Riot Squad overcome Lazarus to complete MSI MGA team list

Riot Squad have claimed the final spot at MSI MGA 2019 following a 2-1 victory over Lazarus in the grand final (9-16 Overpass, 16-12 Vertigo, 16-11 Inferno).

The MSI MGA North America closed qualifier saw eight teams duke it out through a single-elimination best-of-three bracket for a shot at one spot at the event's $60,000 LAN finals in New York next month.

Lazarus battled their way past Peeker's Advantage and New Identity in two one-sided series to kick off the day, with only one map from each matchup reaching double digits. Meanwhile, Riot Squad narrowly edged out a series victory over ATK before crushing Joshua "⁠steel⁠" Nissan's nambla mix, earning themselves a spot in the grand finals against Lazarus.

FNS' addition to Riot Squad is already paying off

A stellar performance by Jordan "⁠Zellsis⁠" Montemurro on Overpass helped Lazarus to an 11-4 half on their opponent's pick, with the team quickly closing out the map 16-9 as Zellsis put up 34 frags to his name. Riot Squad were able to reply on Vertigo as they rallied back from a 6-9 deficit at the half, dropping just three rounds following the side swap to tie up the series with a 16-12 map victory.

Inferno was fittingly the series decider, with Lazarus taking three uncontested rounds to kick off the map. Five rounds in reply from Riot Squad saw Austin "⁠crashies⁠" Roberts and company steal away the lead, although Lazarus were able to immediately tie up the scoreline with two rounds of their own. A stellar individual performance by Gage "⁠Infinite⁠" Green was not enough for Lazarus to regain the lead however, and it was Riot Squad who took their first halftime lead of the series at 9-6 as they swapped to the CT-side.

crashies took control of the proceedings for his side as he helped his team put up a solid defense, winning six rounds straight to immediately grant Riot Squad match point. Lazarus made an attempt to fight back from the brink of defeat as they added five rounds to their tally, but the map was too far gone as crashies and co. closed out the series with a 16-11 scoreline.

MSI MGA 2019 North America Closed QualifierBest of 3 Riot SquadMatchpage 2 1 11th August 2019 Lazarus 9Overpass 16 16Vertigo 12 16Inferno 11

Riot Squad	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Austin 'crashies' Robertscrashies	74 - 52	+22	90.9	1.35
Jonathan 'Jonji' CareyJonji	60 - 56	+4	87.1	1.14
Peter 'ptr' Gurneyptr	64 - 55	+9	72.7	1.09
Mitch 'mitch' Semagomitch	53 - 53	0	83.5	1.08
Pujan 'FNS' MehtaFNS	35 - 50	-15	56.2	0.85

Lazarus	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Gage 'Infinite' GreenInfinite	60 - 57	+3	83.6	1.12
Jordan 'Zellsis' MontemurroZellsis	59 - 60	-1	86.3	1.09
Jaccob 'yay' Whiteakeryay	61 - 57	+4	73.3	1.02
Yassine 'Subroza' TaoufikSubroza	44 - 59	-15	60.8	0.85
Braxton 'swag' Pierceswag	42 - 54	-12	64.1	0.84

Riot Squad's victory grants them the final spot at the $60,000 MSI MGA 2019 Finals, with the event set to play out from September 28-29 in New York. The four teams that will be participating are as follows:

ViCi
ex-Epsilon Gambit Youngsters
Riot Squad ATK #59 Roberto 'blackpoisoN' Dall'OccoDominic 'Domsterr' SampaioRhys 'Fadey' ArmstrongJohnny 'JT' TheodosiouIan 'motm' Hardy Lazarus #51 Braxton 'swag' PierceJaccob 'yay' WhiteakerYassine 'Subroza' TaoufikJordan 'Zellsis' MontemurroGage 'Infinite' Green ex-Epsilon #43 Joey 'CRUC1AL' SteuselKia 'Surreal' ManRasmus 'kreaz' JohanssonTeodor 'SPELLAN' NikolovHelvijs 'broky' Saukants Jordan 'Zellsis' Montemurro Age: 21 Team: Lazarus Rating 1.0: 1.04 Maps played: 480 KPR: 0.72 DPR: 0.68 New Identity #54 Sebastian 'seb' BuckiSkyler 'Relyks' WeaverCollin 'wrath' McSweeganWill 'dazzLe' LoafmanMichael 'dapr' Gulino nambla Joshua 'steel' Nissan Age: 29 Team: No team Rating 1.0: 1.02 Maps played: 406 KPR: 0.71 DPR: 0.70 Peeker's Advantage #100 Daniel 'roca' GustaferriStephen 'reltuC' CutlerTaylor 'Drone' JohnsonAndy 'vSa' XuChad 'Oderus' Miller Gage 'Infinite' Green Age: 21 Team: Lazarus Rating 1.0: 1.12 Maps played: 359 KPR: 0.76 DPR: 0.66 ViCi #71 Zhuo 'advent' LiangWeiJie 'zhokiNg' ZhongZhiHong 'aumaN' LiuAndrew 'kaze' KhongTao 'Franke19' Deng Austin 'crashies' Roberts Age: 21 Team: Riot Squad Rating 1.0: 1.06 Maps played: 200 KPR: 0.74 DPR: 0.69 Gambit Youngsters #48 Timofey 'interz' YakushinAnton 'supra' TšernobaiSergey 'Ax1Le' RykhtorovDmitry 'sh1ro' SokolovVladislav 'nafany' Gorshkov Riot Squad #69 Pujan 'FNS' MehtaPeter 'ptr' GurneyMitch 'mitch' SemagoJonathan 'Jonji' CareyAustin 'crashies' Roberts