Sharks Esports swept Complexity 2-0 on Wednesday in a quarterfinal match as the BLAST Premier Fall American Showdown got underway.
The $67,500 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive event features eight teams vying for one of two remaining berths in the $425,000 BLAST Premier Fall Finals, scheduled for Oct. 23-27 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Another spot will go to the winner of the Fall European also being contested this week.
The eight American Showdown teams are competing in a single knockout bracket consisting of quarterfinals, semifinals and final. All matches are best-of-three, including the championship round on Sunday.
Sharks moved into the semifinals on the strength of a 16-9 victory on Dust II and a 16-14 win on Nuke.
Vinicius “n1ssim” Pereira paced Sharks’ all-Brazilian roster with 49 kills and a plus-17 kill-death differential. The United States’ Michael “Grim” Wince led Complexity with 41 kills, while teammate Hakon “hallzerk” Fjaerli of Norway had a team-best even K-D differential.
The quarterfinals continue Thursday, with LOS + oNE opposing MIBR to determine Sharks’ semifinal foe. The other two quarterfinals are set for Friday, with Evil Geniuses facing Fluxo and VERTEX Esports Club clashing with 00 Nation.
BLAST Premier Fall American Showdown prize pool and points distribution
1. $20,000, 1,600 BLAST Premier points, qualification for BLAST Premier Fall Finals
2. $12,500, 800 points
3-4. $7,500, 500 points
5-8. $5,000, 150 points — Complexity, three teams TBD
–Field Level Media