GEEK FAM’S ASCENT from the bottom seed of MPL Indonesia to a potential championship run lives on as the Indonesian squad eliminated the former MPL-PH Champions RSG Philippines in a 2-1 slugfest.
With their victory, all Filipino MPL teams have been eliminated as Geek Fam secures their very first finals berth. Their previous highest placement was a 3rd-4th place finish in the MPL Invitational 2020.
How Geek Fam stomped the Raiders
Prior to their matchup, John “1rrad” Tuazon was already making a name in this tournament, especially with his Martis pick.
Due to his impact in the previous matches, Geek Fam targeted him during the drafting phase, eliminating his hero pool.
This forced 1rrad to use Gusion, and while he managed to do a solid job in poking the backlines during teamfights, Geek Fam calmed the storm by taking advantage of the hero’s combo-centric weakness. This allowed Mohammad “Caderaa” Pambudi’s Beatrix to deliver the finishing touches.
With his Valentine pick, Aboy created a lot of space by using the Black Shoes to command most of the teamfights. He even made key setups during the laning phase, which included an outplay against Nathanael “Nathzz” Estrologo.
Meanwhile, Luke “Luke” Valentinus looked unkillable as his Fredrinn remained unfazed.
Protected by Allen Jedric “Baloyskie” Baloy, Geek Fam weathered all storm, including a a valiant Nathanael "Nathzz" Estrologo play. In the end, the Raiders were forced to concede Game 1.
With what happened in Game 1, RSG PH adapted to Geek Fam’s antics. Nathzz, who struggled in Game 1, saw life in Game 2, as his Benedetta simply outplayed most members from Geek Fam in Game 2, leading to a Raiders victory.
In the do-or-die Game 3 match, Geek Fam capitalized on a high burst damage meta with a Beatrix and Gusion combo that synergized well with the strong pokes from Mathilda.
To further maximize their impact, Geek Fam would focus on beefing up Caderaa's Beatrix. The Indonesian squad managed to dominate the bottom lane as they pushed through the turrets.
Their tactics paid dividends as Geek Fam was able to pressure the Raiders. Then, when it came to teamfights, Geek Fam comfortably took command. With Luke's signature frontlining antics combined with Aboy's heroics, Baloyskie's cancellation of Exort, and the follow up damage from the other members and the Indonesian squad was able to prevail in the final game.
While RSG's elimination is definitely tragic for MPL-PH fans, they could still show their support to the Filipino imports like Geek Fam's Baloyskie and Jaymark "Janaaqt" Lazaro and Onic Indonesia's Kairi "Kairi" Rayosdelsol.
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