Last year, Dave Moore took over as the NIU paintball club president. Since he was appointed, the team has returned to the national level, finishing 38th in the nation last season, and is currently ranked 3rd in Class AA. Moore sat down with the Northern Star to discuss the team, his start in paintball and what the future holds for the fast-rising team.

Northern Star: When did you start playing paintball?

Dave Moore: First game I ever played was in seventh grade. I didn’t start playing in tournaments until high school.

NS: What kind of teams did you play for in the tournaments?

DM: We went and played a tournament series; the Young Gun Tournament Series. It was only a three-man team, so it was me, Ryan Trine and another buddy from high school. We knew pretty much nothing about paintball, but we ended up getting second place, not overall, but in one of the series. Everyone in the tournament had these electronic markers and we had mechanical markers that would only shoot one ball per second. It was a step up from a pump gun; that was pretty much it.

NS: When did you end up joining the NIU team?

DM: I went to my first meeting at the end of my freshman year. My first tournament was my sophomore year. Then I was president my junior year, and now I’m a senior.

NS: Why did you take over as president?

DM: There was a meeting and the current president, JJ, was a senior, so we needed to come up with someone else or there wouldn’t be a paintball team. It was between me, Matt Dahm and John Lyall. It’s been a giant struggle getting to this point, but we’re here and I’m pleased with it.

NS: What do you think of the team’s success?

DM: I think it’s mostly representative of the talent we have on our team. I think that in Michigan we struggled and should have easily had the first place victory there, which would put us up to second nationally. I think we’re in a good spot to grow. I like the way things are progressing, and I think we’re set up for nationals more than we ever have been. We have taken people who have never played paintball and molded them into paintball players.

NS: What are your future plans for the team?

DM: My hope is that we will be competing as a Class A team at nationals, and that we will be competing as a Class A team all of next year and also as a Class AA team. It is definitely doable with the success we are having at AA. I’d also like to pick up a couple more sponsors to relieve the financial stress on the team.

NS: How has your experience with the team transferred to real life?

DM: As far as contributing to running a team, it’s a phenomenal source of experience that I will draw on when I graduate and go out into the business world. I have gained tons of friendships and met lots of new people, learned how to communicate with people under stressful situations, learned about team dynamics, dealing with companies that help you and you can help through means of sponsorships. I also learned how to get out there and sell the paintball team to other companies so we can gain industry sponsors