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Pentanet.gg Write History at 2021 MSI

RAISE YOUR KOALAS!
by Tit Krajnik on May 11, 2021   

Pentanet.gg beat Unicorns of Love in a tiebreaker match at the 2021 League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational on Sunday, May 9 to earn a spot in the Rumble Stage. With that, the Australian squad wrote history by becoming the first Oceanic LoL team to make it out of the group stage at an international tournament.

Throughout LoL history, the Oceanic region has always been considered as an underdog at international events. Hailing from one of the weakest, smallest and least developed regions, Oceanic LoL teams consistently failed to make it further than the group stage, or even the play-in stage.

Their chances to break out and make a name for themselves were further hindered by Riot Games, who closed down the Oceanic Pro League (OPL) in October 2020. That resulted in a mass departure of star players and coaches, who left the region in search of a new home.

 

 

The Oceanic LoL, however, didn't die with that day. The region formed a new competition - the LoL Circuit Oceania (LCO), which was built on the ruins of what was left of the Oceanic LoL competitive scene.

As a result of all the struggles Oceanic LoL teams had to deal with - losing star players, coaches and financial cutbacks - the reigning LCO champions Pentanet.gg entered the 2021 MSI as an even greater underdog. However, the team proved that they can compete on the big stage and much more.

Pentanet.gg got seeded in Group A, which featured only Unicorns of Love and Royal Never Give Up, after GAM Esports were unable to travel to Iceland - due to Vietnamese travel restrictions. Yet even though they needed to finish ahead of only one of the two teams to secure a ticket for the Rumble Stage, not many believed Pentanet.gg can make it out alive.

Although Pentanet.gg failed to take a single game off the Chinese juggernauts Royal Never Give Up, they proved to be a worthy opponent for Unicorns of Love.

 

 

After going 2-2 with the Russian outfit in the group stage, Pentanet.gg and Unicorns of Love faced off in a Group A tiebreaker match on Sunday. Despite having odds stacked against them, Pentanet.gg pulled out one of the most memorable performances in LoL history, when they beat UoL in 27:52 to secure their ticket for the MSI Rumble Stage.

By making it out of the 2021 MSI group stage, Pentanet.gg became the first Oceanic team in history to ever advance into the second stage of an international tournament.

 

 

“All the boys played more confidently through the games as we ramped up,” said Pentanet.gg jungler Jackson "Pabu" Pavone

“Our engages were faster, we started getting things going, we took fights on our terms, and they would always make mistakes with positioning. So we punished them, and we had some better drafts coming into the later side.”

Pentanet.gg's story, however, doesn't end here. They now have less than a week to prepare themselves for the MSI Rumble Stage, slated to kick off on Friday, May 14.

The Rumble Stage will feature the top two teams from each of the three groups, presenting Pentanet.gg with their toughest test so far. Some of LoL's strongest teams are still in the running for the Rumble Stage, including MAD Lions, Cloud9, PSG Talon, as well as the reigning LoL world champions DWG KIA.

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