(ABOVE): The Auburn paintball team runs out to battle against the opposing teams at a regional five-man tournament in Macon, Ga., Saturday. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for a week, selling TVs to upgrade gear or selling non-essential gear are common practices for most of Auburn’s paintball players to enjoy the sport they love.
These sacrifices were made Saturday when the team battled not only the extreme heat, but also 30 other paintball teams in Macon, Ga., at a regional Georgia Field Owner Association five-man tournament.
The five-minute games and skilled competitors tested every bit of skill and endurance the young Auburn team had, as it prepared for the upcoming fall season.
“The heat and humidity were definitely the toughest things we had to deal with,” said A-squad member, Alex Tigue, a sophomore in pre-vet animal science. “Playing such intense games against great competition in that kind of weather drained your energy quickly.”
The Auburn team took 10 players to the Macon tournament, broken up into two five-man squads. Danny Osborn, a junior majoring in supply chain management, led the A-squad while David Mullins, a junior in radio, television and film, led the B-squad.
Co-captain Osborn decided to take two teams because he wanted to give freshmen and other new players the opportunity to experience tournament play.
The fairly new Tiger paintball team has nine tournament competitions under its belt and plans to play two more tournament dates before the National Collegiate Paintball Association season begins September.
The GFOA tournament series is open to any registered paintball team, and the NCPA is open only to registered collegiate teams.
The Auburn Tigers compete in both series throughout the year, both of which are five-man competitions.
Saturday’s tournament saw the Tiger B-squad put out early in the preliminary round, and the Tiger A-squad held on late through the semi-finals, coming close to a spot in the final four.
The top eight teams of the day move on to the semi-final round, which is then narrowed down to the best four teams in the tournament.
“We had to adapt to a field layout that did not work well with our defensive playing style, so that was a little difficult,” said A-squad member Scott Clay, a junior in mechanical engineering. “We played great as a team, even though it was the first time that all five of us had played together.”
The team hopes to capture an SEC victory and have a good showing at this year’s World Cup, which could lead to further sponsorship and overall recognition for the paintball team at Auburn.
“We’ve improved a lot over the year,” Mullins said. “Communication is a key factor in this sport, which we did really well on in Saturday’s tournament, and we can only get better.”
With two more tournaments to play before September and weekly practices, the upcoming NCPA season looks promising.
