Marlon Ado Jr. and Terence Limpio / Contributors
THE University of San Carlos (USC) Warriors and the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Adelante were crowned champions of the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi) Esports League (CEL) Season 2 on Nov. 18 and 19 at the International Eucharistic Center (IEC) Convention Center.
The CEL concluded its second season with memorable Grand Finals matches in Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) and Valorant at the IEC Convention Center during ARCHcon 2023.
MLBB
The USC Warriors defeated the Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) Wildcats, 3-1, in a best-of-five series in the Grand Finals of the CEL Season 2 MLBB tournament.
USC’s Jeshua Luke “Luketzyy” Miano, Shin Mavrick “Shin” Formaran, Jejomar “Tormis” Tormis, Elian Thaddeus “Amores” Amores, and Zeke “Swayze” Swayze Himaya exhibited dominant performance in the finals of the CEL Season 2 MLBB tournament. Team Coordinator, Daryll “Evo” Restauro, and teammates, Paul Emmanuel “Corsino” Corsino, James Rey “Jimzsuu” Lumacang and Joel Vince Andre “Aying” Aying showed full support for the five starters in the entirety of the series.
In Game 1, USC had an early lead in terms of kills and gold that translated into a victory to take a commanding 1-0 series lead against CIT-U. Heading into game two, USC continued with its dominant performance and ended the game with a flawless 13-0 kill score to take match-point of the series. USC’s winning streak ended after CIT-U scored a victory in game three to make the series 2-1. However, in game four USC displayed another excellent performance and finished the game with an impressive 17-3 kill score to end the series and claim the title.
USC’s Roamer, Jejomar “Tormis” Tormis, led the team in their dominant 3-1 victory against CIT-U. He was named the Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) — averaging 0.75 kills and 12.5 assists in the series.
Valorant
The USJ-R Adelante was hailed as the first-ever CEL Valorant Champion after defeating the University of Cebu (UC) Webmasters, 2-1, in a best-of-three series.
USJ-R’s squad includes John Michael “Kel” Canoy, Kenn Benedict “Ster”, Richnel Reign “Reign” Cabugoy, Francis Marc Nikko “Baby” Diwa, and Peggy “EddyHarden” Eddy.
The Webmasters took control of the entire first half in Game 1, ending in a 9-5 tally. The Adelantes were on the verge of a comeback, but the Webmasters went on to bring back its head to the game to take the first win of the series, 13-11. Leading the team to this victory was Dante “Neekzera” Tumulak, tallying 26 kills and seven assists.
The tables flipped in the second game as the Adelantes equalized the series, handing the Webmasters their first loss in the season. The Adelantes rallied throughout the game, steering to victory, 13-2. Kenn “Ster” Bolondro made this crucial win possible by reaping 21 kills and 10 assists.
In the series’ deciding game, the Adelante was clearly within reach of the title in the first half, scoring 7-5. It was cut short by the Webmasters as the team built momentum to tie the game and send it to overtime. However, USJ-R took home the victory, 14-12, to claim the title as the first-ever CEL Valorant champions.
Taking home the Finals MVP award was Michael “Kel” Canoy, who made an outstanding performance with 38 kills and three assists, backed by a heroic game-winning ace in the closeout game of the series.
This victory for USJ-R Adelante would make them the first team to simultaneously hold the title as the CEL Valorant preseason and main season champions.