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Full Sail Armada staff and students recently traveled to Oceanside, California to help host a special beachside Valorant 5K Co-Ed Open for Super Girl Gamer Pro (SGGP) – an esports organization dedicated to supporting women in gaming. Partnering with SGGP for the third consecutive year, Full Sail once again lent their expertise in esports event organization and production while students got the opportunity to gain real-world experience with roles in tournament organization and observing.

Led by Full Sail University Production Coordinator Garrett Gajewski, the group assisting the team at SGGP included Armada Student President Jagger Fenwick and work-study Aren Guinane as tournament organizers as well as student Emma Loucks who worked as an observer. Students not only got the chance to gain valuable experience for their portfolios but also had the opportunity to network with others in the collegiate esports space during the weekend event.

"We all had a really great experience," shared Garrett. "I had the opportunity to work with the whole team before, most recently with the XP League North American finals. Working these events really helps students grow both in skillset but also as people. Learning how to troubleshoot on the spot, work together as part of a team to adapt to event surprises are all things that will set them up for success. After this experience, they’ll all be able to walk into any major esports event and be completely ready to support. Watching the Emma, Jagger and Aren’s growth through this project has been super great to see"

In spite of technical challenges associated with the complexities of an outdoor gaming event, the Armada team managed to successfully kick off gameplay for teams participating in the beachside tournament.

"The hardest part was probably power and Internet," said Garrett. "So it was super rewarding to sit down Sunday after check-in, and everybody was logged in, and just watching everybody play."