Fresh from their win in the quarterfinals, Poland’s K1CK Neosurf swept Movistar Riders to earn their semifinal spot.
How they got there
Like in the previous semifinals, this is a rematch from the groups. K1CK Neosurf rose through the play-ins to reach second place in group C, only falling to Movistar Riders in the final tiebreaker before conquering French champions GamersOrigin in the quarterfinals. Movistar themselves entered the main event as Spain’s second seed and left group C as the first place team before eliminating Fnatic Rising in an exciting 3-game match.
Game 1: K1CK rule the mid-game
The opening game saw an even start, with K1CK doing better in the bottom and mid lanes while Movistar having an advantage top and in the jungle.
It took some 15 minutes for the first blood to come as Movistar tried to chase their opponents away from a Rift Herald only to lose three in the fight. The Polish team pressed the advantage and took over the mid-game. 24 minutes in, they took down the enemy jungler Javier "Elyoya" Prades and then went for the Baron, with Movistar’s contest only serving to give them three more kills. Movistar found some picks, but it only bought them time: K1CK would eventually get a second baron and slowly take apart their base before ending the game.
Game 2: Setting them up and knocking them down
The fighting started early in the second game with a lot of focus on the bottom lane - and while K1CK made the first attempts, it was Movistar that had the early success with two kills on Javier "JaVaaa" Martínez’ Miss Fortune. However, the Polish team won several skirmishes in the mid lane and jungle, with Marcin "iBo" Lebuda’s Ornn poised to take over.
They slowly extended their lead until once more a poorly executed Movistar engage allowed iBo to set up the enemy carries for his own teammates to burst them down, giving K1CK an easy Baron. The Spanish squad kept trying to find a teamfight in their favor, but all it did was hasten their demise.
It was a dominant performance by the Polish second seed, as the team made up for its loss in the group. The team that started in the play-ins may well be the favorite in Sunday’s finals as they showed few weaknesses in this sweep. In the finals, they will face France’s LDLC OL and have a chance to avenge fellow Poles AGO ROGUE, who lost in the other semifinal. It has been some two years since last Poland had a finalist - is this the tournament when they finally have a champion?
If you have missed the tournament so far, you can follow K1CK’s path to the finals here:
- LoL European Masters play-in review
- EU Masters Main Event week 1 recap
- EU Masters Main Event week 2 recap
- K1CK Neosurf’s march in EU Masters continues
- Movistar Riders defeat Fnatic Rising in LoL EU Masters nail-biter
And if you love League of Legends, keep an eye on our LoL section about more news, tips and tricks about your favorite MOBA.