This year’s Collegiate VALORANT (CVAL) season concludes bright and early Sunday morning (May 31st) as Winthrop and Maryville face off for the 6th time this year, in what has become the expected matchup for any major collegiate final over the past couple years.
The Maryville Saints come into the matchup nearly perfect on the season, having only dropped 10 maps in 36 matches across NACE, Division ONE, and CVAL. In the former two competitions, that dominance provided them their fifth and sixth titles in program history.
The team they beat to win those titles? The Winthrop Eagles, who come in as the only team to have beaten Maryville, handing them six of those map losses in the process. Their season hasn’t been as clean as their counterparts, identified by a surprising 0-2 loss to St. Clair in the NACE Varsity Spring Group Stage Finals. However, back-to-back 2-0 wins over Fisher and Maryville in the CVAL Upper Semifinals and Finals, respectively, make them a team worthy of the Grand Final.
About Maryville VALORANT
Maryville was the hallmark of consistency this year, winning 29 series this year either 2-0 or 3-0. In fact, the Saints only lost one map to a team not named West Virginia or Winthrop this year (Stony Brook).
Consistency is not surprising when you look at last year’s Grand Finals lineup to this year’s, as four of five players return for their rematch with Winthrop. However, when you realize that the one player who is missing is none other than Caide “chloric” Heaton, the dynamic season this team had is even more impressive.
chloric was Maryville’s long time IGL, making the jump to the VCT level to become the IGL for NAVI. Yet, when you look at the Saints’ schedule, you would be hard pressed to pinpoint when chloric left. Instead, the Saints have benefitted heavily from the addition of Yahya “Shondex” Amani, the transfer from Fisher, in the flex role. His ability to seemingly play anything (he played 4 different agents on 3 different roles in Maryville’s 3-2 Division One championship win over Winthrop) has allowed the team to figure out what their team looks like post-chloric.
About Winthrop VALORANT
For the Eagles, the roster they will field on Sunday is not what they expected coming into this school year. Not only is it a stark difference from last year’s final, with the long standing Philip “Infiltrator” Nguyen being the only returner, but this team lost three players from Fall to Spring: Eishan “Nahsie” Jaffer and Ali “Ali” Salahedin exited the team, but more crucially, St. Thomas transfer, Connor “GLYPH” Garcia, ended up signed by VCT organization Gentle Mates.
However, not all has been lost for Winthrop. The signing of professional veteran Peter ”Governor” No, a move that shocked the collegiate scene, has probably been what’s kept the team playing at such a high standard. Add that experience with Infiltrator’s space-making ability (he went a combined 15-2 on FK/FD in the last two CVAL matches against Fisher and Maryville), and you now understand why Kru reached out to have them both stand-in during VCT America’s Kickoff Stage.
Yet, these two won’t be able to do it alone, nor have they had to. Adam “Fair” Elheroun is a massive addition to this team and seems to show up whenever they face off against Maryville. Over the 12 maps that Fair has played against the Saints, he’s gone negative only twice, producing even when the score isn’t going his team’s way.
What To Expect
Winthrop winning the Upper Final and getting the two map ban was all but necessary for them to have a chance to win Sunday, not just strategically, but also mentally. At this point, the two teams have faced off in four straight collegiate finals, with Maryville winning every single one. Winthrop winning on the 7th was vital for them to shake off a subpar performance at NACE and give themselves the confidence needed to win.
On Maryville’s side, facing a double map ban, while arguably your best map (Bind) is rotating out, is a tough hill to climb. Toss in the fact that their auto ban, Pearl, is one of Winthrop’s best maps, and you’re starting to expect that a Maryville win will almost certainly come by a 3-2 scoreline.
Three things that I think will decide the match:
- Who wins Fracture? The map was played in both of the last two series with the winner taking it 13-7.
- Will Winthrop run double duelist? A team that loves to play double initiator, they leaned into the meta on both maps in their win against Maryville.
- Which rookie flex has a better day? Both Shondex and Fair have been able to have impact for both their teams not just with flexibility, but also performance.
Predictions
Here’s my predictions for the map ban process:
- Winthrop ban Split & Haven
- Winthrop pick Pearl
- Maryville pick Fracture
- Winthrop pick Lotus
- Maryville pick Ascent
- Breeze remains
For the series, I see it going the distance. Winthrop has done their best to put themselves in a great position to win but ultimately, I think Maryville still has their number. I’m picking the Saints to take the series 3-2.
You can tune into the CVAL Grand Finals on Sunday, May 31st at 7am PT / 10 am ET on the official VALORANT Americas Twitch page.
