Mines Club Esports continued its National Esports Collegiate Conference (NECC) regular-season competition last week, with three JV teams taking the stage. Rocket League JV highlighted the week with a thrilling 4-2 series victory over Doane University, while Valorant JV and League of Legends Challenger continued their early-season development.

The Orediggers competed across three titles, with Rocket League earning its first regular-season series victory and League Challenger showing improvement against Tarleton State.

Rocket League JV Takes Down Doane in Overtime Thriller

Mines Rocket League JV delivered one of its strongest performances of the season Wednesday, Oct. 7, defeating Doane University 4-2 in a best-of-seven series that featured two overtime victories.

Freshman Vinicious Mutuano, junior Adam Naamani and junior Ty Keiser represented Mines throughout the six-game series.

Doane opened with a 2-1 victory in Game 1, despite a goal from Naamani off an assist from Mutuano.

REPLAY: Watch Game 1 against Doane

Mines responded immediately in Game 2, shutting out Doane 2-0 behind a strong defensive performance. The Orediggers carried that momentum into Game 3, producing their highest-scoring performance of the series with a 4-2 victory to take a 2-1 series lead.

REPLAY: Watch Mines' Game 2 shutout

REPLAY: Watch Mines' 4-2 Game 3 victory

Game 4 provided the first overtime thriller of the night. Mutuano led the Orediggers with two goals, while Keiser added a goal and an assist. Mines outshot Doane 12-5, but the teams remained tied through regulation.

After 1:19 of overtime, Mines found the winning goal to secure a 3-2 victory and move within one game of clinching the series.

REPLAY: Watch Mines' Game 4 overtime victory

Doane refused to go away, responding with a 4-1 victory in Game 5 to extend the series.

REPLAY: Watch Game 5 against Doane

The Orediggers closed out the matchup in dramatic fashion in Game 6. Naamani and Mutuano each scored for Mines, while the defense recorded six saves to keep Doane in check.

With the game tied 1-1 at the end of regulation, Mines needed just 26 seconds of overtime to score the winner and secure a 2-1 victory, completing the 4-2 series win.

REPLAY: Watch Mines clinch the series in overtime

The victory marked a major step forward for Rocket League JV after dropping its opening regular-season series to Marshalltown Community College. Mines demonstrated improved offensive coordination and defensive consistency, winning four of six games against Doane, including both overtime contests.

Valorant JV Falls to Utah State

Mines Valorant JV returned to NECC competition Monday, Oct. 5, facing Utah State University in its second regular-season matchup.

The Orediggers struggled to establish momentum against Utah State, ultimately falling 2-0.

The defeat moved Mines to 0-2 in regular-season play following its opening loss to Cal State San Marcos.

With several matches remaining on the NECC schedule, Valorant JV will look to regroup and improve its coordination as the season progresses.

League Challenger Shows Improvement Against Tarleton State

Mines League of Legends Challenger continued its NECC season against Tarleton State University Purple, falling 2-0 despite competitive stretches in both games.

The Orediggers entered the matchup facing unexpected circumstances, having anticipated a possible Tarleton State forfeit until approximately 30 minutes before the scheduled start.

Despite the uncertainty, Mines remained competitive throughout the opening 18 minutes of Game 1 before Tarleton State established control. The Orediggers ultimately fell 29-14 in a match lasting 29:07.

Game 2 followed a similar pattern, with Mines keeping the contest even through the opening 13 minutes before Tarleton State pulled away for a 26-10 victory in 28:36.

Although the Orediggers were unable to secure their first series victory, the performance demonstrated progress compared to their previous matchup against East Central University.

Against East Central, Mines managed just four kills in Game 1 and six in Game 2. The Orediggers increased those totals to 14 and 10, respectively, against Tarleton State while remaining competitive for longer stretches of both games.

The improvement provides encouragement for a developing League Challenger squad still building chemistry early in the season.

Orediggers Continue NECC Regular-Season Play

Week two of NECC competition provided another opportunity for Mines' JV teams to gain experience and build momentum.

Rocket League JV led the way with its first regular-season series victory, highlighted by two overtime wins and a strong defensive performance against Doane.

Valorant JV and League Challenger will look to continue improving as their schedules progress, with League Challenger demonstrating encouraging signs of development despite its defeat.

The Orediggers now turn their attention toward another week of NECC competition, looking to build on their progress and add more victories throughout the fall season.