The group stage at the IEM Katowice CIS Minor championship ended today, and four teams are still in the running for Challenger status.
Gambit Esports and AVANGAR join Winstrike and Team Spirit as the four remaining contenders in ESL’s $50,000 CIS Minor tournament for the upcoming Valve Major. The CIS powerhouses won their respective groups’ decider matches to advance one step closer to the main Katowice event, which will take place next month.
Related: Winstrike and Team Spirit take the first playoff spots at the IEM Katowice CIS Minor
Gambit survived their group by destroying Nemiga Gaming and Syman Gaming in the losers’ bracket of Group A (not counting Gambit’s Mirage loss). In Group B, AVANGAR only had to take down pro100 in two close maps, Inferno and Dust II, to secure the final playoff spot at the CIS Minor.
Group A
Elimination Match
Gambit Esports vs. Nemiga Gaming
- Gambit won Train 16-9
- Gambit won Inferno 16-4
Decider Match
Gambit Esports vs. Syman Gaming
- Syman won Mirage 16-7
- Gambit won Dust II 16-2
- Gambit won Train 16-10
Group B
Elimination Match
Pro100 vs. Runtime
- Runtime won Dust II 16-8
- Pro100 won Cache 16-11
- Pro100 won Mirage 16-3
Decider Match
AVANGAR vs. Pro100
- AVANGAR won Inferno 16-13
- AVANGAR won Dust II 16-12
The semifinals of the CIS Minor begins tomorrow at 3am CT. Spirit vs. AVANGAR will kick off the action, before Winstrike vs. Gambit conclude the day at 6:30am CT. Then the two qualifier spots for the CIS region will be decided this weekend in the winners’ and losers’ brackets of the tournament.
