Article by Phoenix writer Molly Driscoll ’26:
On Friday, January 17, senior Christopher Gallegra took the initiative to organize a Super Smash Bros. Tournament for the Gaming Club.
This event marked the club’s first esports tournament of the year. Students from all grades were welcome to compete in this inaugural tournament held in the Millennium Room.
In addition to the tournament, a variety of classic board games were also offered.
There was an amazing turnout, with forty-six competitors and about fifty spectators.
Super Smash Bros. is a Nintendo video game featuring well known characters, such as Mario and Luigi. The goal of the popular video game is to knock opponents off the stage using a variety of defenses, including punches, kicks, and other moves.
There was a double elimination bracket for competitors, meaning each player had to lose twice to be eliminated.
Eight Nintendo Switch consoles were used for the tournament; one for the teacher bracket, and seven for the main bracket.
Daniel Millman rose as the champion in a 3-2 close set against Marco Arena.
Several teachers also attended, either for support or to compete, including Mr. Castelli, Mrs. Castelli, Mr. Sorkin, Brother Peter, Mrs. Fiore, Mr. Capazolli, and others.
There was a separate teacher bracket which Mr. Capazolli won.
Christopher Gallegra expressed his contentment, “The tournament was a massive success! My favorite part was the reaction to the prize, which was Mr Brown’s hit novel, Chuckanut Dreams.”
Due to the success of this tournament, Christopher Gallegra hopes to organize something similar for the gaming club in March.
Brother Peter also remarked, “The tournament was a great success. It’s always nice to see students take charge of the activities they want to do and to see everyone have a good time while playing with civility, order, and respect.”
The future of the gaming club appears to be very bright and exciting.
