Team Envy defeat NRG in seven game thriller to take Winter Regional #1

Team Envy defeated NRG in a nail-biting Bo7 grand final to win the first of three RLCS Winter Split Regionals.

Pierre “Turbopolsa” Silfver scored the championship-sealing Game 7 goal for Team Envy after five straight overtimes, in a series that was a classic before it even ended.

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Team Envy’s win makes them the first team to two-time Regional Champion in the revamped RLCS X, a result that puts them amongst the front runners in the Winter Split and the North American leaderboards. 

They take home the top prize of $30,000, with NRG walking away with $15,000.

A final for the ages

Envy raced into a 2-0 game lead in their grand final match against NRG, with the latter looking, at least initially, a shadow of the team that had made short work of the rest of the losers bracket.

And it would have been an early night for all involved if not for  NRG's Justin “Justin.” Morales who, in game three, and in the space of 60 seconds tied in regular time and then scored the winner in OT. It was NRG's first game win of the series and was the spark of what proved to be a ridiculous match.

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NRG won three of the next four games all of which went to overtime. It would take a Game 7 to settle it.

It was the type of stuff that if you were to script it people would call it unrealistic but so it was. Game 7 went back and forward finishing 3-3 in regular time. Turbopolsa knew there was only one way to wrap up this story, with a scene-stealing OT goal against his former club. He duly delivered.

Two roads to the final

Envy took the scenic route to the final through the Upper Bracket, losing just four games in four series on the way, taking down BoSF eSports, Pittsburgh Knights, Ghost Gaming and Rogue.

(Picture: Psyonix)

NRG’s road to the finals was exciting, to say the least, thrown into the lower bracket after a defeat by Ghost Gaming on Saturday.

The NRG that turned up on Sunday, though, was a different beast, perhaps emboldened by results elsewhere as Pittsburgh Knights had defeated Fall Split champions, Spacestation Gaming, the night before and then G2 on Sunday.

(Picture: Psyonix)

NRG knocked out Version1 and, in revenge, Ghost Gaming. Victories against Pittsburgh Knights and Rogue, who dropped into the losers brackets for the final, followed. NRG and Justin made short work of all of them.

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Despite those efforts, NRG fell short of causing a bracket reset as Envy hadn’t lost in the double-elimination tourney. With Spacestation’s early exit and NRG’s second place, it’s safe to assume Team Envy is taking a leap for the lead in the North America region. 

The second North American Regional of the Winter Split starts December 3rd. In the meantime, you can check out the full VOD of the Grand Finals available on Rocket League Esports’ Twitch and YouTube channels.