Florida Mutineers and Los Angeles Thieves advance into the second round of Call of Duty League Stage 2 Major

Los Angeles Thieves and Florida Mutineers secured a spot in the second round of 2021 Call of Duty League (CDL) Stage 2 Major

Los Angeles Thieves and Florida Mutineers secured a spot in the second round of 2021 Call of Duty League (CDL) Stage 2 Major, with clean sweep wins on Wednesday, April 7. Mutineers disposed of Los Angeles Guerrillas, while Thieves edged out Paris Legion to eliminate them from the tournament.

Los Angeles Thieves prove they don’t need SlasheR

Prior to their first match of the CDL Stage 2 Major, LA Thieves decided to bench Austin “SlasheR” Liddicoat. They replaced him with 19-year-old ex-OpTic player Zack “Drazah” Jordan.

The CoD esports community did not accept that move well, viewing Drazah as a downgrade to the 2016 world champion. And even fewer people believed this change would help Thieves find their stride.

Drazah, however, proved everyone wrong with a phenomenal performance on Wednesday. He led his team to a 250-203 Hardpoint – Checkmate victory and kicked off the series with 36-22 and 1:08 OBJ.

Thieves kept the momentum going into the second game of the series and picked up a 6-0 victory on S&D – Raid. In one of the most dominant S&D performances of the season, Thieves allowed Paris only four kills the entire game.

On S&D, Drazah cooled down, having finished the map with 1/1.

Regardless, he didn’t need to do a lot, thanks to his teammates. Kenneth “Kenny” Williams, Thomas “TJHaLy” Haly, and Carlos “Venom” Hernandez finished the map with 6/1, 6/1, and 9/2, respectively, to secure a 2-0 series lead.

The third and final map of the series proved to be just as one-sided. With momentum on their side, Thieves crushed Legion 3-0 on Checkmate – Control to end Paris’ Major hopes in one clean swoop.

Florida Mutineers shock LA Guerrillas

The second match of the day featured a clash between Florida Mutineers and Los Angeles Guerrillas. The Guerrillas entered the match as heavy favorites, but they failed to justify that tag.

Having beaten the Stage 1 Major champion Atlanta FaZe during group play, Guerrillas were expected to claim an easy win on Wednesday. Things, however, did not go as planned, with Florida kicking off the series with a convincing 150-169 win on Hardpoint – Moscow.

After claiming the series lead, Travis “Neptune” McCloud edged out Guerrillas 6-4 on S&D – Express thanks to a strong showing from Joseph “Owakening” Conley. He ended the series with 12/7 and 800 score, only 100 short of Josiah “Slacked” Berry with 6/5.

Florida finished the deal with a 3-0 sweep of Guerrillas on Control – Checkmate. Owakening and Neptune shone the brightest in the final game, combining a 43/22 scoreline.

Thieves face London Royal Ravens; Mutineers take on Seattle Surge

With those wins, Thieves and Florida secured a spot in the second round of CDL Stage 2 Major Loser Bracket, where they’ll face Royal Ravens and Surge, respectively. The matches are scheduled for Friday, April 9, at 15:00 and 16:30 PST.

Odds for the Thieves vs. London Royal Ravens Match

Odds courtesy of BetOnline Sportsbook:

  • Thieves -312
  • Royal Ravens +222
  • Thieves -1.50 Maps -115
  • Royal Ravens +1.50 Maps +222
  • Over 4.50 Maps +177
  • Under 4.50 Maps -244

Thieves and Royal Ravens last met during Week 2 of Stage 2 regular season. Royal Ravens won 3-1 but have since lost three in a row. Royal Ravens won with 6-2 on S&D – Raid, 3-0 on Control-Checkmate, and 250-245 Hardpoint – Moscow.

Despite that win, Royal Ravens are priced as underdogs at +222. Thieves will enter the match as favorites, priced at -312.

Odds for the Florida Mutineers vs. Seattle Surge Match

Odds courtesy of BetOnline Sportsbook:

  • Mutineers -200
  • Surge +149
  • Mutineers -1.50 Maps +111
  • Surge +1.50 Maps -147
  • Over 4.50 Maps +149
  • Under 4.50 Maps -200

Mutineers lost against the Seattle squad on the opening day of the Toronto Home Series. Besides winning Control – Checkmate (3-0), Florida were unable to catch up to Seattle that day.

Surge won with 250-104 on Hardpoint – Apocalypse, 6-3 on S&D – Checkmate, and 250-224 on Hardpoint – Checkmate. Seattle have since won only one out of four series and enter this match on a two-game losing streak.

Mutineers enter the match as -200 favorites to avenge their group stage defeat. Surge are priced as a +149 underdog, with betting sites offering -147 on Surge with a +1.50 map handicap.