VP to Major final ahead of SK

Virtus.pro reaches their second Major final by edging the win over SK in the semi final 2-0. (19-17 on Train & 16-14 on Cobblestone)

SK picked Train for the first map, having their faith in the fortress reinvigorated from the quarterfinal against FaZe, and they got the much-needed boost to the T-side with a straightforward blitz onto the A-site in the pistol. Virtus.pro were looking to restore the CT-meta on the map straight from the first gun round which Wiktor "⁠TaZ⁠" Wojtas single-handedly sparked off with a blistering quad kill hold on the B bomb train and the ignition resulted in a 7-3 score for the Plow.

A hail-mary Tec-9 in the last round managed pulled the deficit back to 5-10 for SK and once again they got off to a good run following another successful pistol round in a chaotic 5v5 retake on B. Consecutive bomb plants resulted in an early full buy for Filip "⁠NEO⁠" Kubski and co. which they duly took advantage of to put the pressure back on the defending champions.

The next rounds were traded back and forth in the most unusual ways despite sub-optimal equipment on both teams, notably a scavenged AWP on Jarosław "⁠pashaBiceps⁠" Jarząbkowski working wonders with two sneaky kills that threw the Brazillian defense into disarray.

The grand old men move into their second Major final

When it mattered the most to stop the Polish momentum and re-break the economy however, Fernando "⁠fer⁠" Alvarenga stepped up massively as he fearlessly waded through a smoke to get two opening kills, now drawing for 13-13. VP buckled down for their last timeout and they almost executed their way out to close the map, but with a saved AWP on Gabriel "⁠FalleN⁠" Toledo they were denied and went into overtime.

NEO secured a crucial T-round clutching a 1v2 with unreal positioning and crosshair placement, surviving with only 8 HP. That was an omen of the veteran going deep into the code of the game itself as he was instrumental in all the remaining rounds to end the map 19-17.

SK defied the expectations for playing with a stand-in

Next up Virtus.pro was looking to redeem their mishap of yesterday's T-side on Cobblestone and in spite of losing yet another pistol round they were looking much sharper on their drop and split timings, swiftly cutting into SK's initial five round lead with three of their own and resuming the assault straight after FalleN's side got another.

The Polish powerhouse equalized for 6-6, but Ricardo "⁠fox⁠" Pacheco began to deliver some crucial picks with the big sniper rifle to seize a 9-6 lead for his team. Finally though, TaZ and the boys got themselves a pistol round and the boost of economy necessary to string together a 11-9 lead. The reset for the T-economy came in after their first round as the iron defense from the game against North was being held again securing a 14-10 scoreline for Virtus.pro.

The Brazillian side were making dents into the Polish armor with their pistols though, meaning they could regain some momentum again to break the money on the CT's. No match ends for VP without nailbiting as SK ran it back to 14-15, but the Poles were destined to end it here and now, which they did. 16-14 on Cobblestone.

ELEAGUE Major 2017Best of 3 Virtus.proMatchpage 2 0 28th January 2017 SK 19Train 17 16Cobblestone 14

Virtus.pro	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Wiktor 'TaZ' WojtasTaZ	52 - 39	+13	72.0	1.17
Janusz 'Snax' PogorzelskiSnax	48 - 41	+7	75.0	1.12
Jarosław 'pashaBiceps' JarząbkowskipashaBiceps	46 - 43	+3	71.9	1.06
Filip 'NEO' KubskiNEO	39 - 41	-2	70.2	1.02
Paweł 'byali' Bielińskibyali	38 - 47	-9	70.2	0.97

SK	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Marcelo 'coldzera' Davidcoldzera	52 - 42	+10	79.1	1.11
Ricardo 'fox' Pachecofox	45 - 42	+3	79.3	1.05
Gabriel 'FalleN' ToledoFalleN	41 - 39	+2	68.9	1.01
Epitacio 'TACO' de MeloTACO	39 - 50	-11	60.6	0.86
Fernando 'fer' Alvarengafer	34 - 50	-16	60.3	0.78

FaZe #7 Finn 'karrigan' AndersenAleksi 'allu' JalliFabien 'kioShiMa' FieyPhilip 'aizy' AistrupHåvard 'rain' Nygaard Wiktor 'TaZ' Wojtas Age: 30 Team: Virtus.pro Rating 1.0: 1.02 Maps played: 1156 KPR: 0.70 DPR: 0.67 North #6 Ruben 'RUBINO' VillarroelRené 'cajunb' BorgMathias 'MSL' LauridsenEmil 'Magisk' ReifKristian 'k0nfig' Wienecke Fernando 'fer' Alvarenga Age: 25 Team: SK Rating 1.0: 1.11 Maps played: 476 KPR: 0.78 DPR: 0.68 Ricardo 'fox' Pacheco Age: 30 Team: No team Rating 1.0: 1.03 Maps played: 508 KPR: 0.71 DPR: 0.68 Filip 'NEO' Kubski Age: 29 Team: Virtus.pro Rating 1.0: 1.02 Maps played: 1161 KPR: 0.69 DPR: 0.66 Gabriel 'FalleN' Toledo Age: 25 Team: SK Rating 1.0: 1.11 Maps played: 480 KPR: 0.72 DPR: 0.60 SK #3 Ricardo 'fox' PachecoGabriel 'FalleN' ToledoFernando 'fer' AlvarengaMarcelo 'coldzera' DavidEpitacio 'TACO' de Melo Jarosław 'pashaBiceps' Jarząbkowski Age: 28 Team: Virtus.pro Rating 1.0: 1.05 Maps played: 1107 KPR: 0.73 DPR: 0.69 Virtus.pro #4 Wiktor 'TaZ' WojtasFilip 'NEO' KubskiJarosław 'pashaBiceps' JarząbkowskiJanusz 'Snax' PogorzelskiPaweł 'byali' Bieliński