Although not a traditional high school sports team like football or basketball, CAST Tech’s esports team wins like they’re professionals. When Fernando Garcia, a freshman at CAST Tech at the time, pitched the idea of an e-sports club/team in 2018, he had no idea just how popular/successful the team would eventually become. He was granted permission to start the team as a club instead of a sport under the condition that he had an adult in charge of it, and teacher Ben Ramos stepped up to the plate and hasn’t looked back since. The club is so popular now that many of the current team members actually chose to attend CAST Tech specifically for the esports team.

Thea team itself focuses on playing games such as Overwatch, Valorant, Super Smash Brothers, and Rocket League, but it is their Valorant team that has been making headlines lately.

The club’s Valorant team practices 2-3 teams a week for hours at a time, and their competition success reflects this. They currently play in the R20 Premiere Esports Leage, along with the High School Esports League (HSEL), which is nation-wide. In the meantime, the members of the team are being scouted by nationally ranked universities to join their esports teams when they graduate.

Last year Cast Tech won the R20 tournament, beating out Steele, Roosevelt, and Jefferson High School in the process. Their eyes are currently set on a rematch with Hebron High School, the #1 ranked team in Texas, but the Valorant team is confident they can leave with a victory this time around.