ENCE defeat Sprout; to upper bracket final

ENCE are through to the FACEIT Major Europe Minor's upper bracket final after defeating Sprout on two maps (16-7 on Dust2 and Nuke).

The first series of the day began on Dust2, ENCE's map pick, with the Finnish side winning a flawless T-side pistol. Aleksi "⁠allu⁠" Jalli and co. further added to their lead in the next four rounds without much effort, forcing Sprout to call a tactical pause.

With a double AWP setup, Sprout got their first round on the board, but ENCE were far too hot to handle and increased their lead to 9-1. Even though Sprout responded right after by winning the next two rounds, ENCE quickly regained control of proceedings to take a commanding 12-3 half-time lead.

ENCE carried their momentum into the second half, constantly shutting down their opponents to hit map-point. Sprout still responded with a four-round streak, but it was in vain as ENCE then closed out the map to take the lead in the series.

Next up was Nuke, Sprout's map pick. ENCE started it off by winning their third pistol of the series thanks to a 1v1 from Sami "⁠xseveN⁠" Laasanen, and they followed that up with the subsequent anti-eco. Sprout were able to buy in the third round, which Niels Christian "⁠NaToSaphiX⁠" Sillassen won for his team with a 1v2 clutch.

ENCE strung three rounds together to remain in the driving seat, but Sprout won three of their own to reduce the deficit to a single round, 4-5. Still, Aleksi "⁠Aleksib⁠" Virolainen and Jere "⁠sergej⁠" Salo then turned a 2v3 post-plant situation around, inspiring their team to go on another great run for a 10-5 half.

After winning their first pistol of the series, Sprout found some breathing room. Nevertheless, ENCE responded with a great force-buy, setting themselves up for a 13-6 lead. With their economy back on track, Sprout still hit seven rounds, but then ENCE put the match to bed with a string of three rounds.