The second week of the North American Halo Championship Series: Pro League brought unprecedented results. No, Counter Logic Gaming didn’t lose, but every single series that was played on Friday was a decisive 3-0 sweep. Returning champions CLG continue to dominate, but other top contenders are close behind. If you missed any of the Week 2 action, you can watch it all again on Youtube or read on for a quick recap of how it all went down.
DAY 1
The first match of Week 2 between Team EnVyUs and Renegades went to a Game 5 showdown. Renegades jumped out to an early 1-0 series lead on Plaza Strongholds, but nV responded immediately with a victory of their own on Regret Slayer.
FROM DOWNTOWNNNN!!! #HCS pic.twitter.com/FEviSuaWya
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 10, 2016
The squads traded another two games before meeting one final time on Eden Slayer. The game was neck and neck, but nV emerged victorious with a final score of 50-41.
Team Allegiance struggled through Week 1 and were looking for their first win of the season, while Enigma 6 came into their first Week 2 series with momentum from their amazing reverse sweep of Team EnVyUs. Allegiance took The Rig Strongholds 100-60, Regret Slayer 50-44, and Fathom CTF 3-2 to shock E6 with a 3-0 sweep.
No reverse sweep this time! @TeamAllegiance takes the series with a wild finish! #HCS pic.twitter.com/uQJeOElVdi
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 10, 2016
OpTic Gaming and Team Liquid were the last two teams to qualify for the HCS Pro League through the Last Chance Qualifier and went head to head in Day 1. When they first met, it was Team Liquid that walked away victorious in the LCQ, and this time around OpTic Gaming had no intentions of reliving that outcome. APG had an outstanding performance in Game 1, which played a huge role in OpTic taking a 1-0 series lead.
Making plays! #HCS pic.twitter.com/Et6YInHMeF
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 10, 2016
The Green Wall continued to dominate in Game 2 and secured the win with clutch power weapon control. Team Liquid refused to go down without a fight and took Game 3, but OpTic closed out the series 3-1 with a win on The Rig Strongholds.
The match of the week included none other than Counter Logic Gaming and Evil Geniuses. What was once a bitter rivalry fueled by roster changes has been heavily one-sided due to CLG’s absolute dominance. EG kicked off the series and jumped to an early lead on Eden Strongholds.
Huge double kill from @EvilGeniuses! #HCS pic.twitter.com/3e49lPrLMv
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 10, 2016
This was not enough to stifle the powerhouse CLG squad however, and the returning champions turned it around to win Game 1, 2, and 3.
DAY 2
The first match of Day 2 offered Team Liquid a chance at redemption after their loss to OpTic Gaming, but Renegades built an enormous lead on Empire Strongholds and never looked back. RNG took the series 3-0 in the first clean sweep of the day.
That is not a typo! @Renegades with a huge lead before @Teamliquidpro gets on the board! #HCS pic.twitter.com/XLwkeZm2aU
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 11, 2016
Enigma 6 and Evil Geniuses were the next two teams to take the stage, and with both coming off of a loss, they were in serious need of a win. Evil Geniuses looked sluggish at first, which led to a 100-47 win and a slaying performance for Enigma 6. Game 2 was much closer, and Slayer on the Rig came down to a tense showdown with E6 maintaining control and taking a 2-0 series lead.
What a finish! Game 2 goes down to the wire! E6 is up 2-0! #HCS pic.twitter.com/PqbA2MUUZc
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 11, 2016
Fathom CTF was the final game of the series and it went a full twelve minutes before Enigma 6 came out on top. After the match, it was all smiles for Bubu Dubu and the rest of the squad.
We see you back there, @bubudubu #HCS pic.twitter.com/zf8jVBjjE1
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 11, 2016
Team Allegiance entered their series against Counter Logic Gaming feeling good after beating E6, but CLG didn’t care. Eden Strongholds went to CLG 100-54, Regret Slayer went to CLG 50-38, and Stasis Capture the Flag went to CLG 3-0. Their teamwork and map control was overwhelming and the reigning champions continued their rule.
They remain undefeated! @CLGaming sweeps @TeamAllegiance! #HCS pic.twitter.com/EqiILkuviO
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 11, 2016
The final match of the weekend included OpTic Gaming fresh off of their win over Team Liquid, and Team EnVyUs who also had their share of success the day before. nV struck first and won the first two games convincingly. Unfortunately for OpTic Gaming, Team Liquid were the fourth team of the night to walk away with a sweep.
And another!! @TeamEnVyUs sweeps @OpticGaming! #HCS pic.twitter.com/ktGrW2py6Q
— ESL Halo (@ESLHalo) June 11, 2016
STANDINGS
Be sure to catch the upcoming Week 3 action on the Halo Twitch channel on Thursday, June 16 at 5PM PDT. You can also follow along on the ESL Halo Facebook and Twitter! For additional #HCS information follow the official account on Twitter.
