Cloud9 swept Disguised, while Dignitas triumphed over Shopify Rebellion in the first three-game series of LTA North Split 2.
Today in LTA North, Cloud9 continued their dominance with a fast 2-0 win over Disguised, while Dignitas pushed through three matches to deliver Shopify Rebellion a heartbreaking loss in today’s Bo3s.
The second matchup of the day brought in a new energy, with the fight between Shopify Rebellion and Team Dignitas bringing the first set to go to the full three matches.
Game 1:
The day opened with a chaotic start as Philippe "Vulcan" Laflamme secured a double kill about four minutes into the game. Cloud9 quickly took control, claiming the first batch of Void Grubs, and nearly grabbing the first Drake, but a sneaky smite from Lawrence "Exyu" Xu denied them.
Despite losing the Drake, Cloud9’s momentum was overwhelming. Cho "Castle" Hyeon-seong took a solo kill off of Park "Thanatos" Seung-gyu, but C9 dominated other skirmishes across the map, pulling further ahead with the Rift Herald and a massive midlane ambush. Although Castle secured a big shutdown onto Thanatos, the difference in strength was just too much to handle.
Castle got a huge shutdown on Thanatos, but ultimately the 5v5 would end in a 1-for-1. As Baron Nashor spawned, the fighting continued between both full teams. While Jesper "Zven" Svenningsen and Lee "Loki" Sang-min both gave over valuable rewards to Disguised, Choi "huhi" Jae-hyun could not survive the remaining members of Cloud9.
With Baron buff in hand, Cloud9 stormed Disguised’s base and closed out the game in under 30 minutes, finishing over 13,000 gold ahead. It was a dominant win that set the tone for the series.
Game 2:
First Blood came just 46 seconds in, as Zven flashed forward to take down Exyu. The teams both played carefully following the early exchange. Disguised took the first spawn of Void Grubs, while Cloud9 rushed Drake. Things were staying pretty even through the early lane phase, with the gold difference hovering around 300 gold.
Disguised pulled ahead after winning the second Void Grub fight and picking up their second Drake, but Cloud9 responded with a brutal 5v5 win around Atakhan, highlighted by a triple kill from Robert "Blaber" Huang, which put C9 back on top. DSG chased down Zven, Loki, and Vulcan, giving them the opportunity to go for baron. Just after, C9 took down everyone but Castle, leaving the buff almost unused.
A massive snipe from Jeremiah "ScaryJerry" Leathe took out Blaber just before Soul Point for Disguised spawned, but Thanatos had other plans. In a 4v5, he flashed in and dashed through the wall, clearing their opponents out of the Pit and claiming Drake for themselves. Cloud9 then rushed Baron and secured it.
With Baron buff in tow, Cloud9 pushed Disguised’s midlane inhibitor, but could not quite close it out. C9 kept the pressure high, shoving lanes with their empowered minions while taking another Hextech Drake. Both teams were at Soul Point, and tensions were high.
In a hectic 5v5, Cloud9 aced Disguised with no casualties, pushing down mid lane and claiming victory.
Result: Cloud9 won 2-0.
Game 1:
Both teams played cautiously to start, with neither team getting a significant gold lead despite SR claiming the first three Void Grubs. First blood went to Frank "Tomo" Lam after a strong topside play with Jade "Sheiden" Libut and Jonah "Isles" Rosario, who kept setting up plays across the map.. The two continued roaming together, setting up kills for their allies. Early on, Dignitas managed to keep pace despite the neutral objective losses.
A midlane gank from Sheiden and Isles traded 1-for-1, but cost Dignitas Kim "Keine" Joon-cheol in the process. Shopify secured a second set of Grubs and their first Drake, pulling ahead in gold. Winning Feats of Strength gave SR a boost going into the midgame. Shopify Rebellion continued dominating the neutral objectives, securing a second Drake and Atakhan before a game-deciding teamfight broke out just past the objective. Shopify’s momentum was not letting up.
The revival from Atakhan saved SR some serious death timers, making the next skirmish midlane a free none-for-two exchange. At Baron, both teams lost their support, but Sheiden and Jett "Srtty" Joye fell shortly after for DIG. Baron went to SR with no further contest. Shopify Rebellion’s momentum could not be stopped. A quick push down bot lane left SR victorious.
Game 2:
Dignitas started strong by securing the first Drake and the first set of Void Grubs. SR managed to steal one Grub to prevent a clean Feat of Strength, but kills remained scarce for the first 12 minutes. A tower dive from Isles and Keine snagged First Blood on Ibrahim "Fudge" Allami with SR immediately evening it up.
Sheiden and Isles fell in a 4v4 at Drake Pit, putting both teams almost even in objectives. Sheiden went for Rift Herald, and got ambushed, but DIG was able to catch Ju "Bvoy" Yeong-hoon and cut SR’s damage, turning the fight into their favor.
Dignitas claimed first turret, setting them one neutral objective away from winning the Feats of Strength and getting that vital boot upgrade. Keine zoned Shopify off of the Drake pit, and DIG seemed to regain their momentum just before losing a 4v5 in bot along with Atakhan and Rift Herald. Tomo got caught out during Shopify Rebellion’s push down mid, two turrets were taken. A few heavy trades happened botside, and Juan "Contractz" Garcia used Rift Herald to exit. As he went back for Hextech Drake, a fight broke out and he was able to get a triple kill.
A fight broke out near Baron pit, and Dignitas, at a huge gold deficit, managed to secure the buff along with four kills. In a huge comeback, Dignitas managed to take the Baron into a midlane push, as four men dead was four too many for Shopify. DIG pushed as five and took Shopify Rebellion’s Nexus quickly, bringing the series to a decisive Game Three.
Game 3:
Contractz got Shopify rolling early with a scrappy gank, picking up for First Blood for Tomo's Ziggs and another kill for Denilson "Ceos" Oliveira Gonçalves. The first group of Void Grubs was split, but SR grabbed the second full batch. Although DIG claimed the first two Drakes, SR won the Feat of Warfare and maintained a solid lead 3-0.
At Rift Herald, Shopify Rebellion took two more kills for the one that Dignitas claimed. Cristian "Palafox" Palafox was able to grab the Eye of the Herald, but no kills were given up after the initial fight. He dropped Herald mid while SR and DIG fought near Drake Pit, giving SR their first Dragon of the game.
Keine got the first turret of the game, but Shopify Rebellion’s gold lead was still significant. SR started stacking Infernal Drakes, and got a solid push going down midlane. In a heated fight in Baron Pit, SR was able to claim the objective without any casualties on their squad. Getting four kills, Dignitas stole Atakhan and secured the Infernal Drake, slowing SR’s momentum.
Trades went back and forth through teamfight after teamfight, but a sneaky flank from Jett Michael "Srtty" Joye was able to turn the tides. They pushed their advantage, and Dignitas built their lead to about 8k Gold, looking to further that at yet another Baron fight. Neither team ended up taking the objective though, since the skirmish ended in an ace for DIG. They rushed to Shopify Rebellion’s Nexus and claimed victory in the first non-sweep of the split.
Result: Dignitas won 2-1.
Wrapping Up
The best of three round robin matchups will continue next week, with teams competing for the chance to compete at MSI depending on their placement at the end of the Split.
Regional updates will continue here as the stakes get higher with the fight for MSI quickly approaching.
Photo Credit: Riot Games / LTA North via Flickr
