In what can only be described as a classic underdog story, the Los Angeles Valiant played at their max, and it was as intense as it could be. No map was over until it was really over in this series.
Courtesy of Gamepedia
Round one was on Sanctuary. Contrary to the norm, Valiant decided to start with Johannes “Shax” Nielsen instead of Indy “SPACE” Halpern. The early stages of the round were rather back and forth, but the LA Valiant eventually stabilized and won it looking very solid.
Round two took place on Sanctum. Los Angeles found little success with their special composition popularized by EU Contenders team Clockwork Vendetta. In the end, they could not close it out.
Round three brought the teams to Village. It was the scrappiest round of the map with plenty of point flips, and the Valiant were the team to come out on top.
The map ended 2-1 in favor of the Los Angeles Valiant.
Courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
The LA Valiant started on defense on Horizon. They quickly fell on point A as Shanghai found a couple of early picks. They lost point B at a similar speed, with the Dragons having 5:50 left in their time bank.
On attack in round two, it was only in overtime that the Los Angeles Valiant captured point A. Despite their best efforts, they could not take point B.
The map ended 2-1 in favor of the Shanghai Dragons.
Courtesy of Dexerto
On Eichenwalde, the LA Valiant started on defense. They lost point A immediately before a real team fight could take place due to early picks by the Shanghai Dragons. The Valiant put up much more of a fight on point B, but the payload still eventually made it through. Thanks in part to a clutch Sleep Dart from Young-seo “KariV” Park onto Shanghai DPS Jin-kyeok “DDing” Yang, Los Angeles were able to keep the Dragons from finishing the map.
The Valiant’s attack on point A in round two went rather smoothly, with them taking the point after only a couple of minutes. During an ultimate-heavy fight near the end of point B, the LA Valiant slipped the payload through before the fight finished. On point C, a mirror match of ultimates ensued. The Los Angeles Valiant were the team to wipe out their opponents and they completed their run.
The map ended 3-2 in favor of the Los Angeles Valiant.
Courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment
The Valiant started on defense. Their point A defense crumbled quickly due to major pressure from the Dragons’ DDing on Pharah. They put up a decent fight, causing some delay on point B, but Shanghai still ended up pushing through. Point C saw the Valiant once again cause trouble for the Shanghai Dragons, but but not enough to maintain control of the situation. The Dragons finished the map with 0:47 left.
In round two, it took some time for the LA Valiant to make it through point A, but a nice triple kill from DPS Kyle “KSF” Frandanisa on Widowmaker helped greatly. Things went much smoother on point B, and Los Angeles completed it with only some contention from Shanghai. Point C was even more of a stomp, with the Valiant finishing the map out with 1:44 left.
The LA Valiant were put back on defense for round three. They could not maintain their point A defense for long, but the round moved to overtime. The Dragons’ push stopped part way through point B after even more nice pickoffs from KSF.
On attack in round four, the LA Valiant captured point A after a short stalemate, and the round went to overtime. The Shanghai Dragons did not contest after losing the first fight on point B, and the Valiant pushed the payload to their goal.
The map ended 5-4 in favor of the Los Angeles Valiant.
It seems that the Valiant have truly found their stride in Stage 3. Their synergy is looking much better, and the players’ individual skill shined through greatly in this match. Things are certainly looking up for the green and gold of Los Angeles.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Featured image courtesy of the Overwatch League
You can like The Game Haus on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more great esports coverage.
Players must be 21 years of age or older or reach the minimum age for gambling in their respective state and located in jurisdictions where online gambling is legal. Please play responsibly. Bet with your head, not over it. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, and wants help, call or visit: (a) the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey at 1-800-Gambler or www.800gambler.org; or (b) Gamblers Anonymous at 855-2-CALL-GA or www.gamblersanonymous.org.
