High School eSports League

Image courtesy of Generation Esports

Esports orgs target more diversity in gaming; Mayor Q to join weekend ‘Among Us’ stream to boost message

Two Kansas City esports organizations are uniting behind one jersey to help make the rapidly expanding online gaming community more accessible to students in Title 1 schools across Missouri. “Esports brings kids together who might not otherwise have the chance to be a part of a broader community,” said Mason Mullenioux, CEO of Generation Esports…

Venture capital Kansas City

Kansas City’s Top VC-Backed Companies in 2020

The 2020 Top Venture Capital-Backed Companies List reflects a range of success stories and COVID-era challenges among Kansas City’s community of growth-stage, venture-backed companies. The list — updated annually by Startland News and its parent organization, Startland — shows that while few companies were spared from COVID-19’s impact, many of Kansas City’s leading entrepreneurs continued to grow…

Charles Reilly, Mason Mullenioux, and Aaron Hawkey, Generation Esports co-founders

Esports trendsetters launching Social Distancing Open as gaming champs fire back at COVID-19

Opportunities to connect are in high demand and video games could score relief in a level of life that’s been suddenly planked by intense isolation, said Mason Mullenioux.  “Esports kind of lends itself to a situation like this,” Mullenioux, co-founder of the Kansas City-based High School Esports League, said of the coming Social Distancing Open…

Investors, students find potential and power in High School eSports League

Benjie Lewis saw potential in eSports from the beginning — first as a mentor, then an investor, he said. Rapidly evolving from recreational pastime to official leagues and high school sports programs, the competitive multiplayer gaming concept has created a new space for startup opportunity, he said. “When I was growing up … they weren’t…

eSports founder: High school gaming ‘not just for jocks anymore’

When Mason Mullenioux attended Blue Springs High School in the early 2000s, he — like many teenagers — wanted to find a place where he belonged. “I was decently athletic, but when I tried out for tennis and basketball I didn’t make the team,” Mullenioux said. “But, I was always very good at ‘World of…