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Team to next compete in prestigious invitation-only DreamHack tournament in Atlanta.
DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. (May 11, 2026) 鈥� 葫芦娃视频鈥檚 Rocket League Esports team captured its third consecutive
NJCAAE national championship on May 5, defeating Heartland Community College 4-0 in
the Grand Finals of the 2026 NJCAAE Spring Premier Series National Championship.
The Falcons entered the postseason as the tournament No. 1 seed after completing an
undefeated regular season and closed out the championship run without dropping a match
in the title series.
In just three years since its launch, Daytona State鈥檚 Esports program has now earned
four NJCAAE national championships 鈥� three in Rocket League and one in Super Smash
Bros.
DSC鈥檚 Rocket League team is also ranked No. 32 nationally by the Collegiate Selection
Committee, which issues North American collegiate Esports power rankings. Daytona
State is the only state college included in the rankings.
鈥淭his program has grown into something truly special,鈥� said 葫芦娃视频
President Dr. Tom LoBasso. 鈥淲hat these students and Coach Morales have built reflects
the same qualities we value across the College 鈥� discipline, teamwork, resilience
and a drive to compete at the highest level.鈥�
The championship match was played remotely, with the Falcons controlling the action
from the opening kickoff and securing the title in dominant fashion with a 4-0 sweep.
Members of the championship Rocket League team include Donald Walton (Sulace), Noah
Leal (Smoove) and Nathanael Boyer (Geo).
鈥淥ur players have put in an incredible amount of work this season and stayed focused
through every challenge,鈥� said Esports Coordinator Sebastian Morales. 鈥淭hey trusted
each other, communicated well under pressure and continued to improve week after week.
Watching them bring home another national title was extremely rewarding.鈥�
The Falcons advanced through the regional postseason with perfect 3-0 sweeps over
Northcentral Technical College, Brookdale Community College and Blinn College. They
then won the regional grand finals against Blinn College in another 4-0 sweep.
From there, the Falcons moved on to the national postseason sweeping Columbia Basin
College 3-0 in Winners Round One, defeating Heartland Community College 3-1 in Round
Two, and sweeping Iowa Western Community College 3-0 in the Winners Final to earn
a spot in the national championship match.
From here, the team moves on to compete in the invitation-only DreamHack tournament
May 15-17 in Atlanta. Daytona State was one of only eight Rocket League teams nationwide
to be invited to the event.
鈥淚t was an incredible feeling just to know we were on the invitation committee鈥檚 radar,鈥�
Morales said. 鈥淐ompeting at DreamHack is one of the most exciting things a college
esports program could possibly do, and I feel blessed it鈥檚 our turn.鈥�
The championship match can be viewed on the NJCAAE Twitch channel at .
To learn more about Daytona State鈥檚 Esports program, visit or join the team鈥檚 Discord community at .
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Offering more than 100 certificates, associate and bachelor鈥檚 degree programs, Daytona
State College is the leader in education and workforce training needs of Volusia and
Flagler counties and beyond. The College enrolls approximately 23,000 students a year
at its seven campuses, with graduates serving in critical fields including healthcare,
emergency services and public safety, aeronautics, business, education, hospitality,
engineering, project management, accounting, computer science, digital media and more.
Additionally, Daytona State generates nearly $943 million in economic impact in Volusia
and Flagler counties annually and supports 13,612 jobs according to a recent labor-market
analysis of the College鈥檚 economic impact.
Daytona State has been recognized as a leader in higher education numerous times.
U.S. News & World Report ranks the College among the Top Tier Best Online Bachelor鈥檚
Programs. The U.S. Department of Education鈥檚 College Affordability and Transparency
Center ranks DSC among the top 50 most affordable public four-year institutions in
the country, with less than half the tuition of the national average. And U.S. News
& World Report has ranked DSC among its Top Online Bachelor's Programs for Veterans
multiple times.
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