This article is the opinion of the author and not necessarily that of the Los Angeles compLexity or its parent companies.

Who's Hot & Who's Not

Written By: Mike "Peawok" Fleming

San Francisco Optx > Berlin Allianz (27-14)

Vanessa

Vanessa continued her reign of dominance last night, taking down the rising star Liefje, 5-1 on DWA Coliseum. Vanessa looked dominant throughout the start of the match, and even as Liefje fought back in the later rounds, Vanessa closed the game an impressive 5-1. Vanessa has been extremely important for Optx since she was drafted and has now become crucial in their success during Worlds.

Manyna

With how close the semifinals matches would likely be, Berlin was looking for every possible point through their FIFA star, Manyna. He did just that, taking two early goals and getting a third as the first half of regulation ended. Stermy scored one of his own, but Manyna's two extra points could become crucial if the match was close.

Optx's Forza Team

With the Allianz catching up, the Optx looked to their Forza team to pick up where Stermy could not. Miximup and Sackamonjaro did just that, taking the strong Allianz Forza team to the last lap. The Optx took full advantage of their grid position to secure a first place finish, and then held FinPro and YggdrasiL to second and their place and out of reach of first. While one point might not be much, it was a huge moral victory over the Forza Individual World Champions.

NinjaCW

In what looked like a close match on paper, NinjaCW absolutely destroyed The_Tactical 5-1 on Temple on the Mountain. He took the first two rounds, and after The_Tactical replied, he finished off the match, even adding a GREATEST in the mix. His solid play was definitely a moral booster for the team as they headed into their final match up 15-8.

Optx's Counter Strike Team

Needing just to finish off the match, Optx's Source team came up big. They did just that, securing victory in the first half. They continued to rip Allianz's team apart, thrashing them round after round to finish off the match an impressive 12-6. The Optx needs their Source team to play well against Salvo, and an impressive victory here might be the momentum boost necessary.

Birmingham Salvo > Carolina Core (21-20)

Anomaly

Undefeated in the World Finals, Anomaly came up big once again, winning 1-0 over Salvo's Bazza. After a few lucky breaks, Anomaly found his first goal in the second half to win the game 1-0 and keep him undefeated in World Final play.

Salvo's Source Team

After suffering a loss against the Mexico City Furia, Salvo came rocketing back to take Core's Source team 11-7. They scored a big 5-4 on the offensive side of de_dust2 and then held Core to only three rounds on their offensive side. Strong play Salvo gave them a 11-7 victory and pushed them one step closer to victory.

Mystik

Next up was Mystik taking on SarahLou on Kyoto in Bloom. The underrated SarahLou took the first round, and then continued to trade rounds until she was up 4-3. Many would expect Mystik to choke here, as she typically wins big or loses big. However, that was not to be as she fought back and took the game in a tight 5-4.

Salvo Forza Team

With the Core needing a solid victory here, DaveySkills and Picaso coming up huge against the Core racing duo. They snapped Core's backbone in a tight match. Salvo led the way for the entire race with GEL and Phantom trying to recover into second and third. Salvo's DaveySkills held on to second for most of the race, but dropped to third at the finish line. Still, though, the damage was done, and Salvo won the race 5-2.

Offbeat Ninja

If anyone had a challenge, it was Offbeat Ninja. He had to win his game 5-0, and then take the overtime round to take the match for the Core. Ultimately, he had to shut down Messy and win 6-0, an almost unheard of score in professional DOA. Offbeat continued to play solid and get lucky breaks, winning the first five rounds on Gamblers Paradise. He took the match an impressive 5-0, and needed the final round to win the franchise match. Messy finally found his luck, ending what looked might have been the greatest comeback in CGS history. Offbeat played incredibly, winning 5-0, but fell right when victory was in his hands.

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