Nick Swanson
Missouri S&T offers a wide variety of clubs and activities that a student can be involved in. If someone has an interest, it is likely there is either a club for that or an organization that is about to be formed. One of the many clubs on the S&T campus is the Paintball Club. Paintball Club offers a unique experience and people from all backgrounds can come to have fun or compete. Whether someone is just interested in trying out the sport or is a seasoned pro, anyone can find their place in the club. While the club holds two recreational days a semester designed to specifically just have fun with paintball, the main focus is on competitions. Typically the Paintball Club attends four tournaments a year which all lead up to the NCPA tournament in Florida. Interested students can come to play for fun or for competition.
The sport of paintball follows the rules set out by the NCPA (National Collegiate Paintball Association), which outline the necessary equipment and protection needed to compete. The rulebook also explains the way the match works. At each tournament competitors play a game called RaceTo-2. RaceTo-2 consists of competing against another team several times in a “best two out of three” style scenario. Once one team has won two points, or two games, they move on in the tournament, and the losing team is out. In-game points are scored by the elimination of the other team members. In order to be eliminated, a player must shoot the other team and have their paintball explode on any part of the other team’s body or equipment, including the gun.
Last year the Miners got 5th at the Midwest North #1 tournament, 12th at two other conference tournaments, and ended up getting 14th, out of 27, and the national competition. This put them ranked 14th overall in the collegiate league, while many larger schools, such as Mizzou, are ranked below them. The University of Missouri got 12th at the national championship, but placed 6th at Midwest North #1 and 17th at the AA Conference #2, leaving them with an overall ranking of 19th. This year is already off to a strong start, with the Miners placing 5th at a tournament in Illinois. They are staying busy, practicing as often as they can, and putting on fundraisers. The main way the club raises money for these tournaments, and the paint they use, is to volunteer to help clean up local paintball clubs in exchange for discounts from said locations on paint, equipment, and field time. This allows them to continue to be on their best game without breaking the bank and also helps the community.
The team is preparing for the upcoming 2019 National Championships in Kissimmee, Florida which will be held on April 12th through the 14th. It is being hosted at Austin-Tindall Regional Park and is operating at the same time as the Co-Ed College D1 Ultimate Frisbee Championships. S&T’s team is excited to bring the ferocity and hopes to make it even further this year than any other year in its ten-year history. They plan to prepare for the trip by heading out to Louisville over Spring Break and getting in some last minute competitive practice. Those interested in following the events of the national championship can follow the action live via online webcast. There are also several videos that include the Miners previous matches. As the Missouri S&T Miners travel to Florida to once again take on the schools from around the country, we as a community cheer them on to hopeful victory!
