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Overwatch League Grand Finals 2019: San Francisco Shock's Top Plays, Prize Money
September 29, 2019
As casually as a frat boy might clean up after a house party, the San Francisco Shock pulled out the broom and swept the Vancouver Titans for a calm $1.1 million dollars in the Overwatch League's second season.
After the Titans burst onto the scene in 2019 as an undefeated expansion team, the rivalry with the formerly underwhelming Shock was immediately ignited. In Stage 1, the Titans defeated the Shock 4-3 for the top cut of the stage's $500,000 prize pool. In Stage 2, the Shock evened the score by earning a 4-2 victory for that stage's winnings. Stage 3 saw the Shock drop to the Shanghai Dragons in the finals, but the rivalry was fittingly reignited in the Overwatch League Grand Finals.
Set at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, the Shock's roster, complete with Yeezy-wearing American prodigies and outstanding Korean professionals, got it going early against the Titans and maintained their performance throughout.
Although Haksal got Runaway fans excited with some impressive Doomfist play on Lijiang, the Shock were quick to swing the momentum back in their favor.
Potentially impacted by Striker's recent wrist injury, Architect took the Shock's mantle as the resident Bastion and forced the Titans into submission with some dominant, robotic play.
Following up on what was an incredible run as a rookie flex-tank player for the Shock, Choihyobin impressed with some recent mastery of Overwatch's newest hero, Sigma, by invoking his D.Va highlights and eating ults like a hungry hippo.
In the end, it wasn't the Overwatch League's 2019 MVP, Sinatraa, who threw the strongest punches for San Francisco in the Grand Finals—it was, once again, Architect. In tank, or stationary, mode, he laid damage out with superior tracking and outdueled a Vancouver squad that seemed unbeatable all year.
Now, San Francisco goes into 2020 as the top team and the absolute proof that a team's inaugural season means nothing in the face of perseverant coaching, aggressive management and a roster that is dedicated to overcoming meta shifts.