Eight teams… four spots in the Collegiate Rocket League National Championship on the line. The Conference Clash came with shocks and big story-lines heading into the elimination matches. It was only a matter of what team would force their way into the final four. $75,000 in scholarships and official merchandise on the line.
The first set of participants came from the strong Northern Conference. The two big shocks from this conference came as both the second seed University of Waterloo and Ohio State (Season One finalist) were eliminated before the final third. Fifth seed Guelf made the run, and both Illinois and Akron sealed the deal.
Akron worked their way through the regular season winning matches they were favorites in. They were swept 3-0 by both Waterloo and Illinois during the group stages which was worrying at first, but their performance during the playoffs was something to remember. The University of Akron pushed Illinois to a game five and defeated Waterloo 3-1 for top three. They waited in the loser’s bracket and managed to take out the University of Guelf to qualify for the Conference Clash. In the best-of-7 match between Akron and Illinois, Akron managed a great upset winning 4-2 and took the number one seed in the north.
What many consider the best team in the CRL, Illinois cruised through both qualification and the group stages. Their dominance was then amplified by their Conference Clash qualification. They went undefeated through all of qualification and ended the regular season with a 6-1 record. The University of Waterloo ruined the perfect season in the final match of the season. Illinois suffered a shock loss to Akron for seeding, but it is still expected that they will move to the final four.
It has happened again. Louisiana State University has been knocked out of the CRL. University of North Carolina – Charlotte played spoiler and eliminated LSU in season one, but this season LSU lost in both the winner’s finals and loser’s finals for elimination.
North Texas was expected to be a strong team. Disappointing results to South Florida and LSU meant that they ended the season in the third seed with a 5-2 record. With this in mind, they switched gears in playoffs. They managed to dispatch both LSU and South Florida to reach the Conference Clash, and then gave South Florida a 4-1 drubbing to claim the first seed of what many considered to be the strongest Conference.
South Florida was seen as a strong underdog at the start of the year and never looked back. A 6-1 record backed the team to a successful playoff run. The team eliminated LSU from the tournament, but two worrying losses to North Texas gave the team the second seed heading into Conference Clash.
Northeastern University has been eliminated from the Collegiate Rocket League Season Two Playoffs. The team was one win away from qualifying. They were then defeated by Penn State and the number one seed during the regular season Wentworth.
Penn State, a wildcard throughout the whole season, has taken the number one seed heading into Conference Clash. Their star striker “Doodle” has lit up the CRL by taking over games. Penn State took fourth seed but tied at 4-3 with second and third. Free-scoring Penn State looks to prove the doubters that the Eastern Conference had what it takes for a championship.
Wentworth began the season by losing a very unexpected match against the University of Delaware. After regrouping, they finished the season with six straight wins, including wins against Northeastern and Penn State. With a strong regular season performance they were expected to sweep through the playoffs, yet they faltered in the semi-finals against Northeastern. They would get their revenge in the loser’s finals and eliminated the former champions from the CRL. Penn State knocked Wentworth down to second seed in the best-of-7.
Courtesy of CCA
The Western conference rolled by and Arizona did not allow anyone to bring them down. California Polytechnic State University struggled throughout the regular season, but the previous top team in pre-season power rankings was able to work their way through the playoff bracket.
Arizona began as one of the favorites at the start of the regular season and never slowed down. Undefeated throughout the regular season, and undefeated through playoffs. Arizona demonstrated why teams would prefer not facing them in Conference Clash.
The Mustangs came into Season Two with high hopes as their team placed third in Season One and got top during pre-season power rankings before the start of the second season. The team finished fourth in the group stages with a 4-3 record which gave initial hopes a blow. The experienced team was able to push their way to the second seed. California Polytechnic State University eliminated Washington State University in the loser’s finals and was defeated by Arizona to take the second seed for the west heading into Conference Clash.
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