Top teams stand tall in as Winners League Season 2 playoffs continue
Week two of the Winners League Season 2 playoffs has wrapped up.
While week one was defined by upset wins, things settled down as the league’s top teams reasserted themselves in week two. Those victories didn’t necessarily come easily, as favorites like ATK, Team Singularity, and Dreameaters were pushed to the brink. But ultimately, the top contenders lived up to their billing.
There were lots of impressive showcase performances in week two, but here were the best of the bunch.
Team of the Week: Lazarus Esports
It was a great week for Lazarus Esports.
The squad earned a spot in the Americas Minor Championship, cleared the open qualifiers to ESL One: New York 2019, and ended things on Saturday by advancing to the Winners League Season 2 quarterfinals at the expense of Lowkey Esports.
Lowkey stood as a tricky matchup for everyone in the North American division. Though the team ate a pair of losses in the group stage, they were dominant in their victories and strong in defeat despite competing against fearsome competition.
Lowkey showed that it remained a serious threat against Lazarus by pushing them to the limit on map one, dragging things out before eventually falling 16-13. But in a resilient demonstration from Lazarus, they roared to a 16-8 victory in map two to seal up the series 2-0.
That win advances Lazarus to the quarterfinals where they will face the Bad News Bears.
Play of the Week: Console almost scores the one versus five ace
Normally these “play of the week” categories feature teams scoring a miraculous round win or sealing a victory with a cheeky play. Not this time, though. Though the Copenhagen Flames bested Unique Team in convincing fashion in the European division quarterfinals, the most impressive play of the event came in a round that was lost.
Playing in the 15th round, Mads “Console” Skovby found himself in a one-versus-five situation on Train’s A side. With nothing to lose heading into halftime, he went for it and came just a hair shy of pulling it off.
After killing off a player in the heaven area, he gets the jump on another hiding on top of one of the train cars. From there, he nails an amazing flick towards the ladder room and uses a procured molotov to score another kill and bring about a one-on-one showdown.
He ultimately was forced into making a move for the bomb, which allowed Evgeny “fenvicious” Mitsik to stop the rally. It was still an amazing sequence from Console and the most impressive play of the series.
Game to watch next week: INTZ eSports vs. New Identity
INTZ eSports have been on a bit of a roll in recent weeks. The team was unstoppable in North America’s Group B and started the playoffs with a strong showing against Polar Ace Esports. The team then followed that up by earning a spot in the Americas Minor Championship, taking second place in the South American closed qualifiers.
The Brazilian squad is officially on a roll at this point and will look to keep that momentum up by advancing to the semifinals at the expense of New Identity. That’s easier said than done, though.
Despite failing to make it to the Americas Minor Championship, the former MASSIVEimpact team made their presence felt in the North America closed qualifiers by helping to eliminate Cloud9. They were ultimately eliminated by Team Envy and will be looking to get back in the win column at INTZ’s expense.
They are set to face off on June 18 in what should be an exciting showdown.
Steven Rondina is a true lifelong gamer. His earliest memories are of playing video games, and he has continued playing them throughout his life with no plans to stop any time soon. Steven’s favorite franchises in gaming include Pokemon, Dark Souls, and Counter-Strike. He has previously published with Bleacher Report and other gaming outlets.
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