ESPN released its first-ever Top 25 College League of Legends Rankings this week, with Maryville University’s League of Legends Esports team earning the No. 2 spot.

“Maryville is proud of our dominant position in collegiate Esports and in our outstanding student athletes who perform at the highest levels,” said President Mark Lombardi, PhD. “We expect to compete at the highest level of collegiate Esports for years to come.”

The rankings were determined by a panel of coaches and industry experts. Panel members were selected in consultation with Riot Games, maker of League of Legends. ESPN will poll the panel bi-weekly throughout the year to identify the best teams, and release standings every other Monday.

Maryville claimed its first national title in 2016 and followed with a second national title in 2017 with the League of Legends Collegiate Championships trophy. Though the team was unable to claim its third consecutive national title last season, they are poised for success this year, said Dan Clerke, Maryville’s director of Esports.

“The team has been practicing very hard, and they are structured and disciplined,” Clerke said. “We want to redeem what happened last year. We fell short and that’s not acceptable for the expectations we have for the team. So this year, we’re going all out to reclaim the throne.”

Maryville founded its Esports program in 2015, and was one of the first universities in the nation to offer scholarships to Esports club students. Maryville is one of six founding members of the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE). The organization has expanded to more than 80 schools across the country and represents more than 1,500 student athletes.

For more information about Maryville University’s Esports program, please visit https://www.maryville.edu/studentlife/esports-clubs/.

For more information on the first-ever ESPN College League of Legends Rankings, please visit http://www.espn.com/esports/.

About Maryville University
Founded in 1872, Maryville University is a comprehensive and nationally ranked private institution with an enrollment of 9,200 students. Maryville offers more than 90 programs at the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels to students from 50 states and 55 countries. Among recent graduates, 97 percent are employed or attending graduate school. More than 17,000 Maryville alumni work and live in the St. Louis region.