While there are only ten esports players, BVN has an active esports community. BVN has two teams, one that plays Mario Kart and one that plays Rocket League. Seniors and esports players Aaron Uzelac and Brodye Bradshaw discussed their opinions on the activity.
Uzelac, who plays Rocket League, explained what the schedule looks like for his team.
“We usually practice once a week and we have a game also once a week,” Uzelac said.
Bradshaw, who plays Mario Kart, described his team’s schedule as well.
“We don’t really practice that much,” Bradshaw said. “Whenever we go to my friend Bobby’s house, we’ll not full-on practice, but we’ll just play because it’s fun.”
Esports is less time-consuming than a traditional varsity sport at BVN, which generally practices every day and has games multiple times a week. Regardless, it offers players opportunities for college, including scholarships and spots on college esports teams.
“There’s actually been a few times that scouts have come up to me and wanted to get my information to possibly join them,” Uzelac said.
Even if esports isn’t something students want to continue in college, both Uzelac and Bradshaw agree it is a worthwhile experience.
“[Esports] is something that I do in my senior year, ‘cause I’m not really doing anything right now with football being done, so it’s kind of a good time killer,” Bradshaw said.
Uzelac had a similar response with both students agreeing it is a fun activity to be involved in.
“Yeah, [Esports] is a fun activity to do with my friends and I’m pretty good at it,” Uzelac said.
While the debate over the validity of esports as a sport is still ongoing, both Uzelac and Bradshaw believe that, while not a conventional sport, esports is a sport of its own.
Uzelac had a similar response, noting that esports is not a standard sport.
“[It’s] not a traditional sport, but it does fall under that category,” Uzelac said.
In 2025, esports was considered a KSHSAA activity rather than a school club. Esports, like other sports at BVN, compete against other schools in the area, but BVN esports has never made it to state.
“We made it to the playoffs, but lost in the first round,” Uzelac said. “I think, a few years back, we also made it again, and lost.”
As for the future of BVN esports, there are talks of adding another team in the spring. Currently, the Mario Kart and Rocket League teams both consist of only seniors.
“Yeah [esports is a sport],” Bradshaw said.“It requires skill, even though it’s not necessarily athletic, it still requires skill.”
