TNC sent Omega Esports crashing back to the ground, advancing to the upper bracket finals of the MPL Philippines Season Nine playoffs via a 3-1 win, Friday at the SMX Convention Center.
Ben “Benthings” Maglaque (Franco) hooked Duane “Kelra” Pillas’ Claude, but the latter was able to use his Purify to get off.
That ignited a clash that allowed TNC to pick off Dean “Raizen” Sumagui’s Barats and Renz “Renzio” Cadua’s Masha entering the 20th minute. That sealed the Luminous Lord in Game Four.
With the two down, TNC went for the death push to secure the series in 20 minutes and 45 seconds.
Benthings finished with three kills and nine assists in the win that assured TNC a bronze finish. This is its highest in franchise history.
“Bago po kami buo, yung rebuilding po ng team namin, si God yung ginawa naming center. Kaya rin siguro tuwing manalo ‘man kami or matalo, lagi naming inaalay sa Kanya yung laro,” said TNC assistant coach Jemson “Scholar” Ignacio.
TNC went for a flawless outing in the opener, closing up the 7-2 Game One win in just nine minutes and 58 seconds – the second-fastest match of the season.
Jomarie “Escalera” Delos Santos’ Lylia played a hand in the dominant showing. He disrupted Patrick “E2MAX” Caidic’s Xavier all throughout the match, while Benthings set up the plays on Lolita.
Benthings dished out a game-high six assists in the contest. On the other hand, Escalera had two kills and three assists against a death.
Both teams went for a passive approach in Game Two, but Omega Esports had the upper hand after securing the first three turtles of the game. The SMART-backed squad stretched its lead by taking two kills entering the 10th minute and securing the first Lord.
From there, Omega Esports led by as much as 9K in the gold department before securing the win and tying the series at 1-all.
Kelra’s Beatrix led the way with three kills. Raizen’s Karina added two kills and three assists on Karina in the 6-1 win in 13 minutes and 37 seconds.
During Game Three, TNC leaned on its sustain advantage with Mark “Kramm” Rusiana’s Esmeralda and Daniel “SDzyz” Chu’s Balmond manning the front line.
Though Omega Esports was able to prolong the match, it was still not enough to prevent a 17-10 loss to TNC in 20 minutes and five seconds. Kramm took charge with five kills and four assists without a single death.
TNC will face the winner of the ONIC PH-RSG PH in the upper bracket finale tomorrow, Saturday at 7:00 PM. Meanwhile, Omega Esports will take on the loser of the same series at 4:00 PM.
