongsville, Ohio/Strongsville HS), and Oliver Chambers (Collins, Ohio/Edison HS) remained dominant, sweeping Richard Bland College, 2-0.
The Commodores rallied from an 11-5 deficit in the opening map to win 14-12 in overtime before controlling the second map, 13-6. With the victory, LCCC improved to 10-0 on the season and remains undefeated without dropping a match this spring.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Crew Battle (Division III)
LCCC 1, consisting of Jerron Warner (Avon, Ohio/Avon HS), Traceton Bell, and Dobos, secured a 2-0 win over San Jacinto College South to close out the week. Warner, Bell, and Dobos competed in the first round and Warner, Christopher Gonet, and Lukachko competed in the second round.
About CommodoreEsports:
LCCC's Esports team competes in the National Junior College Athletic Association Esports (NJCAAE), which is divided into three competition divisions:
Division 1: The highest level of NJCAAE competition, featuring teams composed of eligible students.
Division 2: The mid-level competition, also for teams of eligible students.
Division 3: The most accessible level, open to participants who do not have to meet student eligibility requirements but must be associated with LCCC.
The NJCAAE has two seasons: fall (September–December) and spring (February–April). Both seasons last seven weeks before the postseason begins. LCCC has players competing across all three divisions, and full-time students can choose to participate in any tier.
Games LCCC Esports Competes or has competed in:
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – A fighting game featuring characters from the Nintendo universe, played on the Nintendo Switch. Players can compete in 1v1 best-of-five matches or Crew Battle, a 3v3 elimination-style format.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – A racing game featuring Nintendo characters, also played on the Nintendo Switch.
Valorant – A PC first-person shooter where teams of five compete in a best-of-three format. One team attempts to plant and detonate a spike, while the opposing team tries to defuse it.
Overwatch 2 – Another first-person shooter, in which teams compete using unique hero characters.
Fortnite – LCCC began competing in this battle royale game in 2024.
Marvel Rivals – A 6v6 third-person shooter featuring characters from the Marvel Universe, with LCCC set to begin competition in spring 2025.
Rainbow 6 Siege - a tactical, online multiplayer shooter where two teams of five compete in high-stakes scenarios like hostage rescues and bomb defusals. The game features intense, close-quarters combat within highly destructible indoor environments, forcing players to strategize using specialized "Operators" with unique skills and gadgets.
Madden – A football simulation game.
Tekken & Street Fighter – Both hand-to-hand combat fighting games.
Hearthstone - Building upon the existing lore of the Warcraft series, a turn-based card game between two opponents, using constructed decks of 30 cards along with a selected hero with a unique power.
Call of Duty: Warzone - Battle royale style first-person shooter game
Chess - The classic strategy board game for two players, who each move 16 pieces of six different types across a 64-square checkered board. The objective is to checkmate the opponent's king, which occurs when the king is under attack and has no legal move to escape.