PLL Elimination Round Recap: Heading to the Semifinals
With three games played, Tuesday was a big night for the PLL. Some major upsets and key wins set the stage for the upcoming semifinals as the remaining teams fight for a spot in the championship.
Chrome (#2) vs. Chaos (#7):
It was a full-on battle between #2 Chrome and #7 Chaos during last night’s Elimination Round game, the highest-scoring matchup so far in the Championship Series. Chaos showed up ready to play with a chip on their shoulder, determined to overcome an 0-4 finish in Group Play, and defeated the second-seeded team 19-14. Led by Josh Byrne’s 7 points on 4 goals and 3 assists, Chaos put on an offensive show anchored by a solid defensive performance. Epoch athletes Troy Reh and Jarrod Neumann had 3 and 1 ground balls respectively, with Neumann adding on 1 caused turnover as well. Epoch athlete Jesse King put up some impressive numbers for the Chrome offense, notching 4 points on 3 goals and 1 assist, but it was not enough to secure the victory and move forward in the bracket. Chaos will face the Archers on August 6th at 8pm ET to make it into the championship.
Waterdogs (#5) vs. Redwoods (#4):
The second game of Tuesday night’s Elimination Round went to the #4 seed Redwoods as they defeated the #5 seed Waterdogs 11-8. The teams did not face each other in Group Play last week but were evenly matched going into last night’s game, with each team averaging 10.5 goals against. The stage was set for a competitive match-up given that the Waterdogs forced one-goal differentials in all four of their Group Play games. Though the Waterdogs put pressure on late in the game to close the gap, the Woods pulled away and scored 2 goals unanswered to win the game. Epoch athlete and LSM John Sexton had 1 caused turnover and 1 ground ball in the win. Sexton leads the team in caused turnovers. Continuing their rebound after an 0-2 start to Group Play, the Redwoods will face the Whipsnakes on August 6th at 10:30pm ET to earn a berth to the championship game for the second season in a row.
Archers (#3) vs. Atlas (#6):
The final Elimination Round game of Tuesday night featured a match-up between the Archers and the Atlas. The two teams previously met in the fourth game of Group Play where the Archers pulled out an 11-10 win. Last night, the Archers, led by a dominant Tom Schreiber, jumped to a large, quick lead by taking advantage of a struggling Atlas defense. Atlas battled back to close the gap to only 6-8 at halftime. Despite a competitive, low-scoring second half, the Archers maintained their lead to come away with the victory. Defenseman and Epoch athlete Matt McMahon currently leads the Archers in caused turnovers and added 1 more last night. The Archers will play Chaos on August 6th at 8pm ET for a spot in the championship.