Rogue slam Space Soldiers to advance to DH Austin playoffs

Rogue are the second team to advance to the DreamHack Open Austin playoffs after defeating Space Soldiers 16-8 on Dust2.

The group B winners' match saw Rogue and Space Soldiers go head-to-head after taking down OpTic and Complexity, respectively, in the opening round of the tournament. The best-of-one kicked off on Dust2, where Spencer "⁠Hiko⁠" Martin held the line by tapping down three with the USP-S to secure the pistol for his team.

Rogue's stout defense went on to claim the anti-ecos as well as the first gun round, before Space Soldiers could respond with their first of the half. Rogue weren't fazed and stood tall to add five more to their lead (9-1); however, a 1v2 clutch in round 11 by Buğra "⁠Calyx⁠" Arkın allowed the Turks to rally back with four of their own.

Unfortunately for Space Soldiers, they were unable to claim the last round of the half, in part thanks to Hiko's heroics as he preventd the plant in a 1v1 (5-10). The sides switched and so did the momentum, at least for a little bit as Space Soldiers looked strong out of the gate to win the second pistol and an anti-eco to make it 7-10.

Rogue were then able to remain in the wheelhouse by winning the next six out of seven rounds over a tattered Space Soldiers economy to round out the first day of action, picking up a convincing 16-8 win that puts them through to the playoffs in Austin.