BOL Gold’s Dean’s List

Hello everybody and welcome to the week 7 edition of BOL Gold’s Dean’s List! We’ve had some great matches this week, so let’s jump right in and break everything down!

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Glacial Void (5-0) vs Hyperion White Rabbit (0-5)

Result: GV 2-0

There isn’t a whole lot to break down with this match. The team that hasn’t dropped a map vs the team that hasn’t won a map went exactly as you would expect.

Game 1 started off relatively even, with kills and early objectives being traded fairly until around the 11 minute mark. Bear’s Poppy was able to kill two back to back kills on CheckUrMiniMap’s Kled, which set the gold lead ahead massively for the GV squad. Hyperion did manage to find some kills in the mid game to cut the lead back down, but Jel’s Hecarim popped off in a big way. Jel secured 7 kills and a 27 minute Nashor for their team which helped Glacial take the game in 30:55.

Game 2 started off even more evenly than the first game. Veteran ADC Ghost VII even secured first blood over Xiaobao, which led to LostHavok securing first drake. CheckUrMiniMap’s Cho’Gath even managed to get revenge on Bear’s Zac with a 1-for-1 trade in the top lane. The game started to slip away at 10 minutes, however, as GV won two different fights on both sides of the map. Despite a few good plays from White Rabbit, GV retained their gold lead throughout the rest of the game. Another Nash take and several towers later gave GV the victory in 27:08.

With this win, Glacial Void has officially locked playoffs, and Hyperion has officially fallen out of the race. The rush to lock in the number 1 seed is still raging, as this week’s matchup between GV and JRGC looks to hold a lot of sway for that placement. Meanwhile, HWR now looks to play spoiler for their remaining opponents’ playoff dreams.

Player of the Series: Jel - Close race between the entire top side of the map, but Jel’s objective control paired with their monster g2 Pantheon game barely tips the scale here.

Ace of the Series: Sylvie - Series damage of 49k, 16 total kills, and the  highest level on their team in both games. Yes, g2 was a tie between the entire top side, but the point stands.

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CB Phreaks (2-3) vs Nefarious Demons (1-4)

Result: CBP 2-0

In a much-needed bounce back win, CBP had a deceptively clean series against NGD. 

Game 1 started off hot with both teams trading early kills across the map. The first drake went the way of the CB squad, though NGD managed to find their fight in time for the second. That would unfortunately be the last major advantage for the Demons, as Typhoon’s Nocturne and A1phaSairou’s Ashe secured the Rift Herald and the first tower. The momentum kept up as Ashe scored a triple kill at 17 minutes. The game would continue largely in favor of the Phreaks until a 33 minute teamfight by Baron saw CBP score a clean ace to take the game.

Game 2 was very much the A1phaSairou story. Despite NGD picking up several kills on the topside of the map, the CBP marksman went 6-0 in the first ten minutes. As the Demons continued to spend resources to kill TheDean0’s Sion, the Phreaks kept playing on the opposite side of the map in order to secure towers and objectives. The pivotal moment of the game came at 25 minutes with a fight in the bottom jungle where the CB squad was able to turn a doomed scrap into a 5-1 teamfight win. One Baron later, and CBP was able to win the game in 28:06.

While not technically eliminated from playoffs, NGD is now no longer in control of their own destiny. With only HWR, JRGC, and CBI remaining on their schedule, they would have to win out and then see some combination of LEP, FFM, and CBI lose out in order to make the postseason.

On the other side, the Phreaks earned a much needed victory in the playoff race. While a 3-3 record doesn’t lock in their postseason, they look to be in a much better spot. With only FFS, HWR, and JRGC remaining, it looks very likely that the squad will break through and qualify for the final bracket.

Player of the Series: Toastfish - A massive performance from the rookie mid laner against the veteran Pandorum. Series scoreline of 11/1/18 (series KDA of 29), total damage of 45.5k, and the quality of opponent tips the odds slightly in his favor. Massive shoutout as well to A1phaSairou for being the man in game 2.

Ace of the Series: Trashy - Definitely more skewed towards the eye test here. Trashy was definitely trying to make a lot of plays and secure whatever objectives he could. Don’t let his lies in Gold General dismiss how well he’s been playing as an individual.

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Jolly Rogers Ghost Crew (5-0) vs Fools Five Mercenaries (3-2)

Result: JRGC 2-0

The Jolly Rogers continued their winning ways against a Fools Five squad that was looking on the up and up. Don’t let the scoreline fool you, however. The Mercenaries looked strong.

Game 1 started off with NasGhost making a statement on Renekton. Three kills onto Temu1Zeus’ Dr. Mundo set him up with a massive lead early on. Despite the Mercenaries getting a skirmish win at 8 minutes, NoName’s J4 secured all three Grubs as well as the first two drakes. From there, the Ghost Crew continued to play the map. They dominated the mid and late game, resulting in a 27 minute game 1 win.

Game 2 was a banger. Hardstuck was able to get first blood, but FFM was able to get the feat of warfare. The Mercenaries actually had a gold lead for a majority of the game, right up until the Ghost Crew got a big skirmish win at 24 minutes. Their lead wouldn’t last for long, however, as a big series of play at 30 minutes led to Temu1Zeus’ Jax picking up two and TheMoon’s Poppy getting two and the Baron. With the game on a knife’s edge, the Jolly Rogers squad was barely able to squeak out the victory by sneaking a 40 minute Baron, which led to the nexus falling at 41:55.

The two biggest takeaways from this series are that JR absolutely deserve to be at the top of the standings and FFM have earned a ton of respect going into the final stretch. JR showed the fortitude to be able to win two tight games against a respectable team, a feat that shows strong mental and the ability to keep cool even from behind. This result actually gives me more confidence in them for their marquee matchup against Glacial.

Similarly, Fools Five Mercenaries absolutely showed that they can punch with the best of this league. They held multiple gold leads across both games, and if one or two fights went differently, they could realistically have won this series. Both teams have exciting matches coming up in week 7, with both of them looking to secure their playoff seeds.

Player of the Series: NasGhost - INCREDIBLY tight race here, as the Ghost Crew all feel like a complete unit where everybody gets to shine. Still, 34.4k damage in g1, 52.9k tanked on the Ornn in g2, while having incredibly respectable games on two different styles of champion tips the scale ever so slightly in his favor.

Ace of the Series: QBall - Another tight race, but again, looking good on two different styles of champion (Lulu and Braum) tips the scale here. Series KDA of 6.86 with 25 total assists and 31.7k damage tanked in g2 are both great stats for a support.

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OSG Tactical Freeze (3-2) vs Fools Five Squires (1-4)

Result: OSG 2-0

If you wanna talk about a tragedy series, look no further than this 2-0 for OSG. FFS looked so good until they didn’t, which is such a heartbreaking look as their season falls to even more dire straits.

Game 1 was perhaps the closest game of the week. The action remained low for the first 15 minutes with only a few kills and objectives traded back and forth. Things started to break open at the 22 minute mark when GoogleMop and Fugitive picked up a few kills to reach soul point. The momentum continued all the way until minute 30 where they obtained the Infernal Soul and the Baron. They weren’t able to push their advantage far enough, however, and at 37 minutes, TrainerGain picked up a quadrakill on Jhin, setting his team up to take both Elder and Nash. The stacked game-ending buffs proved to be too much for the Fools Five squad, as they made a fruitless last stand, watching their nexus explode in 39:46.

Game 2 was deceptively similar. The action was scarce through the first ten minutes, with both squads seemingly content with trading Void Grubs and Dragons. As the game dragged on, however, the OSG squad was able to keep up the pace and continued winning fights. A big 5-1 teamfight win at 26 minutes resulted in an Atakhan and Nashor secure for Tactical Freeze, which gave them the momentum they needed to take the game and the series.

Much like the Nefarious Demons, Fools Five Squires no longer control their own destiny in the race for the postseason. They need to win out against CBP, LEP, and HWR while also getting help by one of the teams above them losing out. If they can keep up their game 1 look but close out their leads, then they might just be able to pull it off.

Elsewhere, OSG currently sits in sole possession of 3rd place. Their look in game 1 of this series does raise a few concerns about their current form, especially as they still have LEP, FFM, and GV left, but they are definitely still a team worth respecting. If they can pick up two wins, they lock playoffs, and with the points lead they currently have, it’s very likely for them to end up as the 3rd overall seed.

Player of the Series: TrainerGain - Both halves of this bot lane duo looked good in this series, but Trainer ever so slightly gets the nod. A total of 50.4k exact damage in this series, a quadra on Jhin in g1, and a perfect KDA on Sivir in g2 earns the OSG ADC the nod.

Ace of the Series: qwerthe5 - Another close call with an ADC, but qwerthe’s higher damage across the series (39.8k vs 36.7k), multiple early objectives secured, and the most damage tanked in the series is just enough to earn the nod here.

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CB Impulse (2-3) vs Legacy Esports Prime (3-2)

Result: CBI 2-1

The only match of the week to go to all three games, CB Impulse earned a much needed win against one of their direct competition in the race for playoffs.

Game 1 actually saw LEP hold on to a lead for a solid 2/3 of the game. The first drake and grubs went the way of Impulse, but Prime answered back with the second drake and herald. The kills were almost even for the entire early and mid game, with things only breaking apart when Accel earned a pektakill on Jhin at 22 minutes. The CB squad was able to win every fight they took from there, going all the way to a 32:05 g1 win.

Game 2 was an inverse mirror image of game 1. The early scraps looked to be going the way of CBI with BillyWillard’s Diana being the biggest beneficiary. It wasn’t until PizzaPastaMafia’s Gwen started becoming a real side lane threat that LEP was able to get back into the game. Once he reached critical mass, his team was able to rally around him. A 31 minute Baron resulted in his team getting the momentum they needed to make a real push for the nexus, taking g2 in 36:04.

Game 3 bucked the trend of close games as the CB squad proceeded to stomp them across the map. Billy Willard secured every neutral objective in the game on Wukong, making Complex’s Fiddlesticks look frankly invisible. With every lane lost and no way back into the game, Impulse kept the game controlled and took down the nexus in 29:39 to secure the match win.

This series was a spicy one that shook up the playoffs race in a massive way. Both teams now remain tied in match score, separated only by a single point (LEP at 25, CBI at 24).

For Impulse, their remaining schedule looks to be on the tougher end, with FFM, GV, and HWR coming up. Meanwhile, LEP has a more consistent schedule, with OSG, FFS, and FFM remaining. Both of these teams control their own destiny, and both squads can still definitely end up in the postseason. If there’s anything that can be certain, it’s that these teams will be playing their hearts out to try and lock in their playoff spot.

Player of the Series: Accel - Incredibly close between the ADC and jungle, but a series kda of 9.06, total damage dealt of 73.2k, and the Jhin penta (what is going on with these Jhin players) gets the nod, though it cannot be understated how consistent BillyWillard was in this match.

Ace of the Series: PizzaPastaMafia - The raid boss in g2, Pizza had a total damage of 80.3k in the match, series kda of 2.33, and was the sole reason their team was able to secure a map.

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With last week’s recap finished, let’s take a look at some of this week’s matches!

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Fools Five Mercenaries (3-3) vs CB Impulse (3-3)

Two middle of the pack teams that need this win. The winner of this match moves up to 4 wins and gets one step closer to locking in their spot while the other moves into a dangerous situation.

CBI should be the odds-on favorite, as they remain the only team to have taken a map against JRGC, but FFM showed they are equally capable in their week 6 match. To me, this match comes down to the bot lanes, as Ken Kaneki and QBall look to cement themselves as an upper tier threat against the former champion bot lane. If both lanes show up at their peak level, then I could see FFM getting the slight edge, but it really can go either way.

Prediction: FFM 2-1

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Fools Five Squires (1-5) vs CB Phreaks (3-3)

Squires are playing as much for their last grasp of the postseason as much as they are looking to play spoiler. Opposite them, the Phreaks are looking to move up to a massively important 4 wins.

Call me biased, but FFS just look way shakier. They had a massive gold lead in g1 vs OSG, but completely collapsed in the late game. Meanwhile, CBP are coming off of a clean win against NGD with morale at an all-time high. If qwerthe5 is able to run away with the game like they’ve shown they’re capable of, then I can see an angle for the Squires to take the win, but without that angle, I struggle to see how they take the match.

Prediction: CBP 2-0

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Glacial Void (6-0) vs Jolly Rogers Ghost Crew (6-0)

Only one map separates these two in the standings. They are both the absolute top tier of the league at the moment, but there remains a lingering fog over one of these teams.

Glacial hasn’t played against a team that has pushed them at all. Their closest games were against a roster-shuffled CBP, nothing at all of the caliber of Ghost Crew. Meanwhile, JRGC have played and beaten the number 3 team OSG in dominant fashion. Both teams have similar strengths, but Glacial’s players don’t appear to have been as challenged as Jolly Rogers’ have. It’s straight up a brain diff for this match, and I can see it going either way. If things go long, then my vote goes to the reigning champs in an absolute nail biter.

Prediction: JRGC 2-1

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Nefarious Demons (1-5) vs Hyperion White Rabbit (0-6)

flips coin

Prediction: NGD 2-1

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Legacy Esports Prime (3-3) vs OSG Tactical Freeze (4-2)

Another hugely important match, OSG lock their playoff spot with a win and LEP gets closer to the promised land if they can secure two maps.

It’s hard to argue against the OSG squad in this match. Materium has been the most consistent jungler outside of the top 2, Feldroth is a damn good top laner, and TrainerGain has proven himself as a strong carry threat. LEP was able to get a game against CBI, but Complex has turned once again into a big question mark for me. If he can regain some form, then I can see an angle for this squad to win from, but it’s hard if he plays anywhere below his peak. Assuming neither team ints draft or suddenly forget to have hands, I greatly favor Tactical Freeze here.

Prediction: OSG 2-0

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That’s all for this week! I’ll be back next week with some playoff scenarios and games rundown, but keep an eye out for all of the other content around the league in the meantime. Until then, good luck, have fun, and we’ll see you on the rift!