By: CAMERON ASHFORD
Staff Writer
For the first time in El Diamante High School history, an Esports team and program is being brought to the wide list of activities and specialties that our school has to offer. Mr. Juan Marquez(who is an English teacher here at El D) has been running Esports programs in southern California for years. Mr. Marquez is a first year teacher here at El Diamante and he is bringing the world of competitive gaming to our school. Marquez has been both involved in the world of gaming since the age of five when he started playing galaga. From there his love of gaming has evolved and he is invested in sharing it with the students here. He said that “gaming gives students great confidence and provides students with various opportunities involving their future.” He believes that gaming “is a gateway to earn confidence, make new friends, and create lifelong memories.” In the next couple of months El Diamante will construct a gaming lab in Mr. Marquez’s room. This lab will include multiple consoles, systems, monitors, PC’s, and more. The games our Esports teams will be competing in will include games such as Smash Ultimate, Splatoon 2, Overwatch, Rocket League, Valorant, Call of Duty, Rainbow 6 Siege, League of Legends, CS:GO, and more. Mr. Marquez is currently working on setting up a twitch channel where students at our school can watch our Esports teams play live against other schools across California. If you think you have what it takes to compete for El Diamante’s Esports teams drop by room 615 for more information.