Keokuk’s first collegiate esports signee hopes her commitment opens new doors for more students

KEOKUK (WGEM) – Lee County history was made Friday afternoon as Courtney Lovell, a senior at Keokuk High School, became the first student in school history to sign a letter of intent to play esports at the collegiate level.

Lovell committed to Grand View University, which is in Des Moines, after only being a competitive gamer for under 2 years.

“I never really thought I’d get into it as much as I have, and I’m really happy that I did,” Lovell said.

Lovell described herself as a casual gamer before joining Keokuk’s esports team. She primarily played Minecraft. Lovell is a two-year captain for the program’s Overwatch team.

This year, the team qualified for the Iowa High School Esports Association (IAHSEA) State Tournament in Marshalltown. Lovell feels honored to be Keokuk’s first esports college signee and hopes other players will follow in her footsteps.

“You never think about that growing up, like I’ll be the first one, and that’s just a crazy thought,” she said.

Over 200 colleges and universities across the U.S. are a part of the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE). According to the NACE, millions of dollars in scholarships and aid have been awarded over the last seven years.

According to Grand View University’s website, scholarship totals depend on which game a student plays, if a student is a varsity or junior-varsity player, and their game ranking. If a student is a varsity player for League of Legends, Overwatch, and Rocket League, for example, a scholarship at Grand View could cover the full cost of tuition, excluding room and board.

Grand View’s Director of Esports, Nathan Ragsdell said he has signed nine new team members this spring, and recruiting isn’t done yet.

Ragsdell described college esports as an extracurricular that can be mentally taxing.

“Per week you’re looking at anywhere up to 20 hours of actual game play, not including official game play for conferences and things like that, and when it’s all that condensed competition it can be pretty tough,” Ragsdell said.

Ragsdell said college esports and traditional sports have very similar recruiting methods. Schools can scout high school players and reach out if there is interest.

“The nice thing about esports is that being that it’s all online you can have them tryout for your team right then and there,” Ragsdell said.

KHS Esports Coach Scott Gooding said student participation has held steady in the program’s two years, sitting between 20 and 30 students.

Gooding believes esports can be just as competitive as traditional sports and carries the same concept of team play.

“Every positive of being part of a team is still active here,” Gooding said. “The social engagement, learning to interact with others, working with others, being a part of your school.”

Since the program’s inaugural year, Gooding said the team’s mentality has shifted and the atmosphere has become more positive. He said students have also transitioned from playing more casually to becoming competitive players.

“The first year, it was very much like the wild west, we didn’t know what was going on, we didn’t know the structure of the matches or tournaments,” Gooding said.

The team held their end-of-year party on Thursday after school.

Lovell said esports gives students who don’t fit into the traditional sports model a chance to still be a part of a team.

“I feel like it’s just become a club where you can come to be friends and just belong and you have something to do,” Lovell said.

Lovell is a first-generation college student.

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