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ESPORTS Week 4

Esports Andrew Czysz Jr.

Fall 2026 WEC Week Four Recap: Carthage Esports Reaches 4-0 in RL; Marvel Rivals Falls to 2-2

KENOSHA, Wis. — On Wednesday, October 7, Carthage Esports finished its Fall 2026 Wisconsin Esports Conference (WEC) Week Four campaign. At the regular season's midpoint, Rocket League (RL) Red and Black are 4-0, while Marvel Rivals sits at 2-2. In particular, Carthage RL Black completed a rescheduled, best-of-five series against the University of Wisconsin (UW) Milwaukee Varsity Black on Sunday, October 4, a day before their Week Four contest.

WEC matches for both RL and Marvel Rivals are not livestreamed on the Carthage Esports Twitch channel. However, supporters are encouraged to visit the Esports Arena or watch matches on a player's Twitch channel to cheer them on. RL participates in regular season action every Monday from now until November 2. Marvel Rivals participates in the regular season every Wednesday from now until November 4. On their respective game days, Carthage competes at 6:00 p.m. CST.

Fall 2026 WEC Week Four Recap — Carthage RL Red (4-0) vs. Marquette University Varsity Navy (3-1)
Score: Carthage Red 3, Marquette Navy 0

On Monday, October 5, Carthage RL Red battled Marquette University Varsity Navy in an off-stream, best-of-five series. Although the leaves' colors change in autumn, this team remains red-hot as they approach the second half of the Fall 2026 WEC regular season. At the time of writing, Firebirds Red were in sole possession of first place in the rankings at 4-0 overall with a 12-0 game record.

Carthage RL Red's roster contains a sophomore trio of captain Owen Perry (Kor), Kyle Branski (xray), and Jimmy Prims (ItsSlurp17 aka ThePrimReaper). Within this best-of-five series, Branski, Perry, and Prims competed against Marquette Navy players Icy, Maxy, and Schill.

Firebirds Red set the tone early with a commanding 10-1 Game One victory. It took only two seconds for Prims to score as Branski and Schill halted the ball's momentum at midfield on the opening kickoff. Then, Prims found a seam and rolled the ball past midfield to score (4:58). Afterward, Perry scored at the 11-second mark as he floated above Marquette's net and laid in a perfect aerial shot (4:47). For about the next minute-and-a-half, Marquette Navy played solid defense, until Branski set up a crossbar pass. Although Icy saved a would-be Branski goal, the rebound created a bounce-shot opportunity for Perry. He soared to the ceiling and dropped in another shot (3:24). Over the next 24 seconds, Branski and Perry both scored, pushing the score to 5-0 after a couple of great aerial maneuvers. Five more unanswered goals came from Firebirds Red within the last three minutes—ten total before Maxy prevented a shutout (0:42).

In Game Two, Firebirds Red walked out with a 6-1 victory. Perry scored within the first 30 seconds. Deep into Marquette Navy territory, Prims initially set up a pass from the left ceiling down to their goal line. Perry arrived and intentionally banged the ball off Marquette's back wall to score an aerial goal (4:28). About 14 seconds later, the Firebirds Red offense added another goal as Prims hit a pinch-center on Marquette Navy's right wall that forced the ball to roll directly to their goal line, and Branski pounced on it (4:14). At the 3:30 mark, Branski hit a crisp double-tap above Maxy to score his second straight goal. On the ensuing possession, Prims etched his name on the scoreboard. As Icy saved Branski's redirect shot attempt, the ball bounced off Marquette Navy's crossbar, and Prims jumped up and made a play (3:11). At this point, Firebirds Red conjured a 4-0 lead before Schill scored on a midfield ground shot to prevent a shutout (2:45).

Game Three belonged to Firebirds Red as they completed a 5-0 shutout to end the series effectively. Before this, Marquette Navy's defense held Carthage scoreless until the 3:10 mark. Maxy, in large part, encouraged the defensive stand, recording two saves within this period. However, Perry eventually hit paydirt, scoring a double-tap goal after a defensive mis-touch by Schill (3:10). Moreover, Firebirds Red scored three more unanswered goals, one from each player. These goals included picture-perfect double-taps from Branski and Perry, as well as a nice midfield aerial score by Prims.

As a unit, Carthage RL Red recorded 21 goals, 14 assists, five saves, 44 shots, and five demolitions on 48% shooting. On defense, Firebirds Red allowed two goals on eight shots, one assist, 15 saves, and 13 demolitions.

Fall 2026 WEC Season Player Stats Through Week Four — Carthage RL Red

  • Owen Perry (Kor): 35 goals, 15 assists, 12 saves, 73 shots, six demos, 48% shooting
  • Kyle Branski (xray): 21 goals, 21 assists, nine saves, 44 shots, 15 demos, 48% shooting
  • Jimmy Prims (Slurp): 20 goals, 18 assists, 11 saves, 50 shots, six demos, 40% shooting
Carthage RL Red (4-0, 12-0) will compete in a WEC Week Five off-stream, best-of-five series against a to-be-announced opponent tonight at 6:00 p.m. CST. Please be sure to check out our socials for updates. Those who wish to support and watch RL Red can either visit the Esports Arena or tune in to a Twitch channel belonging to one of the players.

Fall 2026 WEC Week Three Reschedule Recap — Carthage RL Black (3-0) vs. UW-Milwaukee Varsity Black (2-1)
Score: Carthage Black 3, UW-Milwaukee Black 1

Before diving into Week Four, Carthage RL Black completed a rescheduled, off-stream, best-of-five series against UW-Milwaukee Varsity Black on Sunday, October 4. The Firebirds Black roster consists of senior captain Penn Gilchrist (Pixlr), senior Lucas Menzer (Joystik), junior Kaliek Wade (Akko), and freshman substitute Ben Lagerhausen (Cosmic). Within this best-of-five series, Gilchrist, Lagerhausen, Menzer, and Wade competed against UW-Milwaukee Black's Ace Page, Blahdat, and Jatt.

To briefly recap Week Three, Firebirds Black clinched a 3-1 series victory over UW-Milwaukee Varsity Black. In Game One, Wade became an incredible asset, scoring two goals and saving the ball twice. He helped Carthage establish an early 2-0 lead. Although Jatt cut the deficit to one, Gilchrist scored a late insurance goal. Due to technical issues, Game Two became an interesting situation for both parties. Carthage possessed a 2-1 lead before difficulties postponed some action. After the issues were resolved, both teams restarted Game Two and found themselves in a 5-5 overtime. Ace Page and Blahdat accounted for five goals combined to keep themselves up to speed with Firebirds Black, who saw Gilchrist and Menzer score twice, while Wade found the net once. In overtime, though, Gilchrist set up Wade beautifully to drain a shot into the Panthers' net. It only took Carthage 20 seconds to win Game Two in overtime.

However, Panthers Black responded to a 2-0 series deficit with authority, winning Game Three by a 5-3 scoreline. Following an opening Menzer goal, UW-Milwaukee pierced through the Firebirds Black defense for four unanswered goals—one from Jatt and a hat trick from Blahdat. Although Wade recorded three goal-line saves, the pressure delivered from Blahdat was too much to overcome. Before the dust settled, the Panthers scored a fifth goal, courtesy of Ace Page. To keep the tally close, Gilchrist and Menzer gave it their all to score at least once more each.

With a 2-1 series lead, Firebirds Black aimed to close out the series in four games. Despite a starter change by both sides, notably Lagerhausen for Menzer and Fluttershy for Ace Page, Carthage still came away with a 4-2 Game Four victory. Fluttershy started hot, giving UW-Milwaukee a 1-0 lead. Afterward, though, the Panthers only forced only four more shots on net, which meant the Firebirds' Black defense kept clearing the ball away. On the flip side, Carthage forced 14 shots on net as a team. Because of their offensive pursuit, Gilchrist and Wade each scored twice, while Lagerhausen kept the pressure on with seven shots. Ultimately, Firebirds Black endured a unique circumstance and came out on top with another series win.

Fall 2026 WEC Week Four Recap — Carthage RL Black (4-0) vs. UW-Stout Varsity Blue (3-1)
Score: Carthage Black 3, UW-Stout Blue 0


Next, Carthage RL Black, including senior captain Penn Gilchrist (Pixlr), senior Lucas Menzer (Joystik), junior Kaliek Wade (Akko), and freshman substitute Ben Lagerhausen (Cosmic), earned a 3-0 sweep in an off-stream, best-of-five series vs. UW-Stout Varsity Blue on Monday, October 5. At the time of writing, Firebirds Black were the No. 2 team in the Fall 2026 WEC regular-season rankings at 4-0 overall with a 12-2 game record. Within this best-of-five series, Gilchrist, Menzer, and Wade battled Alpharay, Bob, and TraeWae from UW-Stout Varsity Blue.
This series began with a dramatic 6-5 overtime win for Carthage in Game One. The Blue Devils attempted to defend an early Gilchrist shot. Alpharay carried the ball past his backboard, but Gilchrist undercut the clear and bounced a shot past Bob (4:46). UW-Stout responded quickly as TraeWae caught Gilchrist off-guard with an aerial center that went past him. Bob came underneath and scored from the Firebirds' goal line as Wade barely missed the save (4:18). The Blue Devils' offense remained synchronized as they took a 2-1 lead after Bob made Gilchrist inadvertently hit the ball in front of his own net.

Although Menzer attempted to make the save, TraeWae was quicker to the net (3:29). About 15 seconds later, UW-Stout flipped the field on Carthage, as Alpharay launched the ball from the right sideline, which went directly over Gilchrist, leaving the net wide open for Bob to score (3:14). Gilchrist responded with a ground pinch that sent the ball past Alpharay and TraeWae. He then hit a contested pinch off Bob's car and boosted upward to score (2:39). While facing a 3-2 deficit, Firebirds Black aimed to mount a comeback. However, Alpharay increased UW-Stout's lead to 4-2 after getting the ball underneath Gilchrist on the goal line, who had saved a previous Blue Devils attempt (2:13). At the 1:49 mark, TraeWae widened the scoring gap to 5-2 after faking out Gilchrist on a side-wall bounce.

In the rest of regulation, though, Firebirds Black found a way to tie the game 5-5. On defense, Wade set up a floater ball for Gilchrist to hit past all of UW-Stout. Thanks to the triple commit, Gilchrist had enough time to materialize a double-tap play (1:35). With less than a minute left, Wade fiercely snatched the ball away from Bob up the left sideline wall, passed the ball off UW-Stout's left goal post, and Menzer read the pass to score (0:54). On the ensuing kickoff, Wade stopped the ball's momentum on the Blue Devils' half. It was enough time for Menzer to come in and bang a shot off UW-Stout's right post that barely went in the net as Bob accidentally hit it in (0:45). No team scored in the last 45 seconds. In overtime, Gilchrist scored with eight seconds remaining after driving up the left sideline and banging the ball off UW-Stout's back wall to slot it behind their defense (+0:08).

In Game Two, Carthage came away with a hard-fought 3-2 victory. TraeWae scored first after Bob capitalized on an awkward defensive play by Wade (3:45). However, Wade redeemed himself with a ground shot that went from his net all the way to an open UW-Stout net, courtesy of a midfield bump by Gilchrist, who took Bob out of the play (3:05). Wade scored again at the 2:22 mark after a ceiling center by Gilchrist, but also a key bump onto Alpharay. However, UW-Stout evened the score 2-2 with an Alpharay goal. Amid an offensive double-commitment by Gilchrist and Menzer, Wade did not have enough boost to defend Alpharay's goal-line shot (2:02). After a period of shots by both teams, Firebirds Black found an opening for their game-winning play. It was a full team effort as Menzer bounced the ball off UW-Stout's backboard, Wade pinched it off their right goal post, and Gilchrist tapped it in (0:34).

Game Three was a 3-1 series-clinching victory for Firebirds Black. Unlike the first two games, it took significantly longer for either team to score. Menzer scored the game's first goal with just over two minutes remaining. Following an inadvertent demo from Gilchrist onto Alpharay, Menzer carried the ball past TraeWae in a one-on-one duel (2:10). Menzer struck twice at the 1:31 mark, knocking in an unbelievable shot near UW-Stout's crossbar. Then, Gilchrist put the icing on Carthage's cake, taking advantage of midfield space and going straight into the Blue Devils' net (1:06). Before the series ended, Bob scored a nice aerial goal past two defenders (0:39).

As a unit, Carthage RL Black recorded 12 goals, seven assists, 20 saves, 23 shots, and 15 demolitions on 52% shooting. On defense, Firebirds Black allowed eight goals on 31 shots (26% shooting), seven assists, seven saves, and nine demolitions.

Fall 2026 WEC Season Player Stats Through Week Four — Carthage RL Black

  • Lucas Menzer (Joystik): 19 goals, 15 assists, 26 saves, 37 shots, 25 demolitions, 51% shooting**
  • Kaliek Wade (Akko): 19 goals, 15 assists, 18 saves, 40 shots, 61 demolitions, 48% shooting**
  • Penn Gilchrist (Pixlr): 12 goals, six assists, 23 saves, 31 shots, 16 demolitions, 39% shooting**
  • Ben Lagerhausen (Cosmic): 10 goals, five assists, zero saves, 25 shots, eight demolitions, 40% shooting
Carthage RL Black (4-0, 12-2) will compete in a WEC Week Five off-stream, best-of-five series against a to-be-announced opponent tonight at 6:00 p.m. CST. Please be sure to check out our socials for updates. Those who wish to support and watch RL Black can either visit the Esports Arena or tune in to a Twitch channel belonging to one of the players.

Fall 2026 WEC Week Four Recap — Carthage Marvel Rivals (2-2) vs. Ripon College Red (3-1)
Score: Ripon Red 3, Carthage 1

On Wednesday, October 7, Carthage Marvel Rivals fell in an off-stream, best-of-five series against Ripon College Red. Coming off a thrilling 3-2 win against UW-Stout JV Navy, the Firebirds battled some adversity in Week Four. With this loss, they are in sole possession of ninth place in the Fall 2026 WEC regular-season rankings at 2-2 overall and an 8-8 game record.
The Firebirds' Week Four roster included senior Ethan Anderson (Snowstorm), junior Adam Hollis (Hollister09), alongside freshmen Jacob Cooper (Void), Hayden Nelson (Hazzick), Matthew Santiago (Lumen), Michael Santiago (Vader), and Anna Westbrook (BambeeBirdie).

Marvel Rivals is a free-to-play, third-person 6v6 team-oriented hero shooter developed by NetEase Games and Marvel Games. Players select renowned Marvel heroes and villains to engage in fast-paced, dynamic matches.

In the WEC, teams compete in three game modes: Convoy, Convergence, and Domination.
  • Convoy: Escort mode in which one team pushes a payload cart along a designated path to reach a final point. The opposing team must defend the route and prevent the cart from moving forward before time expires.
  • Convergence: Hybrid mode that mixes elements of Domination and Convoy. Teams initially fight to seize a control point, which then unlocks a payload cart that the attackers must escort through the map.
  • Domination: King-of-the-Hill mode in which two teams fight to control and hold a central point on the map. The first to fill its progress bar to 100% wins the round. This process repeats throughout a best-of-three format.
Marvel Rivals also includes three specific in-game character roles: Duelist, Strategist, and Vanguard.
  • Duelist: Primary damage dealers who focus on securing eliminations and outplaying the enemy team. They have lower health pools and rely on strong positioning or precise aim.
  • Strategist: Stabilizes team fights from the backline (i.e., heals teammates or provides buff utility).
  • Vanguard: Frontline of a team composition. They use large health pools and damage mitigation abilities to absorb enemy fire, control objectives, and create space.
For Carthage, Hollis and Michael Santiago primarily play Vanguards; Nelson and Matthew Santiago are Duelists; Cooper and Westbrook are Strategists. However, players could swap roles from time to time for flexibility.

Unfortunately, insufficient statistical data are available for this Week Four match. However, the game modes and maps played have been recorded. Carthage started with a 2-0 Domination win on Krakoa. Next, both teams tied 3-3 after neither team secured a single point in Convergence overtime at Central Park. As the Firebirds led 1-0 in the Game Two tie, Ripon College went on to win the next three games—Convoy on Yggsdrasill Path (2-0), Domination on Birnin T'Challa (2-0), and Convergence on Lower Manhattan (2-0).

Carthage Marvel Rivals (2-2, 8-8) will compete in a WEC Week Five off-stream, best-of-five series against a to-be-announced opponent on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. CST. Please be sure to check out our socials for updates. Those who wish to support and watch Marvel Rivals can either visit the Esports Arena or tune in to a Twitch channel belonging to one of the players.

Carthage Esports is currently in-season with NECC and WEC competition. We have scheduled Fall 2026 NECC livestreams for Smash Bros. (Tuesdays), Rainbow Six (Wednesdays), and Overwatch (Fridays). This pattern occurs for regular-season matches from the week of September 28 to the week of November 9. 

Follow @carthageesports on all socials to stay updated on content involving the upcoming Fall 2026 and Spring 2027 seasons. Follow our Twitch channel to be informed when broadcasts go live. Lastly, be on the lookout for recaps on the Carthage Athletics – Esports page as the Fall 2026 NECC and WEC seasons continue.
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Players Mentioned

Ethan Anderson

Ethan Anderson

5' 8"
Senior
Kyle Branski

Kyle Branski

5' 9"
Sophomore
Penn Gilchrist

Penn Gilchrist

5' 11"
Senior
Adam Hollis

Adam Hollis

Sophomore
Lucas Menzer

Lucas Menzer

5' 9"
Senior
Owen Perry

Owen Perry

6' 5"
Sophomore
Jimmy Prims

Jimmy Prims

6' 2"
Sophomore
Kaliek Wade

Kaliek Wade

Junior
Ben Lagerhausen

Ben Lagerhausen

Sophomore
Jacob Cooper

Jacob Cooper

5' 2"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Ethan Anderson

Ethan Anderson

5' 8"
Senior
Kyle Branski

Kyle Branski

5' 9"
Sophomore
Penn Gilchrist

Penn Gilchrist

5' 11"
Senior
Adam Hollis

Adam Hollis

Sophomore
Lucas Menzer

Lucas Menzer

5' 9"
Senior
Owen Perry

Owen Perry

6' 5"
Sophomore
Jimmy Prims

Jimmy Prims

6' 2"
Sophomore
Kaliek Wade

Kaliek Wade

Junior
Ben Lagerhausen

Ben Lagerhausen

Sophomore
Jacob Cooper

Jacob Cooper

5' 2"
Freshman