ONIC PH boots out Omega in all-Filipino MPLI marquee matchup

ONIC Philippines. Photo from ONE Esports

by Drew Malihan

MANILA - Two perennial contenders from the same country battle it out in the international stage, but it's the hedgehogs who are still the alpha to Omega.

ONIC Philippines went on to sweep newfound rivals Smart Omega in an all-Filipino showdown in Day 2 of ONE Esports MPL Invitational Wednesday.

Smart Omega went with Yi Sun-shin, Selena, Barats, Alice, and a roaming Gloo, while ONIC PH went to a gold lane Claude and a core Paquito with X.Borg, Jawhead, and a support Lunox.

Both ONIC and Omega went on to a fire against fire early game as they trade kills after kills but ONIC PH started to crawl slowly out of the deadlock.

Two ONIC PH lord takes were not enough to end the game for the hedgehogs as despie taking the inhibitors, the damage were not enough as Kelra's Alice activated clutch plays for Omega.

The veterans stepped up big in the game as Dlarskie, Beemo, and captain Baloyskie made significant plays to keep Smart Omega in their bases while Markyyyyy's Claude made significant Blazing Duets to box out Omega and take the Game 1 with the third lord led by Dlarskie's 7/1/7 with the X.Borg.

Omega went on with Brody, Mathilda, Paquito, Lylia, and a jungle Lancelot, while ONIC PH fielded Natan, Chou, Esmeralda, Pharsa, and Hayabusa.

ONIC PH went on to have a strong early game thanks to Kairi's aggression as well as Beemo's sets mainly to Natan, while E2MAX and Baloyskie went to challenge each other forcing their ultimates.

However, the Smart-backed side made significant pickoffs in the mid-lane thanks to Raizen's mechanical Lancelot plays that opens a lord opportunity and make significant damage to the ONIC PH inhibitors.

ONIC PH went on to contest the lord late in the 15th minute successfully as Omega lost Raizen and Kelra in the contest, allowing Kairi to get a comfortable take.

With the second lord up, Baloyskie and company went to destroy the mid inhibitor of Omega, forcing the boys in green to fight back but to no avail.

Baloyskie went on to deal a burst down on Omega, putting E2MAX down and the rest retreating to no avail as Dlarskie and Markyyyyy went on to slain Raizen for a wipeout and a sweep, led by Kairi's 12/1/3 performance.

ONIC PH will head on to face another powerhouse in perennial MPL ID contenders RRQ Hoshi in the third day for a chance to battle MPL Malaysia champions Team SMG.

Follow him on Twitter: @drewmalihan