The Americans show that they are not to be trifled with in the group stage leading to the Grand Final
While Masters Berlin is still playing its group stage to determine which teams will proceed to the playoffs, clear patterns have emerged from the first few rounds, with the Americans set to show that they are seriously gunning for the Grand Final.
Right now, two teams from NA are in the group stages of Masters Berlin – Sentinels and 100 Thieves. Both teams won first and second places respectively in the Challengers 3 qualifying rounds, with Sentinels returning to defend the crown that they won during Masters Reykjavik when they won vs Fnatic. 100 Thieves meanwhile is playing through the group stages in this edition of Masters after failing to qualify for Masters Reykjavik.
Sentinels
Sentinels is the current darling of the VALORANT scene after winning the Masters title in Finland. Hailing from Los Angeles, the team roster is as follows:
Shahzeb “ShahZaM” Khan- Hunter “SicK-” Mims
- Jared “zombs” Gitlin
- Michael “dapr” Gulino
Tyson “TenZ” Ngo
Apart from the VALORANT team, they also have rosters in Fortnite, Hearthstone, Apex Legends and Wild Rift.
Originally established in April 2020, Sentinels quickly made their names in the NA VALORANT circuit, winning tournaments such as the JBL Quantum Cup, Pop Flash and finishing in the top four at the First Strike North America. 2021 is where the team truly shined, as they won several of the Valorant Champions Tour stages, starting with VCT North America Stage 1 Masters, as well as the recent VCT Stage 2 : Masters Reykjavik (where they won the event!).
They are looking to strike third time lucky, as they go through the stages to reach the finals of Masters Berlin.
The current roster has been solid ever since they played in Finland in June – with TenZ on board, they have been dominating the VALORANT circuit. They had a good player with sinatraa, but due to the sexual harassment allegation made by his ex-girlfriend, he has but slipped away from limelight ever since.
The question is, will their dominating streak last until the end at Masters Berlin, and continue on to Champions (which will happen in Berlin again at the end of the year) as well? Or will they see a roadblock somewhere in the group stages and playoffs?
The group they are in right now – Group D – is a special case as only three teams are playing as Bren Esports had to bail due to not being able to secure travel passes to Germany. Thus, the other two teams – F4Q and G2 Esports – may or may not present serious challenges to the #1 team in NA right now.
100 Thieves
Another team hailing from Los Angeles, 100 Thieves is currently the second ranked team behind Sentinels, according to our own ranking here at Gosugamers. They are also the 17th top team globally, so they are more than qualified to play at Masters Berlin.
The current roster for 100 Thieves are:
- Spencer “Hiko” Martin
- Peter “Asuna” Mazuryk
- Nick “nitr0” Cannella
- Joshua “steel” Nissan
- Ethan “Ethan” Arnold
The team’s journey to Berlin is a little bit rougher than Sentinel’s. They did not do too well in the first two stages of Challengers qualifying rounds. The closest they got was 6th place at Stage 2's Challengers 2.
This time around, they fought their way to the finals of Challengers 3 to secure their place at Berlin alongside Sentinels. So far, they have made good of their momentum – the team is the first team to qualify for the playoffs at Masters Berlin.
Even so, the team is not sitting on their laurels just yet. They have a long way to go and much to do if they want to reach the finals, especially with teams like Gambit Esports, Acend, Team Envy as well as Sentinels are still in the running to secure a spot in the playoffs.
