Loyola Gaming (LG) Hydra notched their first win against the Far Eastern University Alabang (FEU-A) Apex Tamaraws in the Esports AcadArena (EAA) National Campus Open (NCO) 2020 group stage earlier today. Despite surrendering three Dragons early in the match, LG Hydra came out victorious when the Blue and White’s Kassadin’s power spiked at level 16.
The League of Legends tournament featured a group stage with 16 teams divided into four brackets. However, every win was crucial as only the top teams of each bracket would advance to the playoffs.
LG Hydra began the match with Camille, Lilia, Kassadin, Jhin, and Nautilus as they entered Summoner’s Rift. Meanwhile, the Apex Tamaraws countered LG with Mordekaiser, Hecarim, Azir, Ezreal, and Sett.
Early Dragon fights
After losing a Dragon and Rift Herald early on in the match, LG Hydra showcased their laning prowess with a 1,500 gold lead over FEU-A in the eighth minute mark. The match was a stalemate until the 11th minute when FEU-A stole another Dragon from LG Hydra. However, the Blue and White retaliated as they won small skirmishes. This continued until the next Dragon fight where FEU-A reached soul point against LG Hydra. Despite losing three Dragons to the Apex Tamaraws, the Blue and White kept themselves afloat by continuing to conquer the small skirmishes throughout the rest of the match.
‘‘For the third Drake, it was a planned contest, FEU-A pulled the trigger on LG when they knew they had a number’s advantage [since Camille didn’t have teleport yet],’’ shared LG Hydra Member Mikey ‘‘Ferzerk’’ Alberto. ‘‘For sure the preparation for the third Drake contest could have been better, as well as the contest execution micro-wise,’’ he added.
Showcasing true potential
The momentum of the match finally shifted to the Blue and White’s favor when they claimed their first Dragon against FEU-A. Armed with leads in gold and experience, LG Hydra stopped FEU-A’s Baron attempt. Despite LG Hydra facing a 4v5 disadvantage, Joshua “Znake” Dinio’s Jhin pulled out the big guns en route to a triple kill to secure the Baron for the Blue and White.
In the 29th minute, LG gained an even bigger advantage when they secured a 10,000 gold lead over the Apex Tamaraws.
Having found their footing, LG Hydra finally secured the win at the 31st minute mark. “Our mindset wasn’t really to get kills and get ahead early [in the match]. It was more of [waiting] for our Kassadin to have his power spike at level 16,’’ said Dinio.
LG Hydra will attempt to garner their second win of the tournament against the Technological University of the Philippines on October 24, 6:00 pm. Fans can catch their matches on the EAA Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AcadArenaPH/
LG Hydra lineup:
Zed Dy – ‘‘Swapito’’
Matthew Isidro – ‘‘Smexy’’
Yobhel Nucum – ‘‘Yobhel’’
Joshua Dinio – ‘‘Znake’’
Joseph Chavez – ‘‘Cavalry’’
Mikey Alberto – ‘‘Ferzerk’’
