This past weekend set the stage for two Winter Finals of the Starcraft II 2019 World Championship Series. For the Europe division, the crown went to Italy’s Riccardo “Reynor” Romiti. Like his counterpart in the America division, Reynor brings home $12,000 and gets 1,600 WCS Circuit Points with his win.
In order to reach the Finals, Reynor began by being placed in Group F and finishing on top. Under Group Stage 2, he lost one game to Christoffer “Namshar” Kolmodin, but still manage to finish on top to qualify to the next phase of the tournament.
During the Group Stage 3, Reynor won against six other players, but would be swept by Gabriel "HeRoMaRinE" Segat 0-2. Even with the loss, this performance brought Reynor to the top of the group and gave him the top seed.
The other Finals spot went to Joona “Serral” Sotala, widely accepted to be the most dominant player in competitive Starcraft today.
Serral had a good showing in the initial stage, finishing on top for both Group Stage 1 and Group Stage 2. For Group Stage 3, he won against five players, but lost 0-2 to both HeRoMaRinE and Reynor. This put him in 3rd seed. Serral’s position was a surprise to many as he was considered to be the top player of the tournament.
In the playoffs, Serral showed just how good he is by going against Theo “PtitDrogo” Freydiere of France. Serral swept PtitDrogo 3-0. The next match again served as a surprise to fans. This match was initially predicted by many to go the distance, with Serral winning 3-2 against HeRoMaRinE. The reality was different, as Serral dominated the entire match and won 3-0 versus HeRoMaRinE.
This set up a Finals match between Serral and Reynor. While the America division had a battle of Titans, the Europe division featured the king versus the potential upstart. This would be a fight between two zerg players.
I love these guys they are amazing https://t.co/tvCvAR1wmS@Vasacast @TeamQLASH
— Reynor (@Reynor02) April 8, 2019
Fans were not disappointed, as the game went back and forth between the two. Reynor won the first two games, but not to be outdone, Serral evened the score with the third and fourth games. Reynor took a small lead, winning the fifth game. Serral answered back almost immediately, taking the sixth game. The final game was set for the New Repugnancy map, and Reynor eventually came out on top as the winner.
