The Vegas Legion were the big winners in elimination-round action Friday as they pulled off a pair of wins at the Call of Duty League's Major III in Arlington, Texas.
Vegas recorded 3-1 victories while ousting both Los Angeles teams -- first taking care of the Guerrillas in the opening round of the elimination bracket before also dusting the Thieves in the next round. The Thieves had swept the Minnesota Rokkr 3-0 in their first match of the day.
In other Round 1 elimination play, host OpTic Texas sent the London Royal Ravens home by virtue of their 3-2 comeback win, and the Florida Mutineers downed the New York Subliners 3-1.
Major III began with all 12 Call of Duty League teams, and the double-elimination event continues through Sunday.
The Legion built a 2-0 lead over the Guerrillas by taking wins on Embassy Hardpoint 250-124 and Breenbergh Hotel Search & Destroy 6-0. L.A. responded with a 3-1 win on Al Bagra Fortress Control, but Vegas clinched with a 250-213 win on Mercado Las Almas Hardpoint.
The Thieves won their first-round elimination match over Minnesota thanks to successive map wins on Zarqwa Hydroelectric Hardpoint (250-236), Breenbergh Hotel Search & Destroy (6-2) and Breenbergh Hotel Control (3-1).
That led to Vegas following the same formula it used in taking out the Guerrillas, starting with a 2-0 map edge in winning Breenbergh Hotel Hardpoint 250-233 and El Asilo Search & Destroy 6-5. After L.A. hung around via a 3-0 triumph on El Asilo Control, the Legion finished the job with a 250-229 win on Mercado Las Almas Hardpoint.
OpTic fell behind when the Royal Ravens claimed the opening map 250-244 on Zarqwa Hydroelectric Hardpoint. OpTic evened things by winning 6-4 on Al Bagra Fortress Search & Destroy, but London again moved ahead with a 3-2 win on Al Bagra Fortress Control. OpTic pushed back, conquering maps on Mercado Las Almas Hardpoint (250-203) and Mercado Las Almas Search & Destroy (6-4).
Florida won its first two maps against New York -- 250-244 on Breenbergh Hotel Hardpoint and 6-1 on Al Bagra Fortress Search & Destroy -- until the Subliners stayed alive with a 3-0 win on Al Bagra Fortress Control. The Mutineers ended the match by winning 250-235 on Mercado Las Almas Hardpoint.
The tournament continues Saturday with five matches:
--Seattle Surge vs. Atlanta FaZe (winners bracket, Round 2)
--Boston Breach vs. Toronto Ultra (winners bracket, Round 2)
--OpTic Texas vs. Florida Mutineers (elimination bracket, Round 2)
--Vegas Legion vs. TBD (elimination bracket, Round 3)
--OpTic-Mutineers winner vs. TBD (elimination bracket, Round 3)
Call of Duty League Major III prize pool and points distribution
1. $200,000 + 65 CDL points
2. $120,000 + 50 CDL points
3. $80,000 + 40 CDL points
4. $40,000 + 30 CDL points
5-6. $20,000 + 20 CDL points
7-8. $10,000 + 10 CDL points -- Los Angeles Thieves, TBD
9-12. No money or CDL points -- New York Subliners, London Royal Ravens, Minnesota Rokkr, Los Angeles Guerrillas
--Field Level Media