Carolina, Dallas to play for C.G.S title

The Championship Gaming Series' title match is set. In one corner, a team will try to complete the turnaround from last year's dismal showing. In the other corner, a team tries to finish the deal it couldn't last year.

The Dallas Venom, a 4-8 team last year, is one win away from winning the championship after defeating the San Francisco Optx, 24-22 Wednesday night in Santa Monica.

They will be pitted against the Carolina Core, 26-19 winners over top seeded 3D New York.

It wouldn't be fair to say that the Core was backing into the Region 1 playoffs. That's because "backing in" implies that the Core lost one crucial match in hopes of gaining momentum toward the playoffs.

The Core was in a much different position; they had lost their final five contests. They hadn't won on television, and they were the first victims of the previously winless Los Angeles compLexity.

On Wednesday night, the Core didn't look like that team that lost five in a row. Instead, they looked like the team that won its first two regular season games by an average of 15 points.

Carolina defeated 3D New York, 26-13 and will play in the Region 1 championship match for the second consecutive year.

Carolina won all five contests, and at one point they held a 22-9 advantage.

Katherine Gunn led the charge with a 5-0 shutout over New York's Tanya Underwood in a "Dead or Alive 4" contest. Gunn's confidant, Ryan Ward, soon followed with a 5-1 win past Cardell Thomas.

A few minutes later, Dallas, the second seed in the playoffs, held off a determined San Francisco group that is now 0-2 in playoff appearances.

It came down to the final round of the final match of the night -- "Counter-Strike Source." Dallas gained a 4-on-1 advantage and seized control of the field to gain the win and a berth in the finals.

Dallas won three of the five events, including a 5-4 decision by Michelle Pleet over San Francisco's Vanessa Arteaga in "Dead or Alive 4." Pleet (1-0) once again took down the league's best performer, just a couple weeks after handing Arteaga (0-1) her first loss in league play.