Ninetails get vengeance vs Xipto Esports to continue GCC 2025 bid

Ninetails and Xipto Esports found themselves in an unfortunate circumstance as the two Pacific teams met each other in the lower bracket of VALORANT Game Changers Championship 2025. The Filipina rookies could not maintain a similar result to the Pacific grand final, and the Korean squad flipped the script instead. The match ended in a 2-1 in favor of Ninetails. This match means that their GCC 2025 run continues, while Xipto exits the tournament.

"Lack of practice, I think," Mary "capriciouS" Sabado answered when what became the deciding factor of their loss to NTZ. "To be honest, I don't think we deserved to win at all. We didn't give our best playing today and [our previous match against KC]." Even if we won against [Ninetails] last time, I don't think we deserve to win today." capriciouS added that their practice was affected negatively by external issues, like the big typhoons that recently hit the Philippines and visa processes.

"grahams (Leanne Ti-in) couldn't come to practice for 1-2 weeks since their province was flooded. [She had] to be evacuated. When she got home, we still had to wait since they had no electricity and had to play at a computer cafe," she added.

However, the takeaways were not all bad for Xipto. "I think one thing I'll be proud of is that we still tried to play and tried to win, even though it was tough for us. I'm really proud to say that we didn't give up," capriciouS continued.

"After dropping our match against NOVA, we talked about how we didn't get to show our playstyle. For me, as the coach, the emphasis was on hyping the players up and giving them confidence," NTZ coach Park "Hype" Min-su said. "Our objective tonight, regardless of the result, was to show the world how Ninetails plays."

"I think we just lost to Xipto in the Pacific grand final because we had the stage jitters, but today was easy. Nothing special about them," said Park "332" Min-ju.

332 had a significant contribution to NTZ's win. She led the lobby in kills with 53 across the three maps, and her First Kill record of 9 was a close second to grahams' 11.

"I just love playing aggressively, but when I watch PRX it gives me more confidence and makes me think I'm on the right track," 332 remarked. "If they can win playing aggressively, then so can I. Watching them is a way I can rationalize my aggressive play style.

Map 1 was Pearl, Xipto's pick. They took the first pistol round, then the buy round after, and, after winning their bonus round, they looked poised to dominate the whole map. However, Ninetails did not let that happen. Instead, they took a whopping 12 straight rounds before Xipto could find their fourth. That was a one-off, and NTZ closed out the map at a swift 13-4.

Now on Bind, Xipto was able to find and maintain a lead in the first half. They even went on a five-round win streak to cement their lead going into the second half, which they began 7-5. Ninetails got their answer going just before XIP could completely take the map, though, and they slowly closed the gap. A well-timed tac pause from XIP got them to round point, broke Ninetails' spree, and soon after, brought the series to the decider map.

Albeit barely, Ninetails won their first bonus on Split, which ensured they have a stable lead to cushion the rest of their half. The Korean squad found their momentum and put Xipto into a significant deficit. NTZ got five rounds before XIP could even find one. They did turn this into three rounds, but NTZ did not allow them to take any more and closed the half, 9-3.

Xipto won the second half pistol, but Ninetails pulled off a Thrifty against a full investment, and it looked like wraps from here. 332 got a 2-4-1 (get it? like a two-for-one) to put Ninetails on match point, and the pressure was on for Xipto. In front of the home crowd, Ninetails found the following round and successfully survived the Pacific finals rematch.

Continuing their VALORANT Game Changers Championship 2025 run, Ninetails will face MIBR GC. MIBR was sent to the lower bracket after being swept by defending back-to-back champions Shopify Rebellion Gold, but they are not weak opponents whatsoever.

Since Xipto is now eliminated from GCC 2025, Ninetails remain as the last bastion of hope from the Pacific region.

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