Globe, Acad Arena empower young talents in PH gaming industry, unveil 2023 Scholarship Awardee

GLOBE, a leading digital solutions platform, and Acad Arena’s CONQuest, the country’s largest gaming, music, and pop culture convention, have unveiled their 2023 Scholarship awardee, in a revolutionary step aimed at nurturing young talent in the gaming industry.

The first ever scholar under the program, Bhea Louisse Rico, is a Mechanical Technology student at the Technological University of the Philippines - Taguig who excels both on and off campus.

Through the scholarship, she received a PHP100,000 grant, a Conquest All-Access Pass for an unforgettable meet-andgreet experience with popular streamers, and a Globe content feature to chronicle her journey at CONQuest 2023.

The scholarship is part of Globe and CONQuest’s commitment to empowering student gamers by acknowledging their academic achievements and encouraging their passion for gaming and the many useful life skills it can foster.

The grant also paved the way for Bhea’s mom to accept her love for gaming– something she had kept a secret as her mother thought it was “distracting rather than an inspiration for me.”

“I told my mom ’Ma, I got a scholarship,’ and she cried. That made me emotional. Tanggap niya na ‘yung ginagawa ko. Kung saan ako masaya, masaya na rin siya para sa akin. Mas lalo ako na-inspire na ipakita ‘yung skills ko with the scholarship I got,” said Bhea. Bhea is a dedicated gamer who draws inspiration from popular streamer Valkyrae, known for her thrilling VALORANT games.

“I take inspiration from Valkyrae. Kaya niyang balansehin ‘yung pagiging entrepreneur and being co-founder of 100 Games. At the same time, she’s very passionate about what she wants to do and how gaming affects her life,” Bhea said.

Taking her cue from her Valkyrae, Bhea currently shuffles her passion for learning and gaming. Her impressive accomplishments include serving as the Internal Vice President of her school organization, being the current VALORANT Event Manager of Grayhawks Esports, and serving in leadership positions in her school’s student government.

System DALTA overcame the absence of its star spiker Louie Ramirez and the challenge posed by a determined Emilio Aguinaldo College side to secure a 29-27, 26-24, 25-19 victory.

The defending NCAA champions had to manage without Ramirez, who had flown to Japan for a three-week training camp with V.League club Oita Miyoshi.

Captain JC Enarciso guided his team’s offense, while Klint Mateo played a crucial role in the end game for the Altas.

“Sa game namin today, siyempre NCAA rin yan, sabi ko nga sa mga bata, walang kampante. Dapat sigurista sila. At the end of the day, maganda naman nilaro nila,” Altas head coach Sammy Acaylar said of the victory. The games are streamed on Solar Sports, the V-League website, and Bola.TV.