SemperFi have backed up their DFRAG Invitational victory with another win at the PGL Astana OCE Qualifier, defeating Rooster 2-1 (10-13, 13-7, 13-8).
The online qualifier win sees SemperFi now move to the Asian Qualifier where they'll take on the region's best for a shot at a single spot at May's PGL Astana in Kazakhstan.
SemperFi entered favorites for the spot and looked the part; after getting pushed to three maps by ex-TALON, SemperFi scorched Vantage (including a 13-0 on Inferno) and Rooster to earn an early grand final slot.
It would be Rooster who was seeking revenge in the qualifier, with the Chooks halting a massive lower-bracket run from ex-TALON to meet SemperFi in the final.
Rooster got to work early, running up eight rounds on the T side of Nuke to stun SemperFi on their own pick 13-10; Tyson "asap" Paterson (1.25 HLTV rating, 19-13) kept his form from LAN as an upset beckoned.
It would be as close as Rooster would get. After leading 4-0, SemperFi turned up the heat on Mirage with a 13-3 run to steal back Rooster's pick. Mārtiņš "shadiy" Gūtmanis (1.56, 22-15) was unstoppable but it was Kristers "keen" Dārznieks' calling that sealed the deal.
Try as they might, Rooster couldn't stop the fightback from SemperFi with the latter securing the Asia Qualifier slot on Inferno 13-8 after another strong T side and a big step up from Matthew "Valiance" Hartrick (1.36, 19-14).
SemperFi's win was important for another reason: OCE's slim hopes of sending a second team to the Austin Major remains alive.
SemperFi is closing in on the top spot in the VRS rankings for Asia, with the second-best team behind The MongolZ locking in a bonus spot at the Austin Major via the MRQ. Right now, Chinese squad and fellow Astana Asia Qualifier Rare Atom are in the box seat.
But, with huge points from April's DFRAG Invitational in the bank and the win here, SemperFi can make one last sprint for the spot at the Asia Qualifier. They'll need to hold Rare Atom winless and win out the qualifier for a chance, but we won't know until Valve sends their final update before MRQ invites are sent.
The PGL Astana Asia Closed Qualifier, which features the likes of Rare Atom and JiJieHao, kicks off March 31 with the top team booking their tickets to Kazakhstan.
