Loyola Smash Bros. sweeps two matches Wednesday

NEW ORLEANS – The Wolf Pack Esports program played a doubleheader on Wednesday night, taking on Minnesota State Mankato and Texas A&M International in NACE Premier play. The Maroon and Gold swept both matches to reach a 3-1 overall record.

Loyola's next matchup is set for Wednesday, Mar. 5, against Texas A&M-Texarkana. The Wolf Pack will compete in the regular-season finale of Sun Conference Play at 6 p.m.

Nathan Long returned to start Loyola's matchup against Minnesota State Mankato. The senior fell to MSU's Pyra/Mythra combo in a close 3-2 contest. Malachi Lee entered the ring as Terry to sweep MSU's first fighter, 3-0. Then, Lee dominated Minnesota State's last three fighters in Little Mac (3-1), Kazuya (3-0), and Lucario (3-1) to collect Loyola's crew battle victory.

MSU's Isabelle defeated Long's Rosalina and Luma duo to bring out Samuel Spiegel's Steve for round two, 3-0. Spiegel took care of the Animal Crossing fighter to advance to Minnesota State's second fighter, 3-2. In the next matchup, MSU's Mewtwo got the win over Spiegel but lost two stocks in the process, 1-2. Lee returned to the match to quickly defeat Mewtwo and bring in MSU's final opponent, 1-0. After King Dedede defeated Lee with one stock remaining, Anthony Nodolski's Olmar took care of business to seal the win for the Wolf Pack.

Long began the match against Texas A&M International by taking wins over Incineroar (3-1) and Bowser Jr. (3-1), setting up for a fight against TAMIU's Terry. After Long traded stocks with Terry, Spiegel eliminated the King of Fighters character to bring in Mario. Mario defeated Spiegel's Steve but only had one stock remaining. Nodolski's Zero Suit Samus got the 1-0 win over Mario to take set one. 

Nodolski's Olimar started set two with a win over Incineroar, 3-2, then traded stocks with Mario to get a one-stock advantage over the Dustdevils. Long returned to the fight, eliminating Sephiroth in a 3-2 contest. Shortly after, TAMIU's Pokémon Trainer traded stocks with Rosalina & Luma to get the win. In the final fight, Spiegel entered as R.O.B. to take down TAMIU's final fighter and win Loyola's second match of the night.

Minnesota State Mankato Results

First Crew Battle:
Pyra/Mythra (MSU) def. Rosalina & Luma (Nathan Long), 3-2
Terry (Malachi Lee) def. Pyra/Mythra (MSU), 3-0
Terry (Malachi Lee) def. Little Mac (MSU), 3-1
Terry (Malachi Lee) def. Kazuya (MSU), 3-0
Terry (Malachi Lee) def. Lucario (MSU), 3-1
Loyola leads match, 1-0
 

Second Crew Battle:
Isabelle (MSU) def. Rosalina & Luma (Nathan Long), 3-0
Steve (Samuel Spiegel) def. Isabelle (MSU), 3-2
Mewtwo (MSU) def. Steve (Samuel Spiegel), 1-2
Terry (Malachi Lee) def. Mewtwo (MSU), 1-0
Terry (Malachi Lee) def. Little Mac (MSU), 3-2
King Dedede (MSU) def. Terry (Malachi Lee), 1-2
Olimar (Anthony Nodolski) def. King Dedede (MSU), 1-0
Loyola wins match, 2-0
 

Texas A&M International Results

First Crew Battle:
Rosalina & Luma (Nathan Long) def. Incineroar (TAMIU), 3-1
Rosalina & Luma (Nathan Long) def. Bowser Jr. (TAMIU), 3-1
Terry (TAMIU) def. Rosalina & Luma (Nathan Long), 1-1
Steve (Samuel Spiegel) def. Terry (TAMIU), 2-1
Mario (TAMIU) def. Steve (Samuel Spiegel), 2-2
Zero Suit Samus (Anthony Nodolski) def. Mario (TAMIU), 1-0
Loyola leads match, 1-0
 

Second Crew Battle:
Olimar (Anthony Nodolski) def. Incineroar (TAMIU), 3-2
Mario (TAMIU) def. Olimar (Anthony Nodolski), 1-1
Rosalina & Luma (Nathan Long) def. Mario (TAMIU), 2-0
Rosalina & Luma (Nathan Long) def. Sephiroth (TAMIU), 3-2
Pokémon Trainer (TAMIU) def. Rosalina & Luma (Nathan Long), 1-1
R.O.B. (Samuel Spiegel) def. Pokémon Trainer (TAMIU), 2-2
Loyola wins match, 2-0