CEL Season 3 file photo.
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Cesafi Esports League (CEL) Season 3 saw massive upsets shake the tournament as the defending Valorant champions, the University of Cebu Lapu-Lapu Mandaue (UCLM) Webmasters, were eliminated in a stunning fashion last Sunday, April 13.
UCLM stumbled in back-to-back semifinal matches, falling first to the surging CIT-U Wildcats and then to last year’s runners-up, the University of San Carlos (USC) Vamos Warriors during the match held at the Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) campus.
Just last Saturday, the Mobile Legends Bang Bang (MLBB) defending champions, University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) also lost their crown.
READ: Cesafi Esports: USC, CIT-U trounce foes in Valorant tourney
In Sunday’s game, CIT-U made a statement by sweeping UCLM, 2-0, in their best-of-three upper bracket semifinals. Leading the charge was Joshua Gabison, who went on a tear in Game 1 with 20 kills, eight deaths, and two assists.
He upped the ante in Game 2, notching 24 kills, seven assists, and 17 deaths to power the Wildcats into the finals.
READ: USC, UC forge lower bracket semifinal duel in Valorant tourney
LOWER BRACKET SEMIFINALS
Meanwhile, USC scored an equally convincing 2-0 victory over the UC Main Webmasters in the lower bracket semifinals.
Daniel John Santos and King Clarence Toston carried the load for USC, with 23 kills apiece in Games 1 and 2, respectively. Santos added nine assists, while Toston tallied four.
Riding high from that win, USC then faced UCLM in a do-or-die lower bracket showdown and pulled off another 2-0 sweep to eliminate the defending champs.
Toston once again put on a dominant display, registering 21 kills, two assists, and 14 deaths in Game 1. Johanssen Abatayo matched the output in Game 2 with 21 kills, four assists, and 14 deaths, sealing USC’s ticket to the grand finals.
With UCLM out of the picture, the stage is now set for an exciting championship clash between CIT-U and USC for the CEL Season 3 Valorant crown.