Two of the biggest names in NA VALORANT squared off in the NA VCT Stage Three: Challengers Playoffs upper bracket final when Sentinels took on 100 Thieves today. The result was another entry in the lengthy history of Sentinels’ dominance as the Masters Two champs handedly took the win, highlighted by a 13-2 rout on Split to start the series.
On Split, Sentinels started out with a strong defense, using utility effectively to slow down any of 100T’s pushes and win opening duels. 100T’s only round win in the entire first half came from some heroic Jett/Op play from their solo duelist Asuna. Switching to attack with an 11-1 lead, 100T didn’t take their foot off the pedal, notching a flawless pistol round after marching through Mid. Trailing 12-1, the Thieves won a wild round off a force buy only to instantly lose to a Sentinels thrifty round.
100T broke out their new favorite plaything on Haven, their triple-initiator composition. After surrendering the first three rounds to Sentinels, 100T finally initiated some offense in the series, answering back with three straight rounds of their own, with plenty of info gathered to help steel get early Op picks. Zombs’ Cosmic Divide bolstered the Sentinels’ retake for the second straight map, but more nerves of steel from steel kept the first half close, tied 6-6 at half-time.
But 100T couldn’t create an answer to Sentinels’ post-plant proficiency on attack, with Killjoy, Astra, Sova, and Phoenix all using their abilities to make retakes near impossible for 100T, no matter what info they were able to gather. Sentinels closed out the map with five straight rounds to take Haven 13-8 and the series 2-0.
Both teams accomplished their primary mission the day prior, qualifying for Masters Three Berlin via the Challengers Playoffs upper bracket. But that accomplishment doesn’t mean today’s result is for nothing. With the win, Sentinels secure a grand finals spot in this bracket and are in a better spot to head to Berlin with the highest NA seed. While the Masters Three Berlin format has not been announced yet, Sentinels are on the fast track to securing whatever advantage could be afforded to the high seed.
100T will now await the winner of the lower bracket matchup between Team Envy and XSET. More importantly than facing 100T, the winner of that series will be securing the third and final NA slot in Berlin.
