MIDWAY, Ky. - Having been present for the program's humble beginnings, it seemed only fitting that Alex Oditt would deliver the final blow to cap off the Midway eSports Rocket League's team's breakthrough season.
The senior from Walton, Ky. scored the game-winning goal in overtime to secure a Mideast Conference Championship and an 11-0 record for his team with a 4-1 win over Stevenson (Md.) Friday night.
In a battle of undefeated teams, Midway seized control early, scoring in the opening seconds en route to wins in the first two matches. The Eagles then moved one win from a title with a 2-1 overtime win in the third match.
Stevenson managed to make things a bit nerve-wracking, winning the fourth match 4-1 then forcing overtime with a late goal in the fifth. But the comeback would stop there thanks to an overtime goal by Oditt, who clinched a league title and unbeaten fall team members admit they didn't see coming.
"Expectations were low for me personally," said freshman Nicholas Newman. "It didn't really occur to me that we would remain undefeated until late in the season. I know I personally wanted that to happen and it was a lot of fun to play with these guys. They're awesome."
"I don't think we ever thought of (going undefeated)," Oditt aded. "We were all individually good but Rocket League's a big team game and chemistry's a big thing and we'd never played with each other until August."
Oditt said it took awhile for things to truly gel, but felt a major turning point came when the Eagles easily dispensed of Louisville Red by the final of 3-0 on Sept. 29. From there, he says everyone was consistently on the same page and able to meld their skillsets together.
That chemistry was on full display Friday night, as an illness forced Trevor Howard, the team's top goal scorer for much of the season, to play from home. Despite his physical absence from the room, the Eagles didn't miss a beat, delivering a signature moment for a four-year old program still very much in its infancy.
"From starting the program from scratch, where we maybe won one or two games to having an undefeated season…it's amazing," head coach Alyssa Tinker said. "I think I'm still in shock because it's been a hard four years building up the program. And I think it's really paying off. The players are buying into what our program stands for. Super proud of them, super proud of the program. Couldn't ask for anything more."
OVERWATCH GRABS THIRD-PLACE FINISH
The Eagle Overwatch also team had a successful close to a successful season, topping Centre College 3-2 in the MECC third-place match Thursday.
Savanna Neace (67,387) and Hunter Yeager (60,884) both topped 60,000 damage in the win for Midway, which avenged a 3-2 loss to the same Centre team on Oct. 26. They both led the team in eliminations as well, Neace recording 126, Yeager 108.
Trevor Howard had 53,053 damage and 96 eliminations. Madison Ward had a team-best 135 assists while Lonnie Loveless III led all Eagles with 70,487 healing.
Overwatch concludes the fall portion of its schedule with a record of 8-5.
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