The Outlaws continued to look lost and confused in their third game of the stage, losing yet again. The team was full-held on nearly every map they played, their lack of confidence in 3-3 compositions showing as the Dragons played circles around them.
STARTING ROSTER:
Photo Courtesy of Robert Paul with Blizzard
With Shanghai running Jinhyeok “DDing” Yang on Pharah and Youngjin “Youngjin” Jin on Soldier: 76, the Outlaws were having a tough time getting much of any footing on the point. The two of them combined cleared the point off in clean wipes nearly every push, forcing the enemy time and time again to reset. With the Dragons at 94%, the Outlaws tried once again to push in and at least try to capture the point for even a few moments, but were full-held.
DDing was harassing the Outlaws back to spawn yet again, pushing them back to their spawn after having captured the point. The Outlaws tried to push in multiple times and were pushed back to spawn with ease every single time, resulting in yet another full hold on the side of the Dragons.
Danteh’s Sombra did a solid job of holding off the Dragons and securing first kills, even landing a six-man EMP at one point during the match. Each fight was long and difficult, and with the Dragons taking so long with each fight, no one was able to touch the point and force Overtime, resulting in a full-hold by the Outlaws.
With Arhan on Genji, the Outlaws dove onto the Dragons quickly in their first push but immediately disengaged before the Dragons could run down too much of their time. DDing’s Junkrat, however, was used to focus Arhan down and keep him from doing too much damage and pulling his Dragonblade. Looking messy and desperate, the Outlaws trickled in as the Overtime clock ticked down, but no one was able to touch, resulting in a tie.
Nice Ashe!🔥🔥🔥#ShanghaiDragons #Breakthrough pic.twitter.com/PFNaJ5cvFz
— Shanghai Dragons (@ShanghaiDragons) April 21, 2019
Pylon Terrace second point
The Outlaws held off Shanghai for a push, but the Dragons came back, ultimates blazing and cleared Houston off of the point, capturing the payload. Shanghai didn’t manage to get too far before the Outlaws, after a long drawn out fight, finally pushed them back for a moment. Just two meters before the second point, the Outlaws slowed the Dragons to a halt. Muma on Wrecking Ball bullied Shanghai back for long enough that the overtime clock ticked down, ending the round.
On their first push, Rawkus got picked off early, forcing the Outlaws to pull back and disengage. Muma, pulling a very deep flank, attempted to catch Shanghai by surprise to no avail. Youngjin “Gamsu” Noh’s aggressive Reinhardt overextended nearly to the Dragons’ spawn, but despite this, the Outlaws were unable to punish him. In overtime, the Outlaws attempted to push in one last time but were ultimately full held.
2018-03-21 / Photo: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment
The Dragons quickly and easily pushed through Houston’s defense on the first leg of the map, using Diem’s Bastion to dismantle the Outlaws. However, on the second leg, Rawkus’ Roadhog and Linkzr’s Widowmaker did a great job of holding the Dragons back for a few pushes. However, the cart ultimately pushed through Point B. Earning a team kill pulling through the third and final leg of the map, the Dragons continued their dominant display until Houston was able to stop them just before the final point. It was looking for a moment like the Dragons were done for, but with one final EMP they were able to push through and complete the map with only two seconds to spare.
With Coolmatt playing Symmetra on the first leg of the map, the Outlaws were able to teleport Linkzer’s Widowmaker across the map, giving him clear lines of sight and letting him clear off many of the Dragons as the cart moved forward. Just before the second point, DDing landed a huge EMP, eliminating Danteh’s Pharah, but the Outlaws managed to pull through and win the fight, pushing the payload through Point B. However, the Outlaws weren’t so lucky on their push towards the final point, and with another EMP the Dragons were able to clear Houston off of the point. With one minute left, Gamsu’s Reinhardt yet again cleared off the point with ease. On their final push, the Outlaws were stomped again, unable to attempt to push the cart any further.
The Outlaws looked messy and confused in their match against the Dragons, and while they certainly had a few moments that did ignite the stage, the team really wasn’t doing much of anything to stop or change the other team at all throughout the entire series. Players like DDing and Diem and Gamsu were able to harass the Outlaws with their aggressive play styles and Houston almost never moved to take them down. Moving forward, Houston needs to figure out what exactly it is that’s holding them back from playing as well as they did last season, and they need to do it fast.
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