SLCC student and eSports competitor Lyra Peterson holds the Nintendo controller she uses. Lyranthus fought hard. But jumping, then landing too many times facing away from her opponent, only to execute her offensive maneuvers into empty space, resulted in defeat – over and over. Just like that, it was 4-0, handing Lyra Peterson, the real person behind the mythical gamer tag, her first loss in what was Salt Lake Community College’s first-ever eSports match earlier in February. Last fall Kevin Dustin, SLCC Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation, responded to growing student interest in forming an eSports team to compete in sanctioned online gaming with other colleges. “As we begin, it is mostly recruiting existing students and putting them directly into competition,” Dustin says. “Soon, they will be recruited out of high school, just like any other athlete.” SLCC will compete with schools throughout the NJCAA and its Scenic West Athletic Conference, which includes SLC...