ECS Season 8 Week 2 - Favorites advance to semis; Cloud9 survive Singularity scare
The quarterfinals of ECS Season 8 Week 2 have played out, and the field has been halfed.
The first series to complete last night was the all-Brazilian showdown between MIBR and ex-Luminosity, in which MIBR took a swift victory.
Next up was ATK taking on INTZ, where the Brazilians took a narrow lead into the second half of Mirage before Josh "oSee" Ohm put his foot down. Despite the American/South African team having a commanding 11-4 lead on Overpass at the half, followed by four rounds to put them on match point, ATK were unable to close out the map until the final round.
Sharks had an easy time against The Quest, rolling over the MDL side with a 16-2 victory on Mirage. The Americans acquitted themselves a bit better on Nuke, but ultimately fell 16-11.
The longest-running and most surprising match of the night was the one featuring Cloud9 taking on Singularity's mix squad. The MDL side was staunch on the defense on Nuke, at one point leading 8-1, before Cloud9 would end the half at a much more manageable 10-5 deficit. It was all Cloud9 after the half, as Singularity would only win three further rounds. Spurring the comeback was Timothy "autimatic" Ta, who put up 31 frags in regulation after starting the map 0-6.
Singularity again got off to a great start on Dust2, ending the first half up 9-6 thanks to a good map from Josh "PwnAlone" Pigue. This time, the mix would not falter after the side switch, only allowing Cloud9 one round on their Terrorist side to take a decisive 16-7 victory.
Overpass would be the opposite side of the coin as Dust2, with Oscar "mixwell" Cañellas and Cloud9 dominating Singularity to return the 16-7 favor and live to see another day.
The next matches of ECS Season 8 Week 2 are as follows:
October 1st | |||
MIBR | vs. | ATK | 5 PM EDT |
October 2nd | |||
Sharks | vs. | Cloud9 | 5 PM EDT |
With both Cloud9 and Sharks advancing, Evil Geniuses' chances of claiming the first spot at the ECS Season 8 Finals is in peril. EG will be out of luck if Cloud9 top the bracket, or if Sharks merely make it to the grand final.