Stixxay poised to start for Counter Logic Gaming at IEM San Jose

Like many of its peers, Counter Logic Gaming have been pushed to finalize tournament rosters for the upcoming Intel Extreme Masters San Jose event this weekend. Luckily for the team, though, it has only had one position to fill. And now, it seems to have done so.

After its long-standing marksman Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng departed for Team SoloMid last month, fans speculated who will be taking his position. Now sources close to the team inform the Daily Dot that substitute marksman Trevor “Stixxay” Hayes is probable to start at the event this weekend.

Hayes was to appear at League of Legends convention Summoner’s Con (which also occurs this weekend,) but it seems his appearance has been canceled in favor of Intel Extreme Masters, according to the convention organizer:

@Stixxay @TiP_Adrian you two have both broken my heart. pls i can’t handle tweets right now too painful.

— cat (@catrific) November 17, 2015

@catrific @TiP_Adrian i’ll make it up to you cat, idk about that adrian guy though :c

— Stixxay (@Stixxay) November 18, 2015

The Intel Extreme Masters event will also mark the Counter Logic debut of mid laner Choi “HuHi” Jae-hyun, who lived and practiced with the team throughout the summer. After the departure of starting mid laner Eugene “Pobelter” Park on Oct. 23, Choi Jae-hyun was made the starter for the role.

Prior to settling on Hayes, the team gave former SoloMid AD carry Jason “WildTurtle” Tran a tryout. However, it seems that the team has chosen to not work a deal with the veteran. And although other candidates are available from both North America and Europe, Counter Logic Gaming has been quiet on who they plan to replace Peng with long-term.

Peng’s departure brought an end to an era for the team. His position on the team began in March 2011 and after a few disputes Peng became permanent in Nov. 2011. The team has seen up-and-down transitions and a large amount of roster changes since, but Peng remained with the squad for the long haul.

But due to a bad showing at Worlds this year and other undisclosed issues between management and Peng, his contract was terminated and he transferred to rival Team SoloMid on Oct. 31.

Hayes, however, has been with the organization’s challenger squad Counter Logic Gaming Black since Jan. 27. He was later added as a substitute to its main roster in June, after being barred from competitive by Riot Games for two weeks due to alleged in-game toxicity.

Counter Logic Gaming’s first match will take place on Saturday as it faces recently rebuilt Unicorns of Love in a best-of-three series. If they can pull it out the victory, they’ll meet Korea’s Jin Air Green Wings in the semifinals.