Envy retain Pro League spot; Singularity to lower bracket
Envy have held on to their ESL Pro League spot after defeating Singularity 2-1 in the upper bracket final (16-2 Dust2, 5-16 Train, 16-9 Mirage).
The match began on Singularity's pick of Dust2, with Envy picking up the first pistol round to kick off their CT side. Singularity swiftly reset their opponents in ensuing round, but found themselves just as quickly on the back foot as Envy took immediate control for a nine-round streak. Singularity managed just one more round before Envy ensured their dominion with a 16-2 map win, taking the series to their own pick of Train.
A similarly one-sided scoreline at the start of Train saw Singularity take the first four rounds for themselves before Envy found two of their own. Ryan "ryann" Welsh's side promptly regained control, taking another seven rounds for an 11-2 lead before Envy edged out the final two rounds of the half. With another pistol round victory in hand, Singularity gave up one last round before they closed out the map 16-5 to push the series to the deciding map of Mirage.
Yet another dominant first half kicked off Mirage, with Singularity managing to pick up the first four rounds of the map before Envy took control on their T side. With Noah "Nifty" Francis leading the way, Envy granted Singularity just a single additional round in the half as they took a 10-5 lead at the half. A pistol round victory in the second half allowed Envy to extend their lead to 12-5 before Singularity fought back for four rounds of their own, but an ace by Nifty put Envy firmly in control as they cruised to a 16-9 finish.
Envy have retained their spot in ESL Pro League, and will return to play in Season 9. Singularity have dropped down to the lower bracket, where they will have a second chance to qualify against the winner of Rogue and cantwinalan.