ONIC Philippines claimed their fourth win in five matches by dismantling Team Liquid PH in a 2-1 reverse sweep during Week 5 of MPL Philippines Season 16 on Saturday at the Green Sun Hotel in Makati City.
The victory improved ONIC’s record to 6-2, strengthening their bid for an outright upper bracket spot, while Team Liquid PH fell to 5-3.
For ONIC head coach Tony “Ynot” Senedrin, this win serves as their bar as they look to make another deep run and make a return trip to the M-series world championship
“I think mas naging better ang match up ngayon, kita naman sa score. Being competitive kasi, you’re looking at baseline sa competition and having the MSC champions in a battle, knowing kung nasaan kami ngayon, I think is very good,” said Ynot, referring to their previous encounter that ended in lopsided wins by ONIC.
The defending champions overcame an early 0-5 kill deficit in Game 1, sparked by Jaypee “Jaypee” Dela Cruz’s (Franco) Iron Hooks.
A pivotal skirmish in the fifth minute allowed Team Liquid to score three unanswered pickoffs, but ONIC regained control and never looked back.
Jaypee finished with a 2-3-11 KDA and earned the MVP award for his 16-minute performance.
In Game 2, Duane “Kelra” Pillas (Harith) took the spotlight, repeatedly taking down Karl “KarlTzy” Nepomuceno (Yi Sun-Shin) in consecutive lord fights, securing the crucial lord objective for ONIC.
Kelra sealed the match with another aggressive kill on KarlTzy during a 15th-minute base turret siege, forcing a decisive Game 3.
It was Kirk’s turn to take the spotlight in the decider, as his pesky Phoeveus performance set the tone for ONIC’s lopsided closeout win.
His stellar 2-2-9 KDA earned him the MVP honors in the rubber match.
ONIC will look to build its lead for the second spot as it faces AP.Bren on Friday, September 26.
