Gamer MiDNiTE serves as sports hero for Erin Thomson

Erin Thomson and I talked for an hour in the family home last week, and some of that involved sports. Steve Thomson, her father, works part-time at WCCO radio, primarily in sports, so this must have led Erin to have a favorite sports figure in the Twin Cities?

Erin did mention one with considerable enthusiasm: "MiDNiTE."

Who dat?

"MiDNiTE … she's a well-known gamer," Erin said. "I had a chance to play against her a few times in Call of Duty in 2013. Now she's with the Vikings' team in the Call of Duty e-sports league that is starting up."

Thomson is quadriplegic from a swimming pool accident in 2009. She had done some gaming as a young girl, and took it up more seriously in high school, as an outlet after her injury.

She has a group of close friends in the Houston area who were discovered in gaming. And when Ashley Glassel of Prior Lake — "MiDNiTE'' in the gaming world — started livestreaming on Twitch in 2013, one person she encountered was "MizHoneyBadger."

That would be Erin Thomson, then a high school junior at Champlin Park.

Glassel spent several years with OpTic Gaming in Los Angeles, a legendary e-sports team. Wise Ventures, a company run by the Wilf family, obtained a franchise (for a reported $25 million) in Activision's Call of Duty e-sports league and made Glassel an early hire in August.

It was a bit of a gaming world scandal when the team nickname was leaked early. That would be RØKKR (right, I don't get it either).

Glassel is the director of content. She will provide videos and other matter promoting the team and its roster of players — including SILLY, Assault and Exceed, and the coach, Saintt.

I talked with Glassel this week and informed her that she had made a fine impression on Erin Thomson, who found entertainment in gaming as she dealt with her disability.

"I'm very happy to hear that," Glassel said. "And MizHoneyBadger … that name seems familiar. Wish her the best."