Call of Duty Pro League Recap: Day 4, Week 1, Cross-Division Play

The first week of cross-division play in the CWL Pro League has ended, and it has been one wild ride! These matches provided plenty of drama along with their scintillating gameplay. The first match featured UYU getting blown out of the water by Team Envy. Second, it was a battle of the bottom as Excelerate Gaming rocked Evil Geniuses. Third, the drama heats up for Red Reserve as they lose another match, this time to EUnited. And lastly, Team Heretics bounce back after a rough week by narrowly defeating Luminosity Gaming.

Match 1: UYU vs. Team Envy

This match was a 3-0 blowout in favor of Team Envy. Still, it was deceptively close as this blowout was mainly due to UYU being unable to close out matches in their favor, as they were narrowly defeated each game. Patrick “Aches” Price proved valuable to Team Envy in Game 1 (Hardpoint) as he was their best slayer, chalking up an impressive KD of 32/22. This helped Team Envy secure a Game 1 victory with a score of 250-231. Game 2 (Search & Destroy) was a similar story, but this time Bryan “Apathy” Zhelyazkov was the MVP for Team Envy, as he was the thorn in UYU’s side with a 9/5 KD. UYU’s inability to close out maps again proved the dagger as Team Envy won 6-4.

Game 3 (Control) was definitely more favoring of Team Envy. This is especially true since Aches went even further in performance than he did in Game 1, and scored himself a double-positive KD of 30/14! Thanks to Aches, UYU were dead and buried in a matter of four rounds of Control, as Team Envy won that game 3-1 and then the match.

Match 2: Evil Geniuses vs. Excelerate Gaming

It was a bottom of the barrel match as both EG and Excelerate were both at the bottom of their respective division records going into this match. Only one team would come out ahead of the other, and in this case, it was Excelerate, and the loss was so disastrous for EG that their organization is presently contemplating roster changes! With a Game 1 (Hardpoint) score as lopsided in Excelerate’s favor as 250-71, one could tell the Evil Geniuses were in for some struggle. EG’s downward spiral continued in Game 2 (Search & Destroy) where Excelerate put them in the ground relatively quickly with a score of 6-3. EG attempted to show signs of life in Game 3 (Control) by winning a single round, but at this point, Excelerate put all the nails they needed in EG’s coffin with a score of 3-1.

Match 3: EUnited vs. Red Reserve

Both teams had much on the line for this match – for Red Reserve, winning meant greater chances of team cohesion and staying together. For EUnited, it was a chance for the new roster featuring Chris “Simp” Lehr to prove itself worthy of its fanbase. Unfortunately, only one team would get what they want this match, and this time it was EUnited. The match started off in EUnited’s favor when they won Game 1 (Hardpoint) by a margin of 250-145. However, Red Reserve was able to answer back with two game wins of their own. Red Reserve quickly dominated EUnited in Game 2 (Search & Destroy) with a decisive score of 6-2. EUnited were on the verge of a game victory in Game 3 (Control), but they quickly choked the lead they had and let Red Reserve win that game 3-2.

EUnited knew better than to let Red Reserve walk away with a free match win, though, as embattled as they are. Game 4 (Hardpoint) was a chance for EUnited to exert their dominance once again, although the score was narrower this time around, as EUnited barely won by a margin of 250-228. Then Red Reserve ran out of steam, got exhausted, or whatever term you want to apply because they simply got flattened in Game 5 (Search & Destroy), where they lost with a 6-1 score in favor of EUnited.

Match 4: Team Heretics vs. Luminosity Gaming

Team Heretics had a rough week in terms of their performance. They just weren’t the same team that placed Top 8 at CWL Fort Worth. However, their victory against Luminosity Gaming, as hard fought as it was, gave them a shot of confidence. The match was as back and forth as matches get, but ultimately the Heretics prevailed thanks to their raw perseverance. Game 1 (Hardpoint) started things off right for the Heretics as they decisively took the game from Luminosity with a score of 250-144. Luminosity quickly countered by decimating the Heretics in Game 2 (Search & Destroy) with a relentless assault, flattening the Heretics with a round score of 6-1.

The back-and-forth warfare continued as the Heretics made a counter-attack in Game 3 (Control). They straight up wiped the floor with Luminosity as they shut out the Control round with a 3-0 score. The pendulum swung the other way in Game 4 (Hardpoint) as Luminosity somehow reversed the scoreline of Game 1 – they won with a score of 250-144, exactly the opposite of Game 1! It all came down to Game 5 (Search & Destroy) as the two teams competed for all the marbles. This game was more evenly matched as both sides did well, but the perseverance of the Heretics earned them the game and match win, with a round score of 6-4.

Coming Up

Next week we have more cross-divisional play, as on Monday, April 1 we’ll see Denial Esports vs. Gen.G, Midnight Esports, vs. Splyce, Enigma6 Group vs. OpTic Gaming, and finally Team Reciprocity vs. 100 Thieves. And don’t forget about the Blackout: After Dark tournament going on now. Catch it right here on ESTNN TV.