Pantheon wins MLPD Counter Strike Source Challenge

At the MPLD Counter-Strike: Source (CS:S) Challenge this weekend, Eternal Conflict finished in a close second at the final, after losing against Pantheon Gaming on Inferno_pro 16-11.

Rezillience, a new clan on the block made up of players who were formally branded as online heroes, proved their worth by overpowering some of the stronger and better known teams and finishing third overall.

Pantheon however were without a doubt the strongest team of the day, winning almost all their games with absolute ease. Eternal Conflict on the other hand struggled throughout after losing a close game against Calamity. They then had to force their way right through the lower brackets, beating Provoke and Killer Instinct before facing Mint Gaming, winning easily 16-2.

The biggest suprise of the day came from Rezilliance (Sting, Ninja, Flash, T.C and Smithers) after they made their way up to the semi finals, beating Altered as well as Provoke before being knocked into the losers’ bracket by Pantheon. Rez was then knocked out of the tournament completely after facing Eternal Conflict in the semi-finals.

Mint Gaming had a disastrous day after winning only one game before losing to Pantheon and then being knocked out by Eternal Conflict.

After Calamity’s loss against Pantheon, Eternal Conflict was given the go ahead for revenge. Using the steam which they built up in their previous matches, they managed to act decisively and effectively, shutting down all hopes which Calamity might have had by winning 16-5 on nuke.

Eternal Conflict immediately focused all their energy on their next target, unleashing a swift blow upon Rezilliance, sending them packing with a score of 16-9.

After losing their first match against Calamity, Eternal Conflict fought an uphill battle, resisting all who managed to get in their way. With only one opponent left, they were close enough to taste victory. Unfortunately for them, standing in their way was Pantheon.

While the finals were only Pantheon’s fourth game for the day, Eternal Conflict had already played six matches with the finals being their seventh. This meant that while Pantheon were still relatively fresh, Eternal Conflict were worn down mentally and physically. On top of that, Eternal Conflict also had to beaten Pantheon twice in order to secure the win.

The finals were about to start while the fans selected sides. Although Eternal Conflict was from Bloemfontein, and Pantheon was from Gauteng, the majority of fans (who are all from Gauteng) supported Eternal Conflict. This is apparently because not many of the fans like how verbal Pantheon’s “Vamooze” is during matches.

The finals got underway with Pantheon selecting Counter-Terrorists on Inferno_pro. Eternal Conflict struggled to gain momentum throughout the match. Zeo blamed Pantheon’s excellent use of grenades and flashes for his team’s inability to break into the bombsites and plant the bomb. Before they knew it, the first half was done with Pantheon leading 11-4.

The second half began with Eternal Conflict winning the first and second rounds before running into difficulty on the third. Trying to hang on to what little hope they had, Eternal Conflict managed to gain seven rounds before Pantheon had secured victory with 16-11.

After the match, Skirge had this to say after about Pantheon’s performance throughout the tournament: “Everyone did their Job. Our teamwork felt amazing and Vamooze settled in well”.

With Pantheon’s apparent return to power, and Eternal Conflict’s inability to defeat them, we are sure to see some excellent games in the near future from both.

This leaves us now looking into the future, trying to guess who has the upper hand coming into Do Gaming’s CS:S League Leg Three as well as Battle of the Clans version Five.

Eternal Conflict have the needed determination and skill, however they lack the consistency which resulted in their loss against Calamity at MPLD.

Pantheon will be moving forward with a new sense of motivation, having finally won again after a long run of disappointing losses.

After Soviet won the last MPLD, and Ascent won the Do Gaming Leg Two league, both these teams know how to win tournaments and will be definite forces to reckon with.

The only uncertainty which still remains is with midfield teams such as Mint, Calamity and Rezilliance. Where will they fall in? Should we expect more upsets, or will they simply filter in?

Only time will tell…

Article courtesy of DoGaming

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