Cloud9 storm back, reach Road to Rio - NA semis

Ricky "floppy" Kemery recorded 31 kills on the final map as Cloud9 completed a 2-1, come-from-behind win over Team Envy in the quarterfinals ESL One Rio: Road to Rio - North America event on Wednesday. Cloud9 advance to a semifinal showdown with Gen.G Esports on Friday.

The second quarterfinal, 100 Thieves vs. Team Liquid, is scheduled for Thursday, with the winner advancing to a Saturday semifinal against FURIA Esports. The third-place match and grand final will be contested Sunday.

The ESL One: Rio Major, a $2 million Counter-Strike: Global Offensive event, was originally scheduled to be held May 11-24 in Rio de Janeiro, but was pushed back to Nov. 9-22 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Regional qualifying began in North America, South America, Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) began qualifying in April while the Asia and Oceania regions began Wednesday.

The teams are competing for a total of $255,000 in the online tournaments, as well as for Regional Major Ranking points to be applied toward berths at the ESL One: Rio Major. Half of the 12 North American teams advanced to the single-elimination playoffs, where all matches are best of three.

The North American champion will receive 400 Pro Tour points and $18,000 of the $60,000 prize pool. The runner-up will get 285 Pro Tour points and $13,000. On Wednesday, Envy opened with a 16-12 victory on Overpass. Cloud9 recovered to take Nuke 16-14, but only after establishing a 11-4 lead and then winding up in a 14-14 tie.

The decisive third map, Dust II, Envy jumped on top 8-1 before Cloud9 took each of the next six rounds. After Envy ended the skid by claiming one round, Cloud9 captured eight in a row for a 15-9 lead. Envy saved three consecutive match points before Cloud9 sealed the victory.

--Field Level Media