ENJOYING A 5v4 advantage in the match, the Loyola Gaming (LG) Hydra dominated Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) Exos Haribons, 2-0, in the Esports AcadArena (EAA) National Campus Open: League of Legends earlier today.

In the second season of the EAA-hosted tournament, participating teams competed in three categories depending on their regions: Metro Manila (Metro), Luzon, and Visayas-Mindanao. After winning their qualifying match last March 8, LG Hydra secured their spot in the competition’s Metro region along with seven other teams. The tournament utilized a double-elimination format where competitors duked it out in a best-of-three match with opponents from their respective regions before advancing to the next round.

During their first match, LG Hydra faced a familiar opponent in PLM who lost their jungler early in the game due to technical difficulties. With the opposing team down one man, the Blue and White remained at the top of their game, refusing to become complacent. In Game One, Zed “LG Swapito” Dy, John “Sparklyy” Erguiza, and Yobhel “Yobhel” Nucum took advantage of their opponent’s lack of a jungler and placed continuous kill pressure on the enemy’s top-laner. Apart from the constant kill pressure, PLM’s lack of assistance on the bottom side of the map allowed Joshua “LG Znake” Dinio and Joseph “Cavalry” Chavez to capitalize on PLM’s crippled duo lane.

With their huge personnel advantage, strong coordination, and tactical control of the map, LG Hydra overwhelmed PLM’s forces in under 25 minutes of gameplay while sporting a 7-0 kill advantage.

Although the two teams were due another game, PLM opted out of the competition due to their jungler’s continued technical difficulties. The victory allowed LG Hydra to capture two wins and advance to the semifinals.

LG Hydra will face De La Salle University Asian Baby Boys in the semi-finals on Saturday, March 20. Fans may stream the match on https://www.facebook.com/AcadArenaPH.

LG Hydra lineup:

Zed “LG Swapito” Dy

John “Sparklyy” Erguiza

Yobhel “Yobhel” Nucum 

Joshua “LG Znake” Dinio

Joseph “Cavalry” Chavez