VCT Americas LCQ Day 3: KRÜ And Cloud9 Proceed, Sentinels To Lower Bracket

After an explosive 100Thieves vs. Sentinels match, the North American Valorant rivalries escalated on day three. Cloud9 and Sentinels, alongside KRÜ and Leviatán, battled it out for the upper bracket run in the tournament. While Cloud9 and Sentinels had a close fought battle, KRÜ managed to defeat Leviatán with relative ease, locking in an upper bracket spot. Here are the detailed results from day three.

Also read: Bleed Esports Wins VCT Ascension Pacific 2023

Day 3 Recap for VCT Americas LCQ: Sentinels Relegated To Lower Bracket

For the Upper Bracket Semifinals of the Americas Last Chance Qualifier, Cloud9 managed to defeat Sentinels 2-1. Sentinels will receive a second opportunity in the lower bracket as the event has reached the double-elimination stage. After a 6-1 start on Pearl, a map Sentinels chose despite a loss to 100 Thieves yesterday, Cloud9 appeared set to win quickly. Cloud9 eventually won 13-8 in a relatively easy game.

However, they soon encountered a challenge. Sentinels found their form and defeated Cloud9 with a score of 13-5 on the latter's choice of Fracture. Moving on to the third map of Split Cloud9 was evidently more confident. They defeated Sentinels' errant plays to take an 8-4 advantage going into halftime. They made quick work of Sentinels on the defense, and finally prevailed with a score of 13-8.

Cloud9 still needs to win two games if they want to completely capitalize on their upper bracket advantage. If the guys in blue are to make it back to Champions after missing out last year, they must win the Bo5 grand final against either KRÜ Esports, Leviatán, or Sentinels in the grand final. If Sentinels want to get back into Champions, they must regain the form they displayed against 100T and win at least three games. They will play Leviatán in their opening game in the lower bracket.

Moving to match two, KRÜ Esports easily defeated Leviatán with a 2-0 map score. Both teams are still in the competition as KRÜ advances to the upper finals and Leviatán moves to the lower semifinals. KRÜ's triumph builds on their impressive performance thus far in the LCQ having already defeated MIBR and FURIA. 

Their recent success is a sharp contrast to how they played during the regular season where they went winless in VCT Americas League games. Facing their first North American roster in the competition, KRÜ will try to extend their Cinderella run at the Americas LCQ when they take on Cloud9 in the Upper Finals. Last time these teams met, fans were treated to a close 2-1 matchup in week 8 of the regular season where Cloud9 defeated KRÜ.