Emmalee "EMUHLEET" Garrido and the team have been trying out new players for the last few weeks, eventually choosing to stay with Theia. We talk about the struggles to find a new teammate, how they’re adapting their game to fit Theia, and the current level they’re at.

Hello Emmalee. You recently added Theia to the roster. How is the team feeling with the new addition?

EMUHLEET: The team is feeling really good, we’ve been working really hard with our new fifth, the team environment is great, everyone is so happy, positive and motivated to compete with the new lineup. She just blends in so well with us and our personalities, so things are good.





You tried out different players for the spot right? How did the try-outs go?



EMUHLEET: Yes, we had a few different try-outs and I feel like there’s a lot of women who we tried that are up and coming, very talented girls, but Theia definitely stood out from them all and definitely deserved the spot.





What were you mostly looking for the eventual new addition to the squad?

EMUHLEET: We were pretty much looking for somebody who could mold in with us. We’re a very outgoing team and we’re all about having positive vibes and Theia is such a good teammate, she always brings up the mood and is always positive. I don’t know how someone is always as positive as she is!





New players mean going through old and new tactics once again. Are you trying to make Theia fill CAth’s role or are you trying to change the team’s meta around her?

EMUHLEET: I don’t like when teams pick up a new player and tell them that they have to play the person’s role that they’re filling in for. We are switching out everybody’s role to accommodate her. I think that as we’re growing as a team, players are also growing individually so that they may shine in other areas as well. Plus, if we’re changing the way that we’re all playing, maybe we will not be so easy to read and predict in our next tournament. We are kind of just seeing where everyone shines and putting it out there so that it helps them grow as well in different areas.





Are you already fully focused on practicing with the new squad?

EMUHLEET: We have been putting in extra hours just because we feel that we have a lot of catching up to do and I kind of relate our practices to “Bring it on”, the movie! I’ve actually never seen it, but we’re studying a lot of other teams, we’re adding a bunch of new playstyles and strategies… we’re really revamping everything.





As the captain of the team, this must be a rather exhausting time to find yourself in. How have these last few weeks been for you personally?

EMUHLEET: I don’t really like changing a player. I want to stay as the same five for a very long time, but it had to be done this time. I thought it was going to be a lot harder on me than it actually is. Our coach, Xp3, has been helping out so much by putting in some extra time with our new fifth to kind of catch her up, so he’s been taking out a lot of work of my shoulders. Actually, I kind of felt we hit a wall, and now it feels we’re actually moving past it and improving even more with our new player, so that’s great.





How optimistic are you for the future of the team? Do you think you’ll be able to return to your former level in the next few months?

EMUHLEET: I think we are already there, we’re having a really good start to our ESEA season so far and that was only playing with Theia for a few days, so that just shows our level already and it’s only going to get better from here. I’m very confident in our next event! I think Theia is such a nice sweetheart, but I don’t think people should take her niceness for granted, as she definitely kills it in-game.





As you’ve said, you’ve have started this ESEA season on a strong fashion, having won five out of the six games you’ve played so far. How do you feel about the season so far?

EMUHLEET: It’s definitely a really good start to the season, I’m feeling confident in us going to the playoffs. Our goal is obviously to make it to Advanced and we want to be one of the first female teams to eventually qualify for MDL. We’re really shooting towards it with a strong start, but with ESEA and how it works, if you start the season strong, you’ll be playing the harder teams later, but we’re not really looking at that. I’m actually really excited, because that just means we’re going to get even better opponents to play and practice against for our next LAN tournament.





Still about Theia, what do you have to say about her as an upcoming player?

EMUHLEET: I’ve known Theia for about 2 or 3 years now, so I’ve been watching her for a while. David (Xp3) suggested that we try her out again and I’m glad he did because she has grown so much in such a short amount of time, since the last time I played with her, so that to me shows that she’s an extremely fast learner and she’s like a sponge. She’s able to take things in. She takes criticism really well and that’s actually hard for players to take, especially when you’re playing. She actually listens, she learns and honestly, just her overall attitude… it’s very positive and happy and that’s the key for teams, I feel like - no negativity, no bringing each other down, just a very good vibe.





Do you have any final thoughts you’d like to share?

EMUHLEET: I’m just excited for this upcoming year and I think everyone’s really happy with how things are going so far and yeah, watch out for us, we are coming!





I want to thank Emmalee for answering my questions and the best of luck to the squad with their new member on the upcoming tournaments. Don’t forget to follow EMUHLEET in her social media:

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