Last One Standing: Gentle Mates Claims EMEA Ascension After Incredible Grand Finals Performance

Well, they’ve only gone and done it.

Yesterday we previewed the VCT EMEA Ascension tournament Grand Finals between Gentle Mates and Apeks. The clash between the two dominant teams from their respective leagues was a highly-anticipated affair, and it delivered…sort of. For Apeks, unfortunately, it was a bitter disappointment at the end of a very long, arduous road. For Gentle Mates, it proved to be a new start, of bigger and better things to come.

Gentle Mates Win Ascension

Gentle Mates (M8) join their French brethren organizations, Team Vitality and Karmine Corp, in the VCT EMEA 2024 circuit. Their success has been nigh unparalleled, having dominated their own domestic circuit before mounting an incredible late season performance that saw them take down favorites Acend the night before, and then Apeks in the Grand Finals. Moreover, their win over Apeks was done in 3-0 fashion, a feat that few other EMEA teams could claim, with a strong plan heading into the series that countered Apeks early on and sent them scrambling for recovery before heroic performances by M8 closed out the series.

State of the Match

In terms of how the series went, M8 were at a heavy disadvantage heading into the series, with Apeks being given two map bans. Off the bat, Fracture and Split were banned by Apeks, leaving M8 with their third-choice map to start. Despite that, Apeks chose to head into Haven as their first map, with it being a strong map for both teams. M8 absolutely decimated Apeks on their map pick with crucial retake protocols and well-timed aggression that left Apeks spinning. Heading into Ascent, all the momentum was in M8’s favor. The Phoenix pick from “NataNk” only solidified their strong grip on the series and Apeks continued struggling to find answers.

Towards the end of Ascent, Apeks began to find some measure of form, showing semblances of their dominant season-long performance but it was not enough to return from the deficit on Ascent. Heading into Pearl, M8 was soaring high, and Apeks now needed a reverse sweep. Pearl initially was back-and-forth, with M8 coming out ahead relatively. That said, Apeks continued to find back their form and began stringing together some round victories that started reigniting some hope in fans and the players. But a late game 1v2 clutch from “beyAz” shattered them as M8 was the first to reach series point.

Success for the French Scene (perhaps?)

For the French scene, M8’s victory in Ascension, and their rise to join VCT EMEA in 2024 gives new hope to the beleaguered scene. Their beloved organizations Team Vitality and Karmine had failed to deliver on the lofty expectations placed on them. The latter especially, look on the cusp of implosion as a mid-season player departure had seen them play out the rest of the season with a man down. Moreover, “ScreaM’s” run as IGL continues to receive plenty of consternation as both his captained rosters had failed to deliver results.

Team Vitality, meanwhile, had placed inside the top 6, and made it to Playoffs. But they had also struggled to go much further. Now with imminent roster changes coming for both, M8 could see themselves rise as the preeminent French roster in the Tier 1 scene now.

Gentle Mates victory in VCT EMEA Ascension concludes the Ascension series for all three partner leagues. They join Bleed Esports and The Guard as the three teams to ascend to Tier 1 Valorant in 2024.

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Credit: Gentle Mates // Valorant Esports