UCLA Overwatch Make Strong Comeback in PACG Tournament

The Bruins swept Stanford University with a 4-0 win in their first game in the PACG series on Tuesday

The UCLA Overwatch A team had a lackluster summer season which made it hard to predict how they would perform against Stanford.

UCLA DPS player Brad “raxa” Jiang was confident coming into the game despite his team’s summer record of 4-3.

“Our team did not have any major concerns since we knew that we were the stronger school,” he said. “Making sure everyone wasn’t too rusty would be enough to achieve victory.”

The Bruins’ confidence was not unfounded. UCLA won King’s Row with great individual plays from their tank and DPS players. Raxa’s Mcree was a key playmaker, as he was able to single-handedly stop one of Standford’s pushes by infiltrating the backline despite being down three teammates. Alexander “sireku” Gonzalez’s clever use of energy barriers on Zarya also allowed him output massive amounts of damage and keep his teammates alive.

UCLA’s support players took the spotlight on Temple of Anubis. The Bruins defense had William “Tsang” Tsang play Mei, to delay pushes, and Brian “Pip” Sou flex onto Lucio to give UCLA more mobility.

Stanford almost took the first point after a well-coordinated Earthshatter and Death Blossom, but these ultimates were nullified by Pip’s Sound Barrier. Tsang also defended the point by using ice walls to remove flanking routes and utilizing Mei's ultimate to stop pushes.

UCLA then quickly took a 2-0 victory on Lijiang with their superior teamplay and mechanical skill. Unable to deal with UCLA’s strategies, Stanford ran a team composition centered around Bastion on Dorado to try and surprise UCLA on attack. The Bruins were unfazed by the pick and prevented Stanford from reaching the first point.

The Bruin’s roster performed at a top tier level and their team synergy won them the series. Jasper “Juggernaut” Mok’s steady Reinhardt and Roadhog plays created space for the team to gain more favorable positioning. Sireku’s Zarya ripped through the opposition’s frontlines. Tsang and Gavino “LTsoxs” Marquez support play constantly kept their teammates alive despite being targeted through the match. Pip also flexed onto different heroes to suit the team’s playstyle and fill in the gap in team compositions. Raxa’s individual mechanical skill on McCree and Widowmaker, prevented Stanford from equalizing most team fights.

Raxa said that the key to UCLA’s victory was successful teamwork. He added, “Teamwork makes the dream work.”

You can support UCLA Overwatch Team A at on Twitch as they play against University of Oregon Tuesday, Feb 20. Go Bruins!

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