ENCE won the BLAST European Showdown after beating Astralis in the grand final, qualifying them for the BLAST Premier Spring Final 2022. This concludes that the event's team roster with the final winner paiN Gaming coming from the North American Showdown final after eliminating FURIA.
Let’s take a look at how the grand finale went down and what we can expect from Europe's new star, ENCE.
ENCE are winners of BLAST Premier Spring Showdown Europe 2022
The series began on Mirage, where ENCE was hoping to get the series started with a victory on their map of choice. However, Astralis got off to a stronger beginning, winning the pistol round to kick off their CT side.
ENCE responded quickly, winning a round using exclusively upgraded pistols and then tied the score at 3-3.
After the first few rounds, Astralis began to dominate, with Benjamin "blameF" Bremer dominating with multiple multikills. As a result, the Danes won all nine remaining rounds, finishing the half 12-3.
Astralis won the second pistol with a B rush after switching sides, which meant ENCE ran out of steam to stage a comeback before they could acquire a solid economy, and they lost the map 16-3. Benjamin "blameF" Bremer continued his outstanding performance, amassing 31 kills and dying only five times across the game. At this point his K/D was 2.53 which is nothing to scoff at in a pro match.
Following that was Astralis' choice of Ancient, where ENCE saw a lot more success on their defensive side. They were fast out of the start, jumping up to a 7-0 lead before the Danes scored their first round. At this point Astralis picked up steam after their initial slow start and were able to finish the half with a few strong rounds, bringing their deficit to only five rounds at halftime.
The second half began with Astralis earning the pistol round by defusing a bomb. The bomb plant allowed ENCE to acquire a solid force purchase, which they turned into a successful game, bringing them up to a 13-6 scoreline as a result of that victory. Astralis took a bit to get going on their CT side, but once they did, they began to demonstrate that selecting the map was not a mistake as they began to re-enter the game.
But at the end the score difference was too much for Astralis to overcome, as they were defeated 16-13 by the ENCE
The decisive map was Nuke, where Astralis won yet another pistol round in the series, immediately pushing ENCE back. The European mix team was able to respond quickly, winning the round with a risky force buy and tying the game.
ENCE jumped out to a 6-1 lead, but Astralis kept finding holes in their defence and closed the gap to one round. In the subsequent rounds, Marco "Snappi" Pfeiffer and Olek "hades" Miskiewicz of ENCE both won a 1v1 clutch, allowing their team to take a 9-6 CT half on Nuke.
It was a battle of attrition after this point where teams vie for strategic gaps to win, Astralis won their final pistol round. Both teams weren’t willing to take risks and continued until the end almost head to head but ENCE through sheer will managed to beat the legendary Astralis.
The victory in the match was the European team's first at the BLAST Premier Spring European Showdown 2022. ENCE earned 1,600 BLAST Premier points, $20,000, and an entry to the BLAST Premier Spring Finals 2022 via hard effort. Astralis got 800 BLAST Premier points and $12,500 for finishing second, but were denied the coveted invitation.
ENCE will be ecstatic after advancing through two previous qualifiers and winning the Showdown final, cementing off their marathon journey to the BLAST Spring Finals.
This will undoubtedly be a painful loss for Astralis, given their improved performances since signing Asger "Farlig" Jensen and the fact that they were dominating the first map and have us all think that this was it for the ENCE.
BLAST Premier: Spring European Showdown 2022 Results
- 1st place: ENCE — $20,000 + 1,600 BLAST Premier rating points + invitation to BLAST Premier Spring Finals 2022
- 2nd Place: Astralis — $12,500 + 800 BLAST Premier Ranking Points
- 3rd-4th place: Heroic - $7,500 + 500 BLAST Premier Ranking Points
- 3rd-4th place: NiP — $7,500 + 500 BLAST Premier points
- 5th-8th place: Copenhagen Flames — $5,000 + 150 BLAST Premier Ranking Points
- 5th-8th place: Team NKT — $5,000 + 150 BLAST Premier Ranking Points
- 5th-8th place: Movistar Riders — $5,000 + 150 BLAST Premier rating points
- 5th-8th Place: Bad News Eagles — $5,000 + 150 BLAST Premier Ranking Points
When is BLAST Premier Spring Finals 2022?
The BLAST Premier Spring Finals 2022 will take place in Lisbon, Portugal, from June 15 to June 19. The entire prize pool will be $425,000. The winner will get 4,000 BLAST Premier Ranking Points, $200,000, and an invitation to the BLAST Premier World Finals 2022, which will include a $1,000,000 prize pool.
