Welcome to the OWL Stage 1 Finals Recap! Stage 1 is finally at an end, and with it we have crowned a champion. The San Francisco Shock and the Vancouver Titans went the distance during their grand finals matchup, and fans were treated to some of the best Overwatch we have seen in a long time. However, there could only be one winner. The maps were so close, and with both teams making each moment count, it was truly anybody’s game. But at the end of the seven-map set, the Vancouver Titans took the win for themselves, and have now been crowned the Stage 1 Champions. The final match score was 4-3 in favour of the Titans.

OWL Stage 1 Finals

They started from the bottom, and now here they are. The Vancouver Titans are a fan favourite team, and they have been since before they joined the Overwatch League. Once upon a time, the players on the Vancouver Titans were on a team known as RunAway. Known for their pink colours and their charm as underdogs, the team always came close to winning, but never quite made it. They played in every season of the OGN APEX tournament, but couldn’t clutch out the championship win. They came so close during both Season 2 and Season 4, but they were defeated by Lunatic Hai (now Seoul Dynasty) in Season 2, and then by GC Busan (now the London Spitfire) in Season 4. Despite the losses and never being champions, the team was loved by many across the globe.

Humble Origins

With no sponsors to help, the team was run and funded by team owners Runner and Flowervin, both popular streamers that funded the team themselves, even paying for a team house for the boys out of their own streaming income. Both Runner and Flowervin became like family to the team though, being called the dad and the mom of RunAway by fans. It’s hard not to love them though, especially if you’ve seen the clip of Runner punching out a ceiling tile in celebration of a match win. It’s been a long and rough journey for the team, but after their victory in Contenders Korea Season 2, the players were picked up by the Vancouver Titans. Finally, their Overwatch League dream had come true.

SeoMinSoo Comes Alive

And with that dream comes their Stage 1 Championship title. The Titans gave the fans of the Overwatch League a match to remember, with every player giving their all to make the win possible. Not only did the Titans win the match, they also broke records, with the team managing to finish Rialto and beating the record by a whole minute, which is impressive considering how easy it is to full hold on Rialto. The most impressive thing, though, is how DPS player SeoMinSoo for the Titans played the entire game with a broken finger. He still managed to achieve Player of the Match and some fantastic stats.

For the record, here is SeoMinSoo’s overall statistics at the end of the match. Despite his injury, SeoMinSoo managed to achieve 128,358 points of damage, 58 final blows, 63 Graviton Surge kills, 64% average energy charge and 30 deaths. For someone with a broken finger, that is no small victory at all. The Titans have also continued their winning streak with this victory, and they are heading into Stage 2 with no losses on their record. Will any of the remaining teams on their schedule be able to topple them?

Shock Should Be Proud

The San Francisco Shock may not have as much of a heart-warming story as the Titans do, but they do have a smart one. The Shock didn’t have a stellar run in the inaugural season of the Overwatch League, but that is because most of their key pieces arrived whilst the season was still going. San Francisco acquired the Boston Uprising’s former head coach known as Crusty near the end of Season 1, and they picked up a few more players in the offseason such as former London Spitfire player Rascal, former Boston Uprising player STRIKER and Viol2t, who came from Contenders Korea team O2 Ardeont.

Slowly but surely, all of their pieces have fallen into place. Main tank Super and well known DPS player Sinatraa became of age in March of last year, and they both began playing during Stage 2 for Sinatraa and Stage 3 for Super when they both became eligible.

Look for Improvement

And it has paid off. The wait was long, but the fruits of their labour are ripe for the picking during this current season of the Overwatch League. They finished Stage 1 with a 4-3 match record and a +5-map differential. The stage playoffs were even better for them, as they didn’t drop a single map until they reached the grand finals, as they took down the Toronto Defiant and the Philadelphia Fusion in two clean sweeps.

Despite the loss, the Shock gave the Titans a run for their money with how well they played. Main tank Super had the game of his life as Reinhardt, especially during Kings Row. He managed to stun the enemy team 17 times with his Earthshatters. He even used his Earthshatter on Nepal to stun four members of Vancouver whilst Super himself was stuck in SeoMinSoo’s Graviton Surge. As teams prepare for Stage 2, those facing off against the Shock should be wary of the competition they’re going up against, as this team are no slouches at all.

Top 5 Plays

Coming Up - Stage 2

We’re heading into Stage 2 of the Overwatch League’s second season, and here are the upcoming matches for Week 1.

Thursday 4th April

8 PM EST – Philadelphia Fusion vs New York Excelsior

9:45 PM EST – Boston Uprising vs Atlanta Reign

11:30 PM EST – Shanghai Dragons vs Los Angeles Gladiators

Friday 5th April 1:15 AM EST – Guangzhou Charge vs Paris Eternal

Friday 5th April

8 PM EST – London Spitfire vs Floriday Mayhem

9:45 PM EST – Washington Justice vs Toronto Defiant

11:30 PM EST – Los Angeles Valiant vs San Francisco Shock

Saturday 6th April 1:15 AM EST – Los Angeles Gladiators vs Seoul Dynasty

Saturday 6th April

4 PM EST – Florida Mayhem vs Philadelphia Fusion

5:45 PM EST – Toronto Defiant vs Boston Uprising

7:30 PM EST – New York Excelsior vs Shanghai Dragons

9:15 PM EST – Chengdu Hunters vs Paris Eternal

Sunday 7th April

4pm EST – San Francisco Shock vs Guangzhou Charge

5:45pm EST – Atlanta Reign vs London Spitfire

7:30pm EST – Vancouver Titans vs Hangzhou Spark

9:15pm EST – Washington Justice vs Chengdu Hunters

Image via the Overwatch League