shimmer dethrone Chimkin

For the first time, Chimkin and shimmer participated in the same Cash Cup and fans couldn't have asked for a better scenario. Chimkin and shimmer were seeded #1 and #2, respectively, meaning they would only face each other in the grand final if they made it.

With both teams arguably being two of the best from the North American women's scene, they didn't run into a lot of trouble on their way to the grand final, with neither dropping a single map.

The path for Chimkin was slightly easier than shimmer's path to the finals. Chimkin destroyed Frayja peek 16-2, then Eros Ethereal 16-0 and 16-4. Andrea "Andrea" Bracewell was on fire during the first two matches, getting 53 kills in the series against Eros Ethereal alone.

shimmer started this Cash Cup with a 16-4 win over Supersonic Women and then faced Factor Ruby, formerly known as U-Turn, in a very close series, where Lucy "empathy" Verkaik one-upped Andrea and got 56 kills. shimmer took the series 16-7 and 16-13 across the two maps.

The grand final went the distance, with all three maps being played. Mirage, picked by shimmer, was tight until the very end, as shimmer managed to come back from a 12-5 deficit, but Chimkin were able to close the map 16-12. Overpass, picked by Chimkin, was smoother for shimmer, as the team managed a 10-5 first half on the CT-side and then a 6-3 half on the T-side, winning their opponents' pick 16-8. Inferno, the decider, saw all 30 rounds being played, as this was a very streaky map for both teams. shimmer opened a 11-4 at the half on the T-side, and things were looking very good for them to take a convincing win over Chimkin, but then Chimkin managed to regain the lead 14-13. This is when shimmer decided to wake up and put an end to the series, getting three rounds in a row, and winning the map 16-14. Once again, empathy topped the fragging list with 85 kills throughout the series.

This ESL Impact Cash Cup was the last before the start of ESL Impact Season 3 North America and it came with a lot of good signs for some teams, such as shimmer, Factor Ruby, and, despite the grand finals loss, Chimkin.

1. shimmer - $750
2. Chimkin - $250
3-4. Factor Ruby
3-4. Eros Ethereal