NATIONAL CHAMPIONS: Daytona State Rocket League Esports team wins third straight NJCAAE Rocket League championship

Team to next compete in prestigious invitation-only DreamHack tournament in Atlanta.

DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. (May 11, 2026) – Daytona State College’s Rocket League Esports team captured its third consecutive NJCAAE national championship on May 5, defeating Heartland Community College 4-0 in the Grand Finals of the 2026 NJCAAE Spring Premier Series National Championship.

The Falcons entered the postseason as the tournament No. 1 seed after completing an undefeated regular season and closed out the championship run without dropping a match in the title series.

In just three years since its launch, Daytona State’s Esports program has now earned four NJCAAE national championships – three in Rocket League and one in Super Smash Bros.

DSC’s Rocket League team is also ranked No. 32 nationally by the Collegiate Selection Committee, which issues North American collegiate Esports power rankings. Daytona State is the only state college included in the rankings.

“This program has grown into something truly special,” said Daytona State College President Dr. Tom LoBasso. “What these students and Coach Morales have built reflects the same qualities we value across the College – discipline, teamwork, resilience and a drive to compete at the highest level.”

The championship match was played remotely, with the Falcons controlling the action from the opening kickoff and securing the title in dominant fashion with a 4-0 sweep.

Members of the championship Rocket League team include Donald Walton (Sulace), Noah Leal (Smoove) and Nathanael Boyer (Geo).

“Our players have put in an incredible amount of work this season and stayed focused through every challenge,” said Esports Coordinator Sebastian Morales. “They trusted each other, communicated well under pressure and continued to improve week after week. Watching them bring home another national title was extremely rewarding.”

The Falcons advanced through the regional postseason with perfect 3-0 sweeps over Northcentral Technical College, Brookdale Community College and Blinn College. They then won the regional grand finals against Blinn College in another 4-0 sweep.

From there, the Falcons moved on to the national postseason sweeping Columbia Basin College 3-0 in Winners Round One, defeating Heartland Community College 3-1 in Round Two, and sweeping Iowa Western Community College 3-0 in the Winners Final to earn a spot in the national championship match.

From here, the team moves on to compete in the invitation-only DreamHack tournament May 15-17 in Atlanta. Daytona State was one of only eight Rocket League teams nationwide to be invited to the event.

“It was an incredible feeling just to know we were on the invitation committee’s radar,” Morales said. “Competing at DreamHack is one of the most exciting things a college esports program could possibly do, and I feel blessed it’s our turn.”

The championship match can be viewed on the NJCAAE Twitch channel at https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2447066705 [twitch.tv].

To learn more about Daytona State’s Esports program, visit https://www.dscfalcons.com/sports/esports/ [dscfalcons.com] or join the team’s Discord community at https://bit.ly/DSC_EsportsDiscord [bit.ly].

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Offering more than 100 certificates, associate and bachelor’s degree programs, Daytona State College is the leader in education and workforce training needs of Volusia and Flagler counties and beyond. The College enrolls approximately 23,000 students a year at its seven campuses, with graduates serving in critical fields including healthcare, emergency services and public safety, aeronautics, business, education, hospitality, engineering, project management, accounting, computer science, digital media and more. Additionally, Daytona State generates nearly $943 million in economic impact in Volusia and Flagler counties annually and supports 13,612 jobs according to a recent labor-market analysis of the College’s economic impact.

Daytona State has been recognized as a leader in higher education numerous times. U.S. News & World Report ranks the College among the Top Tier Best Online Bachelor’s Programs. The U.S. Department of Education’s College Affordability and Transparency Center ranks DSC among the top 50 most affordable public four-year institutions in the country, with less than half the tuition of the national average. And U.S. News & World Report has ranked DSC among its Top Online Bachelor's Programs for Veterans multiple times.