The final day of the StarSeries Season 3 group stage provided some outrageous results, as favorites found themselves eliminated.
The eight squads that are now heading into the playoffs of the $300,000 event are: Na`Vi, G2 Esports, North, Astralis, HellRaisers, CLG, FaZe Clan, and Fnatic.
Perhaps the most surprising result of the day was the elimination of both SK Gaming and Immortals. The two Brazilian teams had been looking solid in the months leading up to StarSeries Season 3, but were unable to secure their spots in the playoffs. Immortals’ performance at the event was particularly surprising, as the squad found itself eliminated by CLG, a team that was hardly considered to make the playoffs due to their consistently poor performances within their home region.
SK Gaming’s exit was, meanwhile, a bit more understandable, given the opponents the former Valve Major champions went up against. Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo and his team were unable to defeat Astralis and FaZe Clan, two of the favorites to win the entire event.
Meanwhile, CLG surprised all throughout the final day of the group stage. The sole North American squad at the event succeeded in defeating both Gambit and Immortals on their way to the playoffs—an impressive feat considering the fact that the squad defeated Gambit on their signature map pick, Cobblestone.
But perhaps the biggest surprise of the group stage was the poor performance of Virtus Pro. The legendary Polish roster that won DreamHack Masters Las Vegas on Feb. 19, looked completely deflated throughout the entirety of the tournament’s group stage. Picking up only one victory in the group, Virtus Pro’s journey at the Ukrainian event ended in a ridiculously one-sided 16-2 loss to Fnatic.
Fnatic also went on to become the final team to advance into the playoffs, after winning a derby against their longstanding Swedish rivals NiP on Train. Featuring the same roster that went on one of the most dominant streaks of tournament victories in early 2016, Fnatic took down NiP in a convincing 16-7 victory.
The playoffs for the $300,000 event will begin on April 8 at 3am CT, with G2 Esports taking on FaZe Clan.
Published: Apr 7, 2017 02:42 pm