Team Falcons and The MongolZ powered through the quarterfinals Friday to reach the final four of the Intel Extreme Masters Dallas event.
Falcons outlasted GamerLegion 2-1 to set up a semifinal date with Team Vitality. The MongolZ posted a 2-0 victory over Aurora Gaming and will face MOUZ in the semis.
The $300,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive event began with 16 teams divided into two double-elimination groups. The group winners clinched playoff semifinal berths.
The group runners-up entered the quarterfinals as high seeds, and the two third-place teams moved into the quarterfinals as low seeds. The other five teams in each group were eliminated.
All matches in the group stage and the playoffs are best-of-three except for the grand final on Sunday, which will be best-of-five.
The winning team will earn $125,000, and the runner-up will make $50,000.
On Friday, Falcons sandwiched 13-8 victories on Ancient and Inferno around a 13-9 setback to GamerLegion on Nuke. Russia’s Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov posted 54 kills and a plus-17 kills-to-deaths differential for Falcons. Oldrich “PR” Novy of the Czech Republic paced GamerLegion with 47 kills.
The MongolZ defeated Aurora 13-11 on Dust II and 13-6 on Mirage. The all-Mongolian roster leaned on Azbayar “Senzu” Munkhbold (39 kills, plus-16) and Usukhbayar “910” Banzragch (36 kills, plus-10). Ali “Wicadia” Haydar Yalcin of Turkey had 34 kills for Aurora.
The playoffs continue Saturday with the two semifinal matches:
–Team Vitality vs. Team Falcons
–MOUZ vs. The MongolZ
Intel Extreme Masters Dallas prize pool
1. $125,000
2. $50,000
3-4. $25,000
5-6. $12,500 — GamerLegion, Aurora Gaming
7-8. $7,000 — G2 Esports, HEROIC
9-12. $5,000 — 3DMAX, FURIA, FaZe Clan, Team Liquid
13-16. $4,000 — Legacy, Lynn Vision Gaming, BC.Game Esports, NRG
–Field Level Media