Call of Duty Rec League: MW3 Winter Season — Week 5 Review
The holiday break is finally over and we’re back with some more Call of Duty Rec League action! I hope the rust has warn off for everyone during the long break because playoffs are right around the corner.
For some divisions, we’re seeing some playoff spots beginning to get locked for those teams that have had success for the entire season. The best matches of the season are yet to come though, as many teams will fight tooth and nail for that final playoff spot in their division. Which teams will prevail, and who will be left in the dust? It’s time for the Week 5 review; let’s get it.
Tuesday
9:00PM: Boston Burgers vs Florida Puppeteers (Silver Mixed North)
Boston and Florida were both 2–2 heading into this match and looked to solidify a stronger playoff spot for the postseason.
Map 1 began with Skidrow Hardpoint, with Boston taking an early lead in which they would never relinquish as they took the map 250–145 to go up 1–0 in the series. Highrise SND was much of the same with Tep for Boston dropping 10 kills for his team in the 6–2 victory. With their backs against the wall, Florida responded with a decisive 3–1 victory on Karachi Control thanks to two great opening rounds on offense and defense.
On Map 4 with Sub Base Hardpoint, things were back and forth for most of the map. With Boston up 232–190, it looked like they would finish out the series, but a late Florida rally largely in part due to some great plays from Phoenix-Frenzzy and xLiMiiTz allowed them to steal map 4 and force a Game 5. With a lot of the line in Invasion SND, Florida had no answers for anyone on Boston and were taken down decisively 6–0 with Boston winning the series 3–2.
10:30PM: Cleveland Misfires vs London Royale w/ Cheese (Silver Mixed South)
There was just as much on the line for Cleveland and London with both teams at 3–1 and looking to secure a higher seed in their pool.
Map 1 on Karachi Hardpoint initially started closed before Cleveland put together a set of hills to win decisively 250–151. Invasion SND was a bit closer with Winton for London doing everything he could for his team, but it wasn’t enough as the balance of Cleveland allowed them to take Map 2 to go up 2–0 in the series. Finally on Karachi Control, Legendrie looked like an unstoppable force for Cleveland, dropping 24 kills for the 3–0 map and series victory.
Wednesday
9:00PM: Old Guys Texas vs Atlanta Dazed (Bronze Premade North)
Despite Atlanta having a slightly better record than OGT, this series was expected to be close due to the team’s similar map percentages. It was looking like a Game 5 was inevitable.
Kicking things off on Invasion Hardpoint, the map got off to a hot start with neither team having a substanstial lead. Thanks to some amazing plays by Sumbodi and Vort3x, Atlanta was able to take away a nailbiting 250–247 led by Paradize with 31 kills. OGT would respond with a 6–4 victory of their own with BlackGator and Geometry Packet both dropping 12 kills for their squad.
Moving on to Highrise Control, with the map at 2–2, Atlanta was able to stage a successful offensive push with good set ups and spawn trapping to win the map 3–2. Looking to finish things off on Karachi Hardpoint, Atlanta began the map with a small but steady lead until OGT began to rally thanks to some successful late game holds. Atlanta would respond with more holds of their own to take another nailbiter 250–237 and would win the series 3–1.
10:30PM: LAG vs Florida Puppeteers (Silver Premade North)
Florida and LAG were two intriguing teams on paper with ups and downs throughout the season, but wins here would be extremely important for either team.
LAG began things with a strong start on Sub Base Hardpoint with a 250–183 victory with Mixi having the strongest performance with 31 kills. The SND would not be much closer with nobody on Florida having much of an answer for LAG, despite Cowboy for Florida dropping 10 kills. And as expected on Highrise Control, it was spawn trap central as it was nearly impossible for Florida to do anything, as they fall 0–3 in the series.
Thursday
9:00PM: LAG vs Denver Surrender (Silver Premade South)
LAG and Denver have both had a solid season so far with only one loss a piece, so this match had a lot of writing on it as either team could be looking to make a postseason run.
Invasion Hardpoint started off with what you might expect as both teams fought tough in a scrappy beginning. LAG looked like they were about to pull away, but thanks to a couple late pushes, Denver was able to walk away victorious 250–229 despite being outfragged. Terminal SND saw the combined duo of Canon and reverbs for Denver drop 21 kills combined in the 6–4 victory.
LAG was finally able to respond with a couple offensive wins thanks to some great plays from Quippini. Karachi Hardpoint looked like it could be anyone’s game as LAG was looking to force a Map 5, but they struggled with a few mid game pushes and their efforts weren’t enough as they fell 250–148 with Denver taking the series 3–1.
10:30PM: Chicago Hunted vs Denver Surrender (Gold Premade West)
Chicago and Denver were both sitting pretty at .500 but with room to improve for better seeding. A loss for either team would make things tougher going forward.
Denver came in hot on Sub Base Hardpoint taking an early lead and not relinquishing it to take the map 250–181 despite a game high 27 kills from itzridin for Chicago. Skidrow SND would not be much closer thanks to Sourdough for Denver going on a THIRTEEN kill streak to take the map for his team 6–2. Things were not any better for Chicago on Highrise Control as they only managed to win a single defense to fall 3–1.
Week 6 Preview
Toronto Falters (4–1) vs Chicago Hunted (4–1) (Gold Premade North)
Chicago is sitting on top of the Pool A standings albeit not very comfortably. Currently they own the 3 way tiebreaker between them, Toronto, and Denver. A win for Chicago all but solidifies their spot at the top of the standings, but Toronto may be a sleeper here. Their only loss of the season came in Week 1 against Denver, but they seem like a different team now. I think we may see a couple nailbiters here.
Score Prediction: Chicago Hunted 3–1 Toronto Falters
LA Dweebs (2–3) vs Cleveland Misfires (2–3) (Bronze Premade South)
Both LA and Cleveland already know their playoff spot as their last two matches will not count towards playoffs standing. This matchup features two teams from the bottom of their respective pools facing against the teams that finishing on top of their pools. I tend to love these types of late season matchups because it can often be a good indicator if we might see a Round 1 upset in the CRL playoffs. If I had a pick a team for a Round 1 upset though, it would be Cleveland due to their resume, but LA could do it too.
Score Prediction: Cleveland 3–0 LA Dweebs
