Huntsmen, Royal Ravens surge at CDL Seattle

The Chicago Huntsmen and London Royal Ravens each swept their winners' bracket matches on Saturday to win their groups, as Week 8 of the Call of Duty League continued in the Seattle "home" series. The Huntsmen dumped the Minnesota Rokkr in Group B, and the Royal Ravens dispatched the New York Subliners in Group A, both by a 3-0 margin.

The Subliners recovered in the lower bracket with a 3-1 victory over the Los Angeles Guerrillas to reach Sunday's semifinals, while the Rokkr were swept again, this time by OpTic Gaming Los Angeles in the Group B lower-bracket final. The Ravens will face OpTic on Sunday before the Huntsmen battle the Subliners in the other semifinal. Ten CDL points are awarded for each match victory during the event, with Sunday's mini-tournament winner earning another 10 points. The second-place team will earn 30 points for the weekend, with 20 points each going to the third- and fourth-place teams and 10 points each for the fifth- and sixth-place finishers.

All CDL action has moved online in light of the coronavirus pandemic, though teams that would have been at home for specific weekends are maintaining that designation for the virtual competition. The first-place Atlanta FaZe, second-place Dallas Empire, fifth-place Florida Mutineers and ninth-place Toronto Ultra are idle for the current Week 8 event. The Huntsmen, currently in third, could jump into first place by winning Sunday's playoff bracket.

Chicago opened Saturday by dispatching Minnesota, taking Azhir Cave Hardpoint 250-233, Gun Runner Search and Destroy 6-5 and Hackney Yard Domination 176-123. London was perhaps even more impressive in its sweep against New York, taking Hardpoint 250-180, Search and Destroy 6-3 and Domination 156-138, with all three maps played on Gun Runner.

In Group B action in the lower bracket, OpTic downed Paris Legion 3-1, dropping only a 250-175 result in Azhir Cave Hardpoint on the opening map. They took the final three maps 6-4 on Rammaza Search and Destroy, 170-143 on Hackney Yard Domination and 250-240 on Rammaza Hardpoint. Next came the sweep of Minnesota, which L.A. took via a 250-241 win on Azhir Cave Hardpoint, 6-2 on Arklov Peak Search and Destroy, and 171-157 on Hackney Yard Domination. In Group A, the Guerrillas dispatched the "home" Seattle Surge 3-1, but they couldn't handle the Subliners in the lower-bracket final. New York opened with a 250-191 win on Gun Runner Hardpoint and the Guerrillas responded with a 6-3 victory on Arklov Peak Search and Destroy. The Subliners then put it away with a 158-149 edge on Hackney Yard Domination and a 250-187 result on St. Petrograd Hardpoint.

The Surge, who benched Ian "Enable" Wyatt mid-match on Friday, finished their "homestand" with two 3-1 losses. They took the third map from the Guerrillas 167-149 on Hackney Yard Domination, but they dropped Rammaza Hardpoint 250-217, Piccadilly Search and Destroy 6-1 and Hackney Yard Hardpoint 250-165. Sunday's schedule:

Semifinal -- London Royal Ravens vs. OpTic Gaming Los Angeles Semifinal -- Chicago Huntsmen vs. New York Subliners

Final -- teams TBA Call of Duty League Week 8 prize pool and points distribution:

1. $50,000, 50 CDL points 2. $30,000, 30 CDL points

3-4. $10,000, 20 CDL points 5-6. no prize money, 10 CDL points

7-8. no prize money, no CDL points Call of Duty League standings through Week 7:

1. Atlanta FaZe, 170 points 2. Dallas Empire, 150 points

3. Chicago Huntsmen, 130 points 4. Minnesota Rokkr, 110 points

5. Florida Mutineers, 100 points 6. Paris Legion, 60 points

T7. Optic Gaming Los Angeles, 50 points T7. London Royal Ravens, 50 points

T9. Toronto Ultra, 40 points T9. Seattle Surge, 40 points

T9. New York Subliners, 40 points 12. Los Angeles Guerrillas, 20 points

--Field Level Media

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)