AUTHOR: CHRIS "BEARLIGHT" LEE / @BEARLIGHTGAMING
Here we are, at the end of the regular season in the Watchpoint Weekly Summer Series, and with the Invitational spots confirmed, we can take a closer look at the teams and players competing for the $1000 prize pool and the collegiate scholarship opportunities that could come from making the final eight. The Subs have ran the table for the entirety of the season, but a new challenger approached this week with a mission to give them a run for their money, quite literally. It was NOT too late to earn the points necessary to receive an invite to the post season for the newcomers, though they needed a nearly-perfect night to get in. Let's look at who received the final segment's $200 prize, and analyze the season results of all of the teams you will get to see face off in the post-season.
"SPIN 2 WIN" TAKE SEGMENT 3, MAKE INVITATIONAL
A new squad, honoring Stay Plugged In's common abbreviation "SPIN" in their "Spin 2 Win" (S2W) name, definitely waited until the last possible moment to join the Series. Knowing that the field was wide open due to the relatively top-heavy nature of Watchpoint Weekly, "S2W" debuted their team in the final week of the Series. In order to make the Invitational, they knew that a winning record on the night was essential. Seeing as the nature of the bracket would force S2W into an inevitable fight with undefeated league-leaders "Subs" first, the team took the first map to really analyze their opponents approach in point battles. They fell to Subs at Lijiang Tower, but proved to be masters of the payload, as they defeat the formerly undefeated Watchpoint Weekly elite on both Blizzard World and Gibraltar to win the series (2-1) and eventual, the segment [3-0].
FINAL REGULAR SEASON STANDINGS (TOP 4)
1. SUBS [14-1] - 474 Points
A sour taste left in their mouths after having gone the entirety of the Summer Series without a single match loss, only to see that statement shattered by a new team in the final week. Granted S2W did enter with a brand new dynamic of targeting skill and collaboration of abilities not seen by Subs thus far in the regular season, it can still be tough on the mentality rolling into the Invitational to lose a long hot streak. They did manage to close out the rest of the night with wins over Legends and (#2) Blinn. Given their excellent tank play and hitscan abilities, do not think for one second that Subs will be affected by a tightly matched loss when it becomes time for the end-of-season showcase.
2. BLINN IS LFT [8-7] - 290 points
It is noteworthy to point out that 4 of the 7 losses recorded for Blinn is to Subs. In a positive light, this means that their track record against other teams is [8-3], and therefore a heavy focus moving into the post-season for the squad can be figuring out the antidote to their metaphorical kryptonite. On the other side of the coin, two more of their losses came to their trailers, (#3) Uzumaki and (#4) Spin 2 Win. Blinn should have no problem with their Quarterfinal match, but they can't let their first simple match up slow down their pace of play when they likely step into the Semifinals.
3. UZUMAKI [4-2] - 140 Points
I am truly disappointed that we didn't get to see Uzumaki compete in the later stages of this season. This team proved in the first two weeks of the Summer Series that they can hang with the best of them. Sure, it's tough to be bested by the same team two weeks in a row, but when that team is Subs, and the matches were sit-up-in-your-chair close, can you imagine the electricity it would bring to the viewers and the team when they finally overcome the obstacle? I guess I'm just selfishly salty that there were far too many good story lines that went to waste by Uzumaki's inability to compete since Week 2. Here's to hoping they create those for us again with a big performance when the Invitational kicks off on August 5th.
4. SPIN 2 WIN [3-0] - 101 Points
What a journey it has been, is what I would say if the team essentially stealing 4th seed hadn't just joined the Series in the final week. To beat both (#1) Subs and (#2) Blinn in your debut is by far the biggest news story of the Series here. We knew that that field was wide open for seeding changes, but WOW what a jump for the newcomers. The match against Subs could have gone either way, so just because they beat the beast in the regular season does not come close to guaranteeing them the Summer Series title. However, you can bet that they'll be in it until the end, pushing payloads towards the top $500 prize.
Make sure to keep yourself parked right here in the news section early next week, as we confirm and make predictions for the first round of matches. In the meantime, get your fix of Summer Series content by visiting the main page here.