The opening day of action at the ESL Pro League Season Eight Finals concluded today with Astralis and Team Liquid securing the first two playoff spots.
Both Astralis and Liquid went 2-0 in today’s group stage matches, putting them into the upper bracket of Group A. Astralis took down ViCi Gaming and HellRaisers, while Liquid defeated G2 Esports and BIG later on in the day. The Danes and North Americans will face-off on Dec. 6 for a spot in the semifinals this weekend, and the loser of their game will go to the quarterfinals.
Related: A preview of what’s to come at the ESL Pro League Season 8 Finals
After easing past ViCi, Astralis went up against HellRaisers in the first winners’ match of the day. Despite initial struggles on Mirage and Dust II, Astralis found victory on Inferno convincingly. A solid CT side on Dust II helped the Danes come back and win the series 2-1, with Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz and Emil “Magisk” Reif doing the most damage during map two and three.
The second winners’ match between Liquid and BIG, however, was a much more one-sided affair. The North American side put up two 16-6 scorelines vs. the Germans, despite a massive blunder in which they lost a one-vs-three anti-eco clutch to Johannes “nex” Maget on Dust II.
Group A
Initial Matches
- Astralis won Inferno 16-8 vs. ViCi Gaming
- HellRaisers won Mirage 16-5 vs. Renegades
- Team Liquid won Nuke 16-8 vs. G2 Esports
- BIG won Train 16-10 vs. INTZ Esports
Winners’ Matches
Astralis vs. HellRaisers
- HR won Mirage 16-8
- Astralis won Dust II 16-13
- Astralis won Inferno 16-4
Team Liquid vs. BIG
- Liquid won Inferno 16-6
- Liquid won Dust II 16-6
Elimination Matches
Renegades vs. ViCi Gaming
- Renegades won Inferno 16-12
- Renegades won Mirage 16-9
G2 Esports vs. INTZ Esports
- G2 won Overpass 16-6
- INTZ won Mirage 16-8
- G2 won Dust II 22-18
Group B
Initial Matches
- MIBR won Inferno 16-2 vs. Sharks Esports
- NRG Esports won Train 16-13 vs. North
- Mousesports won Train 16-5 vs. Ghost Gaming
- Natus Vincere won Mirage 16-14 vs. ORDER
The EPL Season Season Eight Finals continues tomorrow in Odense, Denmark at 5am CT, beginning with the Group B elimination matches featuring Ghost vs. ORDER and North vs. Sharks.
