LOYOLA GAMING (LG) Hydra dismantled the Far Eastern University Institute of Technology iTamaraws, 3-0, in the National Campus Open (NCO) League of Legends (LoL) qualifiers last October 10. The win allowed LG Hydra to finish as the qualifying tournament’s top seed which secured them a spot in the national finals.
Apart from LG Hydra, the Blue and White was also represented by LG Prime in the NCO LoL qualifiers. However, the latter was relegated to the lower bracket by the Golden Lions Esports in the first round and subsequently eliminated by the Tamaraws FX in the lower bracket.
Hosted by Esports AcadArena (EAA), the NCO LoL qualifiers followed a double-elimination format. The four teams that were able to garner two victories proceeded to the winner’s bracket and the next round. Meanwhile, the bottom four teams were relegated to the loser’s bracket.
Match for top-seed
LG Hydra had preemptively planned their strategy before facing the veteran-laden iTamaraws. As early as the drafting phase of the game, LG Hydra had picked up on the teamfight-oriented composition that the iTamaraws sought out and decided to counter it with a strong frontline. “We had an answer for a lot of the opponent team’s strengths,” highlighted LG Hydra’s Joe Chavez.
Aside from LG Hydra’s quick thinking, Chavez said that their greatest strength lied in their calm disposition in the entire game. “I think our biggest strength is just keeping cool. We were really patient in terms of the game,” shared Chavez. Being able to set the tempo of the match allowed the assets of the team to flourish and make up for where they lacked.
Road to national finals
Despite LG Hydra’s superb performance, the squad of gamers left no room for complacency as they plowed through the competition. According to Chavez, the team tried to improve their execution as they moved through the competition. “We’re not just here to be first seed in our group, we want to win the whole [tournament],” said Chavez.
In preparation for the national finals, LG Hydra has continued with their rigorous training schedule. Apart from playing regular scrimmage matches with professional LoL players, Chavez shared that the team is training to fortify their set plays. “We like to scrimmage against pro teams because a lot of [professional] teams have all challenger members and that’s what we’re looking to go against,” mentioned Chavez.
LG Hydra will face Far Eastern University-Alabang for their first match in the NCO LoL national finals on Sunday, October 18, 3:00 PM. All matches can be streamed via this link: https://www.facebook.com/AcadArenaPH/.
Results of matches:
LG Hydra: 3-0
Game 1: Won vs. MGS Mages
Game 2: Won vs. Paradigm Esports
Game 3: Won vs. FEU-IT iTamaraws
LG Prime: 0-2
Game 1: Lost vs. Golden Lions Esports
Game 2: Lost vs. Tamaraws FX
