On April 28, THSCS (Tenafly High School Championship Series) streamed its first round of League of Legends games. Taking about two weeks to plan, THSCS is a non-THS-sponsored League of Legends ESports league created by Andrew Hau (’20), Jiho Park (’20), and Chen Yang (’20). The league is made up of nine teams, each with five people excluding any substitutes, with a total of 47 players mostly from Tenafly High School. 

“We attempted to start this in freshman year, but we didn’t take it too seriously back then,” said Park. “Chad brought this idea back now that we have time in our senior year. Andrew essentially planned everything out.”

Hau said that they have been trying to use this opportunity as an alternative to doing sports in school. “Now that spring sports have been canceled, we wanted to provide a competitive environment for people to participate in the comfort of their own homes.”

Park expressed that the most difficult part of the process was getting people to sign up to play. “It’s a very serious competition. People practice and develop strategies for the real thing.” The creators made it clear that they wanted THSCS to be a strict competition with set rules and restrictions so that players could play as fairly as possible.

“Being able to interact with my friends on a weekly basis through this league tournament has been so enjoyable,” said Frank Kim (’21), a participant of THSCS. “Talking to participants via a live chat has brought another aspect to the game that I have never experienced before. It has made this quarantine significantly less stressful.” Kim has also expressed his gratitude for being given the opportunity to commentate games. “‘Casting’ has been a huge honor and a big responsibility. We are given the task of taking over the game and providing our own insight on what is happening over the map. Since anyone is able to watch the stream, it is important for us to not only entertain but also inform.”

Games take place on weekdays from 8-10 p.m. Teams play either two or three games a week in a round-robin. The top four teams are scheduled to play each other in bracketed playoffs starting May 26. “We hope that we’re providing entertainment for many during these tough times and he hopes that you tune in and watch,” said Hau. “Many people might not understand watching video games; however, watching people you know putting effort into something and having fun can be worthwhile.”

You can visit their Twitch stream to watch live games, or visit their YouTube channel to watch their past games.