IN A battle of undefeated teams in Group B, Loyola Gaming (LG) Hydra fell short against the Holy Angel University (HAU) Valiant Archangels in the Esports AcadArena (EAA) National Campus Open (NCO) 2020 group stage on November 6. The loss resulted in LG Hydra’s elimination from the tournament, while HAU advanced to the semi-finals.

At the draft, LG bannered an aggressive lineup with Kled, Lilia, Ekko, Jhin, and Lux while HAU showed off a traditional roster composed of Shen, Jarvan, Veigar, Xayah, and Rakkan.

Since the match was crucial for both teams, LG Hydra and HAU went toe-to-toe throughout the game, with the gold lead never exceeding 2,000. LG Hydra utilized timely picks to keep the game close against last split’s runners-up. However, HAU capitalized on their exceptional teamfighting to ultimately weather the Blue and White. 

At the beginning of the match, the Valiant Archangels registered first blood at the 10-minute mark, courtesy of a gank by Shen and Jarvan on the bottom side. However, the Blue and White quickly answered the bottom teamfight with a clean three-kill sweep of their own in the 13th minute on the opposite side of the map.

After the three-minute bloodbath, the action grinded to a halt as both teams focused more on team objectives. During this juncture, the Valiant Archangels secured multiple Rift Heralds and towers while LG Hydra acquired Dragons.

‘‘We were confident that we could beat them,’’ shared LG Hydra Coach Mikey ‘‘Ferzerk’’ Alberto. ‘‘We weren’t intimidated at all.’’

In the 25th minute, the action picked up again when HAU executed a crucial Baron take and Dragon steal to give them a slight edge over LG Hydra. The Valiant Archangels followed this up by attempting to capture the Dragon soul point, but Matthew ‘‘Smexy’’ Isidro’s Lilia managed to steal the objective. This proved to be LG Hydra’s final stand as HAU’s Jarvan quickly countered with a Cataclysm, locking four members of LG Hydra. Ultimately, HAU’s teamfight-heavy tactics allowed them to chain their skills and cruise to the win.

After the heartbreaking loss, LG Hydra will look to regroup and prepare for the next split. ‘‘We’ll take the weekend off to process the loss individually. Self-care muna kumbaga (first),’’ Alberto mentioned. ‘‘For [the] next split, preparations will focus on both individual and team improvement,” he added.

LG Hydra lineup:

Zed  ‘‘Swapito’’ Dy – Kled
Matthew ‘‘Smexy’’ Isidro – Lillia 
Yobhel ‘‘Yobhel’’ Nucum –  Ekko
Joshua ‘‘Znake’’ Dinio – Jhin 
Joseph  ‘‘Cavalry’’ Chavez – Lux