CRUISING PAST the competition to come within two games from the trophy, the Ateneo Defense of the Ancients (DOTA) 2 Team concluded its run at the Impetus 2017 Tournament with a bittersweet silver finish, snagging second place overall behind the University of Santo Tomas (UST) on Sunday, June 25 at the High Grounds Cafe in Tomas Morato, Quezon City.

Nicknamed “ADMU Saltstack,” the team booked a spot in the finals of the Winner’s Bracket after a remarkable run in the early stages of the knockout round. The Ateneo delegation was set to play against the top-ranked UST, but fell in three games to the España-based electronic-gaming squad, who then advanced to the Grand Final. Via double elimination format, the Ateneo team faced the winner of the Loser’s Bracket to take the second spot in the Grand Final to save their bid for the e-gaming crown.

Seeded against the University of the Philippines (UP), the Ateneo team managed to prevail over their opponents from Diliman, setting up a do-or-die for the title and the cash prize against UST. ADMU Saltstack, however, fell to the dominant UST squad, falling tragically at 16-4, 47-35, 34-21.

Despite the bittersweet conclusion to one of the first major school events in the e-gaming industry, captain Sonson Ledesma was pleased with his team’s finish and maintained a positive outlook on the prospect of such tournaments in the future.

“It is really good that [the players] are having this at the collegiate level because if you think about it, e-sports are just as competitive as normal sports,” said Ledesma. “What [players] need is for people to support them and recognize that [the competition] is a legitimate thing.”