RLCS X: Power Rankings NA - Edition #2
We’re in the middle of the NA Regional Event 1. There was a lot of action last week, and there’s even more to come. It’s time to look at which teams lived up to expectations, and which up-and-coming teams made their way to the top.
#10 - Kansas City Pioneers (New) - rapid, Memory, BeastMode
The Pioneers may not have been able to take down top teams like Envy, G2, or Spacestation, but they’re up there with the best of the rest. The prodigy on this team, BeastMode, played well with his teammates and stepped up when he was needed. Taking SSG to game five is no easy feat, but the Kansas City Pioneers pulled it off.
#9 - Susquehanna Soniqs (New) - Shock, Satthew, jruss
The success story of the Susquehanna Soniqs has jruss in a leading role. There were doubts about whether they could play out their parts, but great plays got them to the playoffs in The Grid, and into Stage 2 for the Regional Event. And jruss - give this man an Oscar.
#8 - Version1 (-1) - Torment, Gimmick, AxB
Even though Group B in the NA Regional Event was stacked, Version1 had a relatively easy run, facing three bubble teams to qualify for next weekend. All in all, it was a decent week for Version1, but they didn’t make it anything special. At this pace, they have to watch out for up-and-coming teams overtaking them.
#7 - Alpine Esports (New) - percy., Jordan, majicbear
Alpine look much more robust than in the off-season. Many teams seem to struggle with Alpine’s dominant offensive pressure. They keep possession in the opponent’s half through quick-passing plays. A sweep versus Version1 to make it to The Grid playoffs and three sweeps in the Regional Event help Alpine climb up to eighth place in the Power Rankings. Alpine Esports have a mountain to climb in Stage 2, but they look as ready as ever.
#6 - The Peeps (New) - Gyro., AYYJAYY, Allushin
During The Grid Week 2, The Peeps didn’t manage to win a single game. They couldn’t get anything done, as Allushin was having connection issues all day. The Peeps are a good team, but 2v3 against other RLCS teams is too much to ask. It must have given them even more motivation to hit back hard in Stage 1 of the Regional Event. And oh boy, did they ever. Without connection issues, they look unstoppable. Everyone made the classic mistake of sleeping on The Peeps, again.
#5 - NRG Esports (-4) - GarrettG, Jstn, SquishyMuffinz
NRG struggled to win overtimes, and it cost them the series on more than one occasion. They’re still a very decent team, but you’d expect more from this all-star squad. NRG couldn’t play their own game and got often shut down on offence. It’s time for them to step up to the plate going into this week.
#4 - Rogue (-2) - Kronovi, Firstkiller, Turinturo
Rogue had a rough start of the season, but they look to recover from that. Their showing in The Grid was much better than in Week 1, and they mostly performed up to expectations. Getting swept by The Peeps, though, is not a good look for a contender that should be at the top of the rankings. This week might be deciding how Rogue look going into the rest of the season.
#3 - Team Envy (+1) - Atomic, Mist, Turbopolsa
Envy certainly didn’t get easy matchups in The Grid, nor the Regional Event. Still, they smashed it. Their 3-2 win over NRG looks like a close win, but Envy dominated. Keeping the ball in NRG’s half, they gave away no chances. Atomic stepped up for his team this week. Mist and Turbopolsa are in good shape too, so Team Envy looks to do some damage this week.
#2 - Spacestation Gaming (+1) - Sypical, Arsenal, Retals
Spacestation shows what you need to do well in RLCS X. Their consistency keeps them in the running for the best team in NA. Getting a close second-place in the Grid, and not dropping a single series in the Regional event is all you want to see from SSG. They only struggled ever so slightly against eUnited, in the most intense game five overtime of the season so far. It took Spacestation more than twelve minutes of playtime in that last game - but they took the win. As long as they keep taking those wins, there’s no stopping them.
#1 - G2 Esports (+4) - Jknaps, Rizzo, Chicago
The only team that can stop SSG at the moment is G2 Esports. G2 didn’t lose a single series last week. The competition is fierce in NA, but G2 are just absolutely dominant. The synergy of this team is unmatched. It probably also helps that G2 get to play together in their gaming house, all with incredibly low ping. Whoever convinced them to live inside Psyonix’s servers is a genius. G2 are the best in NA right now, but that doesn’t mean they don’t take their job seriously anymore. They know what’s at stake, and keep pushing. Stage 2 of the NA Regional Event is really going to be exciting.
Image via ZeeboDesigns
