Leviatán Wins First VCT Americas Trophy After Flawless Stage 2

;.St,age 2 of the VCT Americas season, has been crowned a champion. Leviatán earned the trophy after taking down G2 Esports in a hotly contested Grand Finals. They will now head to VALORANT Champions 2024 as the Americas’ first seed.

Lift that trophy high, it's all yours @LeviatanGG 🩵 #VCTAmericas pic.twitter.com/iApQEXLwXJ

— VALORANT Esports NA (@valesportsna) July 22, 2024

Perfection on the Line

Throughout VCT Americas Stage 2, Leviatán had been an absolute force to be reckoned with. They won every single map they played, 10-0 in score with an astronomical +56 round differential. When playoffs rolled around, the question was if anyone from the other group could stop them.

Leviatán steamrolled past KRÜ Esports in their first match in the Stage 2 Playoffs. With scores of 13-2 on Icebox and 13-4 on Sunset, the LEV train was still going strong. Their next opponent, however, would finally pose a threat to Leviatán’s flawless season.

G2 Esports, the Stage 1 runners-up and third-place finishers at VCT Masters Shanghai were ready to challenge for a trophy once again. Though they did drop maps in their group during Stage 2, G2 was also coming into the playoffs with an undefeated record. This Upper Bracket Finals match would be the first and second seed clash we were promised.

Leviatán chose Icebox as their map. Here, G2 pulled out a composition with zero Duelists, opting to run a second Initiator in Gekko. Despite a lack of dive, G2 had no problems using their utility to run through LEV’s defense. The home team only won a single gun round before G2 streaked together eight in a row to end the half up 10-2. Despite their best efforts in the second half, LEV couldn’t match that pace and lost their pick 13-8.

G2’s map was Bind. Despite some impressive performances out of Francisco “kiNgg” Aravena and Erick “spas” Santos top-fragging the server, LEV had little to show for it. They only managed four rounds on defense before losing every single round following the pistol and anti-eco on offense. A crushing 13-6 loss sent Leviatán to the lower bracket.

Confidence Shaken

After not losing one all Stage, Leviatán had just lost two maps in a row. Not only that, they weren’t even close to winning those. Now, LEV had to go right back out there to play Losers’ Finals. Their opponent was KRÜ again, a team that they stomped flat two days ago. However, KRÜ came prepared this time around.

LEV started things off with their usual Icebox. This one was a formality, as they took the map in a similarly one-sided fashion yet again, 13-3. Next up was KRÜ’s new pick of Haven. Both squads piloted the same exact comps, with their Duelists taking the wheel on Neon. Despite aspas’s status as one of the best Duelists in the world, it was KRÜ’s Angelo “keznit” Mori who took over the game.

Sliding into B for the 4K like it's no big deal ⚡@keznitdeuS | #VCTAmericas pic.twitter.com/2apmvt0JYN

— VALORANT Esports NA (@valesportsna) July 20, 2024

The map came down to the wire. In the end, KRÜ won six of the last seven rounds to tie the series up with a 13-11 win.

Next was Sunset. What was previously KRÜ’s pick in their previous match was now taken by G2 as their own. Aspas continued to have issues here as well. His 6-17 KD ratio and 0.58 rating were the server’s worst by far. Without their point man, LEV failed to control the ground or find openings. KRÜ easily claimed this map 13-7, putting themselves on match point.

Bouncing Back

Now one map from elimination, and with aspas looking unlike himself, Leviatán had their backs against the wall. VALORANT’s newest map, Abyss, was up next. With new scenery came a new team composition, notably putting aspas back on Jett. Immediately, the difference was tangible. Supported by a double Controller comp, aspas was back to his fragging ways in no time. He was even in high enough spirits to joke about it.

"I killed more than last map!" – @aspaszin#VCTAmericas pic.twitter.com/Ovg2h4xIuo

— VALORANT Esports NA (@valesportsna) July 21, 2024

With aspas earning an insane +7 first kill differential, LEV was able to power through to a 13-10 victory and tie the series at 2-2. One final map was needed to determine who would move on to face G2 for the trophy.

Ascent was the final battleground. Right away, Leviatán pulled out a curveball with the Deadlock Cypher combination. They piloted the comp excellently, frequently finding their way into favorable post-plant positions. Roberto “Mazino” Rivas even second fragged the game on Deadlock, behind aspas of course. Hi;s 25 kills and 320 ACS helped propel LEV to another 13-10 victory and a spot in the Grand Finals.

Clutching the Championship

G2 had won the Upper Bracket matchup, so they had a two-map ban advantage in the Grand Finals. This meant no Icebox or Sunset for Leviatán. Map one was Lotus, a favored map by G2, and one rarely played by LEV. Despite a strong start for G2, LEV came into their attack towards the end of the half. The map stayed close throughout, with G2 hitting the map point first. LEV took the final two rounds to secure overtime, then forced a second overtime as well. Ultimately, Leviatán flipped the script and took Lotus to win map one.

LEV TAKE LOTUS TO DOUBLE OVERTIME! #VCTAmericas pic.twitter.com/02y5S0UAOD

— VALORANT Esports NA (@valesportsna) July 21, 2024

Map two took the teams to Haven. This one would be just as competitive as the previous one. Instead of the usual suspects for LEV, it was Corbin “C0M” Lee who took the fragging responsibilities, racking up 28 kills. And when overtime hit yet again, Ian “tex” Botsch helped get LEV over the line.

TEX IS ON FIRE! #VCTAmericas pic.twitter.com/7B1ygq4V35

— VALORANT Esports NA (@valesportsna) July 21, 2024

Though G2 had a resurgence on map three of Bind, their comeback was short-lived. Ascent was the fourth and to-be final map of the Grand Finals. While every map to this point had been contested, this one was all LEV. Once the guns were out, Leviatán only lost two rounds on their attack.

The team was firing on all cylinders. Every single player ended with a positive K-D ratio, including Spas, who top-franked with 22 kills and 330 ACS. Leviatán followed their 8-4 half with perfect defense, closing out the map 13-4 to end the series and claim the VCT Americas Stage 2 trophy.