Jonathan Cruz locks into the game Jonathan Cruz
The rise of esports has taken the world by storm with its competitive drive among athletes. The task may not involve shooting a three-pointer or pass catching, but rather the player knocking your opponents off a map in a digital setting. A Senior Valorant player, Jonathan Cruz, inspired by his father and his deceased friend Maurice, tells his story about his competitive drive towards video games and how he applies his skills on electronic sports.
Cruz’s story began 6 years ago when he decided to walk away from playing baseball due to many injuries he endured while on the team. Despite not being able to return to baseball, Cruz still felt the spirit of an athlete, as he wanted to continue competing. He shifted this passion through playing the popular video game, “Call of Duty”, a prominent first person shooter gaming franchise.
“I already knew about esports, specifically Call of Duty, just from watching. So to scratch that competitive itch I went full time into esports,” Cruz stated.
Cruz had achieved many accomplishments playing “Call of Duty” such as winning a whopping seven tournaments and gaining winning prize money. Cruz grew to be incredibly talented as he competed in Call of Duty, and trained diligently to become the best player at the game.
When Cruz graduated from Lindblom High School and began attending Saint Xavier University, he expanded his options by trying new video games such as “Valorant”, similar to Call of Duty, demonstrating another first person shooter game. Since then, Cruz has been competing in Valorant for the past three years, and ranked third as a player.
Valorant is a five-on-five team-based game that requires opponents to fight against one another to winThe first to win 13 rounds is the champion of the match. Players can select a variety of characters that play specific roles, which makes the game more strategic.
Each team has two main players that crucially impact the mode of the game: One player brings health to the team while the other brings in leadership to lead a path towards victory. The third player marks the opponents on the field, all players play a specific role to gain the winning match. With all these roles being so important, it makes the game that much more challenging in a competitive setting.
“In esports every single team is good, because no matter what you’re playing… It becomes a game of not who is naturally better, but who makes less mistakes,” Cruz explained.
In esports, there is no such thing as a bad team because of how good every player is committed and dedicated towards their games, thus raising the stakes at the competitions. When a player loses a match, it can be related to losing at the Super Bowl.
On the contrary, winning feels all that much better. The satisfaction of making that play to win your team a match can be like hitting a dagger three-pointer to seal a game in basketball. That mental and emotional aspect of esports makes it a sport.
“The fact that it is different… People think it’s just hopping on and playing the game but don’t know the mental struggles,” Cruz expressed.
That aspect is what keeps Cruz invested. Cruz plans to continue sports after college and chase more tournament wins for his trophy case.
“I plan on playing Call of Duty after college, as that was the original dream for myself. I think my time in Valorant is done after this year but I am grateful for playing and love everything I learned,” Cruz mentioned.
No matter how you may look at esports and its legitimacy,, there are similar steps of preparation for matches that cross between a variety of different sports. With that baggage it requires you having a good headspace and a good head on your shoulders, which Cruz thinks is the most important quality of being a college athlete.
“Being able to have a good mentality when it comes to balancing your craft and your responsibilities like school or work. In terms of esports I feel like people don’t understand what it takes to play. We still have film, we have lifts, we have practice,” said Cruz.
With all the responsibilities that are required, Cruz continues to cruise in life, as he chases his competitive drive through esports and “clutch up” for his team.