This article is part of our LoL Recap series.
FlyQuest vs. CLG
FlyQuest continues its surprising run through the North American League Championship Series, this time sweeping Counter Logic Gaming during Friday's Week 2 action.
The first game was a fairly drawn-out affair, despite the quick start from FlyQuest. Taking an early lead in kills on the back of ganks from FlyQuest's Kha'Zix of jungler Galen "Moon" Holgate and the Twisted Fate of mid laner Hai "Hai" Lam, CLG would fight back thanks to strong farming and the destruction of the first two towers. FlyQuest weathered the storm and used superior teamfighting to keep control of the game. Unable to break through the tanky build of An "Balls" Le's Nautilus, CLG continued to flounder until FlyQuest put the game away after 42 minutes.
While Game 2 started off much slower than the first, the end result was the same. FlyQuest picked up first blood when AD Carry Johnny "Altec" Ru used his Jhin to take down CLG's support Zaqueri "aphromoo" Black's Zliean in the bottom lane. CLG would answer back with a gank from jungler Jake "Xmithie" Puchero's Kha'Zix on Balls' Nautilus in the top lane. For the next few minutes of the game, the teams traded kills in teamfights, waiting for that one moment to break the game wide open. The moment came in favor of FlyQuest, when it took a 3-for-2 teamfight in the bottom lane to secure the first tower at the 18-minute mark. A Baron at 24 minutes was the final piece FlyQuest needed to push for the 32-minute win. CLG will certainly be wary about not banning Rengar in the future after jungler Moon put up an MVP performance on the champion with a 9/2/4 KDA (kills/deaths/assists).
----------------------------------------------------------------------
TSM vs. Dignitas
Reigning regional champions Team SoloMid faced off against a much-hyped Team Dignitas on Friday, Day 2 of the second week of the season. While Dignitas took a tumultuous Game 1, TSM bounced back and gave its fans a chance to breathe easy with a decisive 2-1 series win in Santa Monica, California.
In a battle for jungle dominance, TSM's Dennis "Svenskeren" Johnsen's Kha'Zix and Dignitas' Lee "Chaser" Sang-hyun's Rek'Sai made their presences felt throughout the early game. Chaser struck first, ganking top laner Kevin "Hauntzer" Yarnell's Maokai to give first blood to Kim "Ssumday" Chan-ho's top Fiora, but Svenskeren responded minutes later by killing Ssumday and taking first tower. After a period of back-and-forth action, Dignitas destroyed most of TSM's base, allowing Ssumday to teleport into TSM's base and backdoor their Nexus while the rest of Dignitas prevented TSM from recalling to register a 49-minute win.
Svenskeren got his hands on Lee Sin for Game 2, getting TSM ahead early by giving Hauntzer's Poppy a first blood kill onto Ssumday's Jayce. Every member of TSM stepped up their performance from Game 1, particularly Svenskeren, who was the catalyst for most of TSM's plays throughout the game. TSM never lost its cool, dictating the pace throughout the game thanks to Svenskeren and support Vincent "Biofrost" Wang's Thresh finding key picks to snowball TSM's lead out of control. Securing two Baron kills and taking advantage of their superior teamfighting, TSM marched to a methodical Game 2 win in 39:50.
TSM were firing on all cylinders early in Game 3, with Hauntzer ganking for Soren "Bjergsen" Bjerg's mid lane Cassiopeia to give him first blood early on. TSM began rotating around the map, controlling side waves to take early towers and increase their gold lead. Dignitas tried to keep up with TSM's objective control but TSM broke the game wide open at 24 minutes with a great 4-for-0 teamfight that gave them a mid turret and a Baron kill. Shortly after, TSM would engage in a teamfight in Dignitas' base, acing its opposition on the back of Bjergsen's triple kill to close out the 2-1 series win in just under 30 minutes.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Immortals vs. EnVyUs
Immortals rallied to beat Team EnVyUs 2-1 on Week 2, Day 3 of the North American League of Legends Championship Series Spring Split on Sunday at the Battle Arena in Los Angeles.
Team EnVyUs' top laner Shin "Seraph" Woo-yeong's Nautilus had a great start to Game 1 as he invaded with jungler Nam "LirA" Tae-yoo's Kha'zix and took down Immortals jungler Joshua "Dardoch" Hartnett's Rek'Sai at his first jungle camp. Seraph and LirA then ran to top lane to catch Immortals top laner Lee "Flame" Ho-Jong's Gangplank, securing an early 2-0 lead in kills. Team EnVyUs' early control held until they slipped and lost some teamfights. However, they recovered nicely when they broke Immortals' first siege with the Baron buff, where they killed four and lost none. AD carry Apollo "Apollo" Price's Ashe made great fight engages with her Enchanted Crystal Arrow that helped Team EnVyUs close out Game 1.
Dardoch's Kha'zix in Game 2 ganked bottom to get AD carry Li Yu "Cody Sun" Sun's Ashe first blood but LirA's Rek'Sai quickly tied up the kills when he took down Flame's Nautilus in the top lane. Immortals were slightly behind, but took control late after catching Apollo and support Nickolas "Hakuho" Surgent's Karma. Once Baron was secured, they pressured top lane and pushed Team EnVyUs off their turret by acing them. The ace was all Immortals needed to finish Game 2 and tie up the series. Dardoch had a much better performance in Game 2 as he finished with a 9/0/3 KDA (kills, deaths, assists).
Game 3 was balancing on a tightrope as the teams stayed close in kills, gold and objectives. Immortals started a fight around Baron where they took down Apollo's Jhin and Hakuho's Malzahar that allowed them to secure the buff. With Baron buff, Immortals took the lead in turrets and built an 8,000 gold lead in the process. The advantage allowed them to force a fight around Elder Dragon, secure the buff, and score an ace of before finishing the series.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Echo Fox vs. FlyQuest
Immortals rallied to beat Team EnVyUs 2-1 on Week 2, Day 3 of the North American League of Legends Championship Series Spring Split on Sunday at the Battle Arena in Los Angeles.
Team EnVyUs' top laner Shin "Seraph" Woo-yeong's Nautilus had a great start to Game 1 as he invaded with jungler Nam "LirA" Tae-yoo's Kha'zix and took down Immortals jungler Joshua "Dardoch" Hartnett's Rek'Sai at his first jungle camp. Seraph and LirA then ran to top lane to catch Immortals top laner Lee "Flame" Ho-Jong's Gangplank, securing an early 2-0 lead in kills. Team EnVyUs' early control held until they slipped and lost some teamfights. However, they recovered nicely when they broke Immortals' first siege with the Baron buff, where they killed four and lost none. AD carry Apollo "Apollo" Price's Ashe made great fight engages with her Enchanted Crystal Arrow that helped Team EnVyUs close out Game 1.
Dardoch's Kha'zix in Game 2 ganked bottom to get AD carry Li Yu "Cody Sun" Sun's Ashe first blood but LirA's Rek'Sai quickly tied up the kills when he took down Flame's Nautilus in the top lane. Immortals were slightly behind, but took control late after catching Apollo and support Nickolas "Hakuho" Surgent's Karma. Once Baron was secured, they pressured top lane and pushed Team EnVyUs off their turret by acing them. The ace was all Immortals needed to finish Game 2 and tie up the series. Dardoch had a much better performance in Game 2 as he finished with a 9/0/3 KDA (kills, deaths, assists).
Game 3 was balancing on a tightrope as the teams stayed close in kills, gold and objectives. Immortals started a fight around Baron where they took down Apollo's Jhin and Hakuho's Malzahar that allowed them to secure the buff. With Baron buff, Immortals took the lead in turrets and built an 8,000 gold lead in the process. The advantage allowed them to force a fight around Elder Dragon, secure the buff, and score an ace of before finishing the series.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Phoenix1 vs. Team Liquid
Phoenix1 dominated Team Liquid in a 2-0 series sweep Sunday in Week 2, Day 3 of the North American League of Legends Championship Series in Santa Monica, California.
Phoenix1 jungler Rami "Inori" Charagh had a great performance on Rengar in Game 1, picking up first blood on Liquid's Samson "Lourlo" Jackson's top lane Maokai before five minutes. Inori roamed around the map, picking up kills and forcing Liquid to play passively en route to a 9/0/7 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) for 80 percent kill participation. With Phoenix1 mid laner Ryu "Ryu" Sang-wook dealing massive damage on Corki after snowballing an early solo kill on Liquid's Greyson "Goldenglue" Gilmer's Ryze around seven minutes in the mid lane, Phoenix1 were free to do as they pleased. Killing Baron at about 26 minutes, Phoenix1 swarmed into Liquid's base, taking a 3-for-0 teamfight to close out a 31-minute Game 1.
Game 2 began in chaotic style, with Inori's Rek'Sai picking up first blood on Liquid jungler Kim "Reignover" Ui-jin's Kha'Zix at 3:30 while P1 top laner Derek "zig" Shao picked up a solo kill on Maokai around the same time. Teleporting to the bot lane to pick up an unofficial triple kill at 9:30, zig continued to snowball, and lead Phoenix1 to an early lead. While Phoenix1 got over eager at times, Team Liquid was forced to make desperate plays, diving zig under his tower in the top lane to eventually secure three kills while losing two bot lane turrets, a mid lane turret and a kill. With Liquid too far behind to do anything, Phoenix1 cruised to an easy win in just over 31 minutes, closing out a surprisingly dominant 2-0 series sweep.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Immortals vs. Coud9
Cloud9 looked unstoppable as they took down Immortals 2-0 in Week 2, Day 2 of the North American League of Legends Championship Series in Los Angeles on Saturday.
Game 1 was nothing but a highlight reel for Cloud9 jungler Juan "Contractz" Arturo Garcia and mid laner Nicolaj "Jensen" Jensen. The action started off at around the nine-minute mark, when jungler Joshua "Dardoch" Hartnett's Kha'Zix attempted a gank onto Jensen only to have it turned around into a 2-for-1 exchange. As a result, Contractz' Lee Sin grabbed first blood and a double kill. Contractz would continue to find picks across the map, and Jensen's Orianna would dominate teamfights, finishing the game with an 8/1/4 KDA (kills, deaths, assists).
The second game would be somewhat better for Immortals, but only insofar as Cloud9 took a bit longer to close it out. Seven minutes in, Dardoch once again gave away first blood in a gank attempt, this time going for a tower dive onto Jung "Impact" Eon-yeong's Nautilus as Lee Sin.
Cloud9 grabbed a 7-1 kill lead in the early game altogether, and while the mid-and-late-game teamfights would be somewhat closer than in Game 1, Cloud9 still won them exclusively. After one last teamfight in Immortals' base, Cloud9 closed out the game in 39-and-a-half minutes.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
TSM vs. Team Liquid
Team SoloMid won a hard-fought series against Team Liquid 2-1 on Saturday at the Battle Arena in Los Angeles during the second week of the North American League of Legends Championship Series Spring Split 2017.
Team SoloMid took an early lead in Game 1 behind a handful of early turret kills and positive teamfight trades. However, Team Liquid stormed back late when top laner Samson "Lourlo" Jackson's Nautilus led a charge into Baron pit, stopping Team SoloMid from taking the objective. Mid laner Soren "Bjergsen" Bjerg took over in the second half and earned MVP honors of Game 1, performing two great Realm Warps on his Ryze. The first Realm Warp secured a Baron buff while the second Realm Warp took his teammates, AD carry Jason "WildTurtle" Tran's Ashe and support Vincent "Biofrost" Wang's Zyra, into Team Liquid's base to push the Nexus down.
Bjergsen scored first blood on Syndra in Game 2 when he roamed into the top lane and took down Lourlo's Poppy with some help. However, Team Liquid began to take control after jungler Kim "Reignover" Yeu-Jin's Khazix started to clean up in teamfights during the second half of Game 2. Team Liquid ran away with a lead after Lourlo's Poppy knocked Team SoloMid off of Baron with Keeper's Verdict, took the buff, and earned three kills. Team SoloMid overextended and forced a fight with their inhibitor down but Team Liquid punished them with an ace and then pushed down mid lane to even the series.
Team Liquid's momentum from Game 2 carried over into Game 3 as Reignover's Khazix scored first blood. However, Team SoloMid evened out the gold when it took down the first turret in the middle lane. Both teams played patiently, but Team SoloMid used better lane management to take a lead in turrets heading into the late game. Team SoloMid finally broke the game open, catching support Matthew "Matt" Elento's Thresh out of position, leading to a Baron and Elder Dragon buff. The buffs enabled TSM to push down Team Liquid's middle and top lane inhibitors. Team SoloMid would eventually storm through Team Liquid's base to secure the 2-1 series win.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Cloud9 vs. CLG
Cloud9 defeated Counter Logic Gaming 2-1 in a hard fought series during Week 2 of the North American League of Legends Championship Series in Los Angeles.
While CLG looked to make proactive plays in the early game, Cloud9 held an early gold lead thanks to jungler Juan "Contractz" Garcia's Kha'Zix. Picking up several kills throughout the early game, C9 looked to snowball off the rookie's advantage but CLG fought tooth and nail, turning what should've been an easy pick into a 4-for-3 teamfight win for C9. Cloud9 showed off their synergy throughout the game, kiting CLG's tanks to death throughout the mid-late game. After a particularly well-played teamfight, Cloud9 swept through CLG's base to take Game 1.
Counter Logic Gaming came firing back in Game 2, with jungler Jake "Xmithie" Puchero's Kha'Zix camping top lane to get CLG's Darshan "Darshan" Upadhyaha's Trundle ahead. Leaving the early game with a couple of kills, Darshan's split-pushing caused massive problems for Cloud9, who struggled to stay alive under their towers. With mid laner Choi "Huhi" Jae-hyun playing well on Orianna, CLG took their time methodically cutting through C9's base, finishing the game with a 3-for-1 teamfight win.
In a crucial Game 3, CLG jumped out to a gold lead thanks to a skirmish early on that eventually ended 5-for-3 in CLG's favor. Xmithie's Olaf kept CLG in the driver's seat, but Contractz turned the tide on Kha'Zix with a double kill in a 4-for-0 teamfight that gave them a Baron kill. CLG took back control with three kills and a Baron after catching AD Carry Zachary "Sneaky" Scuderi's Ashe out of position, but couldn't capitalize. Cloud9 and Counter Logic Gaming took turns dictating the momentum of the game, but heroic split-pushing from top laner Jung "Impact" Eon-yeong's Shen gave C9 the edge they needed to get ahead with an Elder Dragon kill. Batting aside CLG's last defensive efforts, Cloud9 took a final teamfight with a 5-for-1 ace, remaining the only undefeated team in the league.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
EnVyUs vs. Immortals
Immortals rallied to beat Team EnVyUs 2-1 on Week 2, Day 3 of the North American League of Legends Championship Series Spring Split on Sunday at the Battle Arena in Los Angeles.
Team EnVyUs' top laner Shin "Seraph" Woo-yeong's Nautilus had a great start to Game 1 as he invaded with jungler Nam "LirA" Tae-yoo's Kha'zix and took down Immortals jungler Joshua "Dardoch" Hartnett's Rek'Sai at his first jungle camp. Seraph and LirA then ran to top lane to catch Immortals top laner Lee "Flame" Ho-Jong's Gangplank, securing an early 2-0 lead in kills. Team EnVyUs' early control held until they slipped and lost some teamfights. However, they recovered nicely when they broke Immortals' first siege with the Baron buff, where they killed four and lost none. AD carry Apollo "Apollo" Price's Ashe made great fight engages with her Enchanted Crystal Arrow that helped Team EnVyUs close out Game 1.
Dardoch's Kha'zix in Game 2 ganked bottom to get AD carry Li Yu "Cody Sun" Sun's Ashe first blood but LirA's Rek'Sai quickly tied up the kills when he took down Flame's Nautilus in the top lane. Immortals were slightly behind, but took control late after catching Apollo and support Nickolas "Hakuho" Surgent's Karma. Once Baron was secured, they pressured top lane and pushed Team EnVyUs off their turret by acing them. The ace was all Immortals needed to finish Game 2 and tie up the series. Dardoch had a much better performance in Game 2 as he finished with a 9/0/3 KDA (kills, deaths, assists).
Game 3 was balancing on a tightrope as the teams stayed close in kills, gold and objectives. Immortals started a fight around Baron where they took down Apollo's Jhin and Hakuho's Malzahar that allowed them to secure the buff. With Baron buff, Immortals took the lead in turrets and built an 8,000 gold lead in the process. The advantage allowed them to force a fight around Elder Dragon, secure the buff, and score an ace of before finishing the series.
