ESL Pro League S18: MOUZ surprise win over Heroic to stay alive in the Mid Bracket

In all editions of the ESL Pro League, we can assure you that there are many surprises. Still, unquestionably, one of the biggest we have seen so far is Heroic’s two consecutive defeats, which leave them one defeat away from being eliminated from the tournament.

MOUZ was the team in charge of giving the second blow to Heroic, as they got an excellent 2-0 victory to stay alive in the Mid Bracket of Group B of this ESL Pro League S18. Likewise, we can’t take any merits away from the MOUZ guys, as they have played a very good tournament despite their loss on the first map against MIBR.

Finally, we do not doubt that Heroic will have to get back on track in the next hours in the Lower Bracket if they don’t want to say goodbye to the tournament in this Group Stage.

MOUZ apply a clean sweep to send Heroic to the Lower Bracket of Group B

Heroic started as the clear favorite to be one of the first two qualifiers from Group B in this ESL Pro League S18; there is no doubt about that. However, they came up against two teams that, although they have not had a good year, right now are showing great determination and, above all, a good level of play, BIG and MOUZ.

This time, MOUZ, the popular North American squad, applied a clean sweep to beat Heroic 2-0 and thus send them to the Lower Bracket.

The series between MOUZ and Heroic took place in Mirage and Nuke.

Mirage

It all started in Mirage, the map pick of MOUZ, where we could observe two different and, above all, unexpected halves. The first half started with an excellent offense by the MOUZ guys, which Dorian “xertioN” Berman commanded and led them to a tight 8-7 partial victory.

However, when it was thought that Heroic could wake up, it was the opposite. MOUZ’s defensive approach was spectacular, and after winning 8 of the 9 rounds, they took the victory by 16-8.

.@mousesports take a strong win on Mirage, closing it out 16-8 against @heroicgg to open up the series!

Next up: Nuke ☢#ESLProLeague pic.twitter.com/RTlvduFfmb

— ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) September 8, 2023

Nuke

Next, the teams moved to Nuke, the map chosen by Heroic. On this map, we saw, once again, how Heroic was overshadowed by a team that, in theory, had a lower level than them. First, MOUZ took the baton on their CT side in the first half and managed to take a very good partial victory by 9-6.

Finally, Heroic won the first 3 rounds at the change of sides, and they were 9-9 on the scoreboard. However, MOUZ woke up immediately, and they managed to win 7 of the next 8 rounds to seal their 16-10 victory on the map. As a result, MOUZ will play against MIBR for the third playoff spot in Group B, while Heroic will have to play for their lives in the Lower Bracket, and their first match is against Monte Esports in the next few hours.

.@mousesports run away with the series, defeating @heroicgg with a CLEAN 2-0, sending them down to the Last Chance Bracket 🔥

16-8 Mirage
16-10 Nuke#ESLProLeague pic.twitter.com/YOP2hCMPSs

— ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) September 8, 2023

Header: ESL