RESULTS: San Francisco Shock Take Down the Philadelphia Fusion

As we get to the second half of Stage 3, the teams are looking more and more towards better seeding and a potential spot in playoffs. The San Francisco Shock took on the Philadelphia Fusion in a showdown that showcased the best the teams had to offer. Here’s a brief breakdown of the series.

The first map, Volskaya Industries, saw the Fusion attempting their attack first. After a rough start, the Fusion were eventually able to overcome the defence of San Francisco, allowing them to secure the first point. Their attack was soon blunted however, only managing to reach 61.9% on the second point after multiple attempts as the Shock rallied their defences. When it came time for the Shock to make their attack, they also found success on the first point, driving the Fusion back as they secured the point. Their attack on the second point was a bit more successful, as they reached the required capture limit with over a minute to spare to give themselves an early lead in the series.

The second map, Blizzard World, told a very similar tale to the previous map. The Fusion again launched their attack first, capturing the point and beginning to move the payload. Their escort phase was relatively successful as they moved the payload through the map towards the end, however they were eventually halted in their advance by a resurgent Shock squad. Despite their best efforts, Philadelphia could not reach the end of the course, falling short of the line as the clock ran out. The San Francisco attack went very similar, as they too managed to secure the first checkpoint and begin the payload escort phase. Their escort was a little easier than the Fusions, as the Shock repeatedly pushed them back to advance the payload the required distance with nearly 2 minutes to spare.

The third map, Nepal, was a very close contest between these two teams. San Francisco managed to claim the first round, keeping Philadelphia to just 39% as they claimed the point for themselves. The second round was much closer, with both teams spending significant time in control of the point. In the end it was the Fusion who claimed the round, after rebuffing the Shock at 99%. The third round was another close affair, with the Fusion once more showing their dominant KotH strategies. Despite San Francisco managing to secure the point, they were only able to hold it to 83% before the Fusion finally claimed the win.

The fourth map, Route 66, was the last chance for Philadelphia to try and even out the score. Their attack did not go as planned however, as the Shock managed to slow them down significantly on their approach. As the payload approached the second checkpoint, the jaws of the Shock defence closed in, halting the Fusion in their tracks as the clock ran out. The San Francisco attack went much better, as they found themselves making slow but steady progress against the Fusion defence. As the payload approached the required amount, the Shock were able to hold back Philadelphia, claiming the final round with over 2 minutes to spare. San Francisco would claim the series win 3-1 to help their campaign for better seeding.

For more Overwatch action, check out the community reactions to the PTR changes for Hanzo, and for more on when these teams will clash again, check out the Official Schedule page, here.