Jared W. February 7, 2019
North racked up a big win over two teams soon to challenge for major glory.
Danish Counter-Strike team North emerged victorious at the GG.BET Ice Challenge, defeating Natus Vincere in the final by a convincing two maps to zero.
Na`Vi didn’t go down without a fight. One of the top ranked teams in the world, Na`Vi was spearheaded by Denis “electronic” Sharipov. The Russian star managed a combined 53 frags across the two games played, but even this effort wasn’t enough.
North managed a big second half comeback to win series opener Dust2. Na`Vi opened with a 7-3 lead and was up 10-5 at the half before North rattled off six consecutive rounds to retake the lead. The two teams traded blows from there until North finished the game on the final round of regulation, winning 16-14.
The second map, Nuke, was nearly as close. North won 11 rounds in a 12-round stretch spanning the first and second halves, putting Na`Vi in a hole they couldn’t crawl out of. The game soon ended 16-12 in North’s favor.
Valdemar “valde” Bjorn Vangsa topped the scoreboard for North in both games, posting 26 and 24 frags respectively.
North was made to go through each of the other three teams competing at the event in order to claim the title. The team’s run started with a tight 2-1 series victory over Avangar. Valde was again the man of the match for North, totalling 70 frags in the match and winning a key clutch round on Mirage.
North then took down fellow Danish side Heroic, dropping the first map before taking the second and comfortably winning a 16-8 decider on Inferno.
The win should prove some consolation for North, as they were unable to qualify for the upcoming Counter-Strike: Global Offensive major in Katowice. Natus Vincere and Avangar will both be attending what will be among the year’s biggest Counter-Strike tournaments, with Na`Vi in particular having its sights set on the top prize.