WCG Quiver Day 2 Recap
When I said in my recap of Day 1 that today would be the day when things get more exciting and challenging, I wasn't kidding. Right off the bat the Loaded Counter-Strike 1.6 squad had to face off against team I Don't Know, who easily rolled through their matches just yesterday.
Today, though, IDK wouldn't be able to repeat their impressive performance as our squad came in motivated to reach the finals of the entire event. Playing their match on De_Inferno, Loaded managed to take the first half easily with a score of 12-3. However, on their defensive side IDK was able to delay our squad from grabbing the necessary four rounds to win by taking five rounds themselves before we were able to close the match out in our favor 16-14.
Next up, the team was scheduled to face Team EG, the other top team in attendance with Loaded, in a match that many were waiting for all event long. To top it off, this encounter would take place on De_Train.
Now, this match was the most exciting one so far in the tournament. Starting off their offensive side, Loaded, even though they lost the pistol round, was able to outsmart EG several times with some great strategy coupled with equally great shots to overcome the early disadvantage to take the half in their favor 9-6.
The second half was were EG really turned it up to not only come back, but win the match. This half showcased some amazing clutch rounds by EG as Loaded was unable to finish several rounds where it was either 3v1 and 4v1, in which case it was Lurppis denying them the first time and fRoD stunningly winning against four other players with only an AWP. With this, EG managed to take the game in a really close 16-13.
This loss put Loaded in the lower bracket finals, where they then faced off against Ultimax, who managed to take down IDK 16-13 beforehand. The match, surprisingly, on De_Tuscan was another interesting one, though Loaded was able to make quick work of Ultimax. This match showcased some great team work by both squads, but in the end it was Loaded who simply out matched Ultimax, winning the first half 10-5 and the second half 6-2 to make the score 16-7.
After their brief stint in the lower bracket, Loaded again faced EG, this time in the Grand Finals of the event on De_Inferno. If they were to win this map, the match would then shift over to De_Train. However, this would not be the case. In the first map, EG quickly took the lead, shutting down Loaded on their offensive side to dominate the first half 13-2. In the second half, Loaded was faced with a huge disadvantage as they'd have to win 11 rounds in a row just to tie the game. Though, they did finally manage to get something started, at one point quietting a previously loud EG team. But it ended up being too late, as they were unable to stop EG from sneaking in the few rounds necessary to win, with the half score ending 3-6 and the game 16-8 for EG.
Thus, EG managed to take first at the event, but Loaded still finished a respectable second place. And, while this was really the team's first LAN experience together, they showed that they have the potential to fight with the very best North America has to offer.
More Information: http://goloaded.com/news/369/wcg-recap-2
