Liquid eliminate SK in first StarSeries quarterfinal
The two American heavyweights met on Mirage to kick-off the first quarterfinal of the StarSeries i-League playoffs. Liquid secured the first three rounds before SK would reply with four of their own, after winning the first gun round. A slippery TACO would all but halt the actions of Liquid in the 9th round with a swift 3k with his AWP as he bobbed and weaved between positions, always staying elusive. From that point on it was a series of one and two round victories for either side until the end of the 8-7 half in favor of SK.
SK took to their T-side in similar fashion to Liquid with a fast B play where their close-quarter glocks prevailed. Despite disrupting the Brazilians economy in the second round with a force-buy, Liquid was unable to capture any sense of momentum in the second half. Questionable plays, such as EliGE's walking out of a smoked off balcony on the A site in a 2v1 situation to try and force a play, are the kinds of errors that ultimately led to their 9-16 loss. This would be twice in just as many confrontations with SK that Liquid would fall short.
It was a curious decision by SK to have Cobblestone as their map pick in this series, considering Liquid bested them both times they recently faced them on it. Nonetheless, they pressed forward and got an early lead on their CT-side by taking the first two rounds. Liquid's proficiency on the map shined though, as they took back control on round three with a streak of their own after two bomb plants to boost their economy. SK countered by breaking their economy in the following round, leaving Liquid scrambling the rest of the half on their Terrorist side, as they struggled to compose their economy. SK would eventually close out the half 10-5.
It was clear from the beginning of Liquid's CT-side, that the Americans had done their homework of their previous matches with their opponents, and continued to adapt their strategies. While SK was able to make a quick long A play to overwhelm the CT's and claim the pistol round, Liquid kick-started their grind back to even out the scoreline by claiming the next three. After a hiccup in their defense in round 20, Liquid again went on a tear, nearly tying the score at 11-12 in favor of SK. Steadfast and unwavering, Liquid were able to tie things up and hold the line, bringing the map to overtime.
A cheeky boost on the A-site mid-wall by steel was the start to Liquid's early lead in the first round of overtime, only to be foiled by SK in the remaining two rounds of the half. An aggressive mid-peak by FalleN after the teams switched sides began a chaotic series of events, including a hero play from TACO where he pressed forward after losing two teammates. He wrapped quickly around wood wall where he contributed to two frags on an advancing Liquid, that would ultimately lead to their match and map point. Unrelenting, Liquid tied it up and brought it to a second overtime.
SK started to show signs struggle at the start of the next overtime, dropping two of their three CT-sided rounds. A series of neck-and-neck rounds would ensue, that would eventually lead to either SK bringing it to a third overtime, or Liquid closing Cobblestone out and heading to a map three decider. Try as they might, SK couldn't pull through, and Liquid would close out the second overtime and map 22-20.
Going into Inferno, the decider map of the series, the odds were against SK from the beginning as they had fallen to Liquid on the map the last three times they met on it. Starting on the T-side Liquid tore through the defense of SK at every turn throughout the first half, leaving little left of the Brazilians in their wake. By the time their rampage had ended, the halftime score was 14-1 in the Americans favor.
SK showed a resilient effort on their T-side, equalizing the aggression Liquid had reigned down on them in the half prior. With so little margin for error, the inevitable victory came in for the Americans, knocking SK out of the StarSeries i-League Season 4 event at an eventual 16-7 scoreline.
LiquidSK| Liquid |
K - D | +/- | ADR | KAST | Rating 2.0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Keith 'NAF' Markovic |
68 - 62 | +6 | 90.1 | 75.6% | 1.23 |
 Nick 'nitr0' Cannella |
66 - 62 | +4 | 78.8 | 73.3% | 1.13 |
| Russel 'Twistzz' Van Dulken |
62 - 57 | +5 | 78.8 | 72.2% | 1.12 |
| Jonathan 'EliGE' Jablonowski |
66 - 57 | +9 | 76.2 | 66.7% | 1.07 |
 Lucas 'steel' Lopes |
49 - 61 | -12 | 56.4 | 72.2% | 0.86 |
| SK |
K - D | +/- | ADR | KAST | Rating 2.0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fernando 'fer' Alvarenga |
70 - 68 | +2 | 92.4 | 65.6% | 1.17 |
| Ricardo 'boltz' Prass |
63 - 58 | +5 | 78.0 | 71.1% | 1.07 |
| Marcelo 'coldzera' David |
64 - 56 | +8 | 75.9 | 70.0% | 1.07 |
| Gabriel 'FalleN' Toledo |
62 - 63 | -1 | 73.0 | 73.3% | 1.04 |
| Epitacio 'TACO' de Melo |
38 - 67 | -29 | 60.9 | 61.1% | 0.74 |
