The Atlanta Reign bounced back from their first loss of qualifying — both spring and summer — to pick up a 3-1 victory over the Toronto Defiant on Sunday in Summer Stage qualifiers in the West Region.
Atlanta won 2-1 on Oasis and 1-0 on Numbani to take a commanding lead. The Defiant pulled off a 7-6 triumph on Circuit Royal, but the Reign put the match away with a 1-0 win on Esperanca.
Summer Stage qualifiers in the West run through Sept. 4, with each team in the region playing a total of eight best-of-five matches. The top three teams will advance to the playoffs, while the fourth- through 10th-ranked squads will be sent to the play-ins.
The Florida Mayhem capped an impressive Week 2 performance with a 3-1 victory over the New York Excelsior. After the squads split the first two maps, Florida picked up wins on Route 66 (2-1) and Colosseo (1-0) to improve to 2-0 on the week.
After beating the San Francisco Shock on Saturday, the London Spitfire also went 2-0 over the weekend thanks to Sunday’s 3-1 victory against the Los Angeles Valiant. London took the first two maps before the Valiant won 1-0 on Dorado to pull within 2-1, but the Spitfire claimed the match by prevailing 1-0 on Colosseo.
Summer Stage qualifying action in the West resumes on Friday with three matches:
–Los Angeles Gladiators vs. London Spitfire
–Boston Uprising vs. Los Angeles Valiant
–Atlanta Reign vs. Florida Mayhem
West standings (W-L record, map differential — includes performance in both spring and summer qualifiers)
1. Atlanta Reign, 11-1, plus-29
2. Florida Mayhem, 10-2, plus-20
3. Boston Uprising, 9-3, plus-15
4. Houston Outlaws, 9-3, plus-13
5. San Francisco Shock, 6-6, minus-6
6. Washington Justice, 5-5, plus-1
7. Los Angeles Gladiators, 5-5, minus-3
8. New York Excelsior, 5-7, minus-2
9. Toronto Defiant, 5-7, minus-3
10. Vancouver Titans, 4-6, minus-1
11. London Spitfire, 4-8, minus-10
12. Los Angeles Valiant, 1-11, minus-25
13. Vegas Eternal, 0-10, minus-28
–Field Level Media