TNC closed in on a playoff berth after a reverse 2-1 sweep of ECHO in MPL Philippines Season Nine, Saturday.
The win put TNC at 21 points with a 7-3 slate to climb up the second spot of the MPL standings.
TNC put the clamps on Karl “KarlTzy” Nepomuceno’s Ling, denying him the purple buff early in Game Three which put the team at a great advantage heading into the mid-game.
The team also made a crucial switch in the side lanes with Mark “Kramm” Rusiana’s Esmeralda laning against Benedict “Bennyqt” Gonzales’ Grock while Robee “Yasuwo” Pormocille’s Beatrix slid down the experience lane. This allowed Yasuwo to farm freely while Kramm held off Bennyqt in the first few minutes.
TNC sealed the win after a siege entering the 17th minute.
Jomarie “Escalera” Delos Santos’ Natalia, who played a huge role in shutting down KarlTzy, paced TNC with five kills and four assists against six deaths.
Tristan “Yawi” Cabrera gave the buffed Masha a fitting debut, leading ECHO to an 18-8 Game One win in 17 minutes and 56 seconds.
The star tank was all over the map in the opener, cleaning up kills and split pushing the map all while soaking up damage for ECHO. He finished with three kills, three deaths, and six assists to give the hero a winning debut in Season Nine.
Armed with a Luminous Lord heading past the 17th minute, Yawi caught Yasuwo’s Karrie to kick-start the game-winning siege for ECHO. He then sliced Escalera’s (Kagura) health points before popping the Immortality of Ben “Benthings” Maglaque’s Jawhead to help ECHO end the match.
ECHO was a couple of minutes away from securing the second match with Bennyqt’s Phoveus leading the way.
That was until TNC hijacked the win. Kramm’s Paquito contested ECHO’s Luminous Lord take entering the 19th minute. The rest of TNC then went straight to the top lane and pushed ECHO’s base. Daniel “SDzyz” Chu’s Lancelot recorded a kill and three assists to lead the 6-19 Game Two reversal in 18 minutes and 56 seconds.
ECHO remained at the top spot with 22 points off a 7-3 slate.
TNC looks to secure its playoff slot next week, Saturday against RSG PH at 6:00 PM while ECHO has the same goal against Blacklist International tomorrow also at 6:00 PM.
