KANSAS CITY, Mo. (April 19, 2017) – The National Association of Collegiate eSports (NACE) inaugural national invitational moves into its semifinals on Thursday, April 20^th starting at 5pm CDT.  The teams moving into the semis with records of 3-0 are Maryville University of St. Louis, Robert Morris University of Chicago, Miami University (Ohio), and Columbia College (Missouri).

The Inaugural NACE Invitational started on Monday, April 10 with a 16-team round robin play.  The championship final is slated to begin at 5 p.m. CDT on Friday, April 21^st.

League of Legends is the game title of choice for the association’s first-ever national event, with each match playing to a best of three format. The team with the best record from each of the four pools advances into the elimination bracket.

Teams were seeded by the NACE Competition Council, an elected membership group charged with developing policies and procedures for national competition. The seven-person committee evaluated each team based on past performance and individual ranking for each squad.  The Inaugural NACE Invitational marks the first tournament for varsity eSports programs in the U.S. and the first event for the National Association of Collegiate eSports.

Fans can watch competition by clicking the Twitch icon next the desired event on the NACE Invitational webpage at www.battlefy.com/nac-invitational.

NACE is the only association of college and university sponsored eSports programs that promotes the education and development of students through intercollegiate eSports participation and the institutional commitment to support those initiatives.  Members of the association are dedicated to legitimizing collegiate eSports and providing college students the opportunities to live their passion for competitive gaming, while pursuing a quality education.

NACE originated with six founding member institutions – Columbia College, Indiana Institute of Technology, Maryville University, Midland University, Robert Morris University and University of Pikeville – and has expanded to nearly 30 institutions throughout the 2016-17 academic calendar with additional institutions expected to join soon.

For more information on the NACE National Invitational, including schedule and match-by-match results, visit www.nacesports.org/invitational.

About NAC eSports

The National Association of Collegiate eSports (NACE) is the only association of college and university sponsored eSports programs that promotes the education and development of students through intercollegiate eSports participation. NACE member schools are dedicated to legitimizing collegiate eSports and providing college students the opportunities to live their passion for competitive gaming while pursuing a quality education.

NACE promotes the education and development of students through intercollegiate eSports participation. Member institutions share a common commitment to high standards in education, and to the principle that participation in organized eSports competition serves as an integral part of the total educational process.

Organizational support and structure for NACE is being provided by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The NAIA has been administering traditional athletics programs and championships in balance with the overall college educational experience since 1937.