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| Photo from MPL Philippines |
by Drew Malihan
MAKATI - Rise like a phoenix, out of the ashes. Seeking rather than vengeance, retribution.
Much like Austria's Eurovision win in 2014, TNC Pro Team rose from the ashes as they upset Blacklist International with a 2-1 reverse sweep to earn their first win in MPL Philippines Season 13, Saturday.
Both teams showed new flavor in the roam as they entered the second week, with TNC bringing in Czedrick "Super Yoshi" Romero while Kier "Nomed" Sugarno shifted from roam to his old role in the gold lane.
Blacklist International meanwhile made their swap with Kim "Kimpoy" dela Cruz in the roam after two games with Salic "Hadji" Imam in Game 1.
The Tier One-backed side pulled a come-from-behind game 1 win, as all TNC members were wiped out after Dean "Raizen" Sumagui's Fredrinn took the lord but fell in the process.
As TNC retreats in the middle lane, Edward "Edward" Dapadap led the onslaught, getting two out of the four remaining Phoenix Army members to claim the game, with the Hall of Famer EXP laner getting 2/3/3 KDA with the Cici.
The two teams engaged in a 26-minute Game 2, both having close calls to end the game, with a three-man Blacklist defending successfully in the 18th minute by taking down Jaylord "Hatred" Gonzales's Valentina, and TNC sans Raizen's Barats defending the exposed base by taking out Stephen "Sensui" Castillo's Nolan.
Sensui attempted a classic lord steal but was taken down by four TNC players, with Raizen's retribution in the 26th minute sealing the deal for his team and forcing a do-or-die, with Nomed's Karrie's 4/0/5 KDA leading the charge.
Nomed continued his "transformed and reformed" performance with a 2/1/3 performance with the Karrie, as the Phoenix Army snowballed in the rubber match despite the Codebreakers picking their signature Estes pick.
Christian "Heads" Morada led the team in kills with five, along with three assists, while Raizen got all the major objectives including three turtles and a lord.
TNC now improved to a 1-2 record with three full points in the bag, while Blacklist grabbed a single point while dropping to 1-2.
It was also Blacklist's second straight loss against TNC in MPL-PH, with their last win in round one of Season 12.
The Phoenix Army will try to soar higher as they will face undefeated side ECHO, while the Codebreakers will visit the Barangay, all on Sunday.
Follow him on X: @drew_corner
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