Acend put down a huge marker as the EMEA ALGS Pro League returned. This was the second of ten matchdays, which saw groups A and C go head to head.
Victory was all but assured by the half way point for Acend, who had almost double the points of the nearest team for the majority of the days action.
Elsewhere, there was strong performances from the Pioneers and Auora who both secured solid points towards the overall standings.
Breathtaking performance by Acend
Acend dominated the 2nd match day of the ALGS Pro League, putting on a workshop of how to call zone and maximise your kill potential. They won 3 games back to back on their way to a whopping 90 point total on the day.
Acend Postkill (Photo EA/Joe Brady)
Playing Wattson, Newcastle and Valkyrie on Storm Point you would have not expected Acend to rack up the huge kill totals that they did. The 10-15 kill games tend to be reserved for edge teams running Seer and Horizon.
Yet, Acend cracked the code. Playing strong positions, guaranteeing placement then exploding into action in the final stages.
Major zone sweep by Acend
What Acend did in the third game was a perfect example of their unique style. In a zone that ended near the armoury between Mill and Cenote Cave, Acend took a strong position. With their Newcastle and Wattson combination they are able to successfully hold down a building or control space.
However, the weakness of this playstyle can be that you just do not get the chance to rack up enough kills. In response to this, Acend actually left their position to get behind a number of teams in the final couple of zones. Then, thanks to the chemistry between K4shera and Postkill who have competed together for some time, mixed in with emerging controller talent of Lufkaa they got to work. Rolling squad after squad in the end zone, Acend cleaned out the lobby from ring 3 onwards.
Acend in Raleigh (Photo EA/Joe Brady)
Being so confident in their team fighting abilities means that Acend can capitalise on fights in zone, third partying and cleaning up to their hearts content. Other zone teams might let some of these opportunities pass them by for fear of getting thirded themselves.
Return to form for K4shera and Postkill
This strong performance will be a relief for K4shers and Postkill. The long term duo were the core of the NEW esports team that won the EMEA Split 1 Playoffs. That performance earned them their spot on Acend, but they haven’t really found their best form since joining the European org. They finished 37th in Sweden, and then 20th in Raleigh.
Acend will hope to perform better at the next Apex LAN event (Photo EA/Joe Brady)
Part of their issue, both on NEW and Acend has been finding the missing ingredient. Postkill and K4Shera have played with several thirds throughout their time – but it seems that Lufka is a great fit. The emerging controller player made his name on Incentive Arise, who impressed in the ALGS Pre Season qualifiers. Having a player that is relatively new to the competitive scene is perfect for Acend, as they can shape and create their perfect player.
EMEA Pro League A vs C top 5
Acend – 90Aurora – 57V2 – 51Pioneers – 47Totem – 46
Aurora show diverse Apex meta
Aurora, the former Team Empire squad, have always been quite creative with their legend picks. Apex fans often have their eyebrows raised when the ALGS broadcast switches to Aurora. Sometimes, you’d even wonder if they meant to chose the legends that they are on if you didn’t know any better.
Yet, they showed the diversity of the Apex Legends meta today as they took second place using two completely unique compositions. Aurora only team to run Wraith in EMEA pairing her with Bloodhound and Seer on Storm Point, then Maggie and Caustic on Worlds Edge.
(Photo EA/Stefan Petrescu)
On Storm Point, the intentions are clear. Fight, fight and fight some more. The double scan composition, as it is becoming known might as well be cheating. The amount of information given to you when Bloodhound and Seer are combined equates to flat out wallhacking.
Where Aurora did struggle today at times is with resetting. No Valkyrie means that the all russian trio cannot escape a tight spot, and this can lead them to sometimes fizzle out after taking just a single fight.
But when it works, it works big. They scored a huge 17 kills on Worlds Edge and comfortably finished in second behind Acend.
The EMEA Pro League returns on Sunday with B vs C at 5pm GMT. Stay tuned for the latest esports news and updates.
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