The Guard dominated Sentinels in VCT Challengers quarterfinals

The Guard crushed Sentinels in the North American VCT Challengers One main event. The devastating defeat of 2 – 0 in an absolute slaughtering match, immediately dropped Sentinels to the Lower Bracket.

The Guard took a fantastic start and won the pistol round on Bind. The team won the second round as well, despite Sentinel’s valiant efforts to defend. Sentinels secured two consecutive victories, thanks to a one-vs-two clutch by TenZ in round two.

The Guard bounced back and won three consecutive rounds and finally stopped by Sentinels in round eight. Both teams traded blows in rounds nine and 10, but team Guard won the last two rounds of the half and finished the first half on an 8-4 lead.

In the second half, the Guard successfully defended A site against a frantic Sentinels push, then carried the momentum and won the next round. Although Sentinels won round 15 and round 17, The Guard held B site with ease in round 16, which featured a crazy kill from JonahP on top of his Sage wall. The Guard closed the first game with two straight round wins and a scoreline of 12-6.

First professional match on remodeled Icebox

In Map 2, both teams deployed the same agent composition. This was the first professional match on the newly remodeled Icebox, and fans were treated to a game unlike anything seen on the old Icebox.

The Guard dominated the second map with two straight wins in the first two rounds of the map. Although Sentinels won the third round without losing a single player, The Guards controlled the rest of the second half. The team was unstoppable and the first half ended with a crushing 11-1 score. The Guard won both rounds without losing a player in the second half, smashing the Sentinels by a massive 13 -1 scoreline to round out the series 2-0.

What’s next in NA VCT Challengers?

Sentinels currently underperforming, but a run in the Lower Bracket could be just what they need to wake up. After all, this isn’t the first time the Sentinels have found themselves in the Lower Bracket, and we all know what they’re capable of when they put their hearts and souls into anything.

It is undoubtedly challenging, but if they play their best game, they can still climb out of it and win the championship. Nevertheless, we will have to wait until March 21 to discover the fate of the squad in VCT Challenger, when Sentinels will go against Version1 in the first round of the loser bracket.

At the same time, some of the previous season’s top picks are continuing to lose ground. We’ve already seen 100 Thieves’ upsetting 1–4 group stage performance, EG’s 0–5 heartbreak, and now we’ve seen Sentinels get annihilated by The Guard in unparalleled ways. They were defeated 13 – 1 by Icebox, which isn’t something we see often.

All of these unanticipated outcomes have proved one more time why this is one of the best Valorant Champions Tour events yet. This year’s events will not be dominated by one-sided contests with predetermined outcomes, The Guards just made it clear.