Overwatch League, Week 3: Houston Outlaws overwhelm Los Angeles Gladiators

The Houston Outlaws look unstoppable, while the Los Angeles Gladiators look for redemption.

The Los Angeles Gladiators’ loss to the Los Angeles Valiant was a tough pill to swallow. One minute, they were up two maps, and the next they were stunned, watching the Valiant pull off an insane reverse sweep. The Gladiators are not a bad team, and they came into their last matchup of the third week hoping to prove it.

Meanwhile, the Houston Outlaws have fully recovered from their shaky start, with convincing wins over multiple teams. But just because they feel at the top of their game doesn’t mean they are on paper. The Gladiators and the Outlaws both sit in the middle of the pack, which means both need to win this match to stay competitive moving forward.

Map One: Numbani

The Gladiators would attack first, going around to the left to attempt to gain the high ground. With Bischu trying to eat LiNkzr Widowmaker bullets, Surefour flanked as Soldier 76 to try to get some crucial picks in the Houston backline. Unsuccessful, the Gladiators would have to withdraw. Their next attack, however, would draw out three ultimates from the Outlaws. With no support ultimates left to sustain them, Houston could not outlast LA, especially not after LA used their own Valkyrie.

The Gladiators held strong on the payload as it moved through the streets of Numbani, helped along with a Transcendence. They would also win the fight over the second checkpoint. As the payload rounded the corner in the last portion of the map, Houston pounced onto LA, forcing them to reset. The Outlaws would then move up onto the high ground in an attempt to hold the Gladiators preemptively back from the payload. However, LA’s Shaz was able to pick off Muma early in a spot that made it impossible for him to be resurrected. With that, the Gladiators approached the payload with an advantage already on their side.

As the Outlaws retreated back toward the payload, the Gladiators were ready to make their winning push. Hydration decimated the ranks of Houston with a Dragonblade and with BigGoose providing the healing, the Outlaws were unable to make a dent in the Gladiators’ presence. With a little over a minute on the clock, LA completed the map.

Jake on Pharah led Houston’s first attack onto the objective. He immediately cleaned up the members of LA on the high ground and went on to continue to drive them back. Very quickly, Houston took the first objective and started to move the payload. The Gladiators would come back immediately to try and pressure Houston but Jake, now on Solider 76, would use his Attack Visor to clear away the obstacles in Houston’s way all the way up to the second checkpoint.

As the payload moved into the last section of the map, Hydration switched onto Doomfist but would not do much before getting eliminated. LiNkzr on McCree moved right up to the LA spawn point to take people out as they spawned, and then used a Deadeye to further thin out LA’s ranks on the payload. Houston completed the map with 4:21 still on the clock.

The Gladiators would start out on attack in the time bank round. Their first attack would end with iRemiix’s death, but pulling back to reset would give them less than 30 seconds on the clock. While LiNkzr was felled, Jake made up for it with Junkrat, concussion mining LA back from the point. With Houston securing the full hold, they would only need to take the first tick on the first point to get the win.

Houston opened their attack with a triple-DPS composition. With so much damage available for the Outlaws, the Gladiators were all eliminated within seconds. The Outlaws easily capped their first win of the series.

Map Score: Gladiators 3, Outlaws 4

Match Score: Gladiators 0, Outlaws 1

Map Two: Temple of Anubis

Defending first, Houston set up with an Orisa on the forward elevated platform. As the Gladiators jumped onto that platform to contest, they lost two members of their team and pulled back. Their next attack ended similarly. Jake used his Riptire on the next engagement to take out Hydration, but Jake himself was taken out by Bischu. With five on each side, LA furiously attempted to dislodge Muma from his Orisa perch. In the end, they were unsuccessful.

With less than 20 seconds remaining, the Gladiators had one more push and this time with an ultimate advantage. However, it was Jake taking out Hydration immediately. From there, the Gladiators collapsed. The Outlaws moved to attack knowing they just had to take a tick on the first point to win the map.

The Gladiators chose to set up on the same platform as the Outlaws did. Unlike the Gladiators, the Outlaws immediately pushed them off onto the point. From there, LiNkzr had free reign to pick off as many LA members as possible and the Houston front line did the rest. In record time, the Outlaws had their second map win.

Map Score: Gladiators 0, Outlaws 1

Match Score: Gladiators 0, Outlaws 2

Map Three: Ilios

Starting on Well, Hydration came out on Pharah. But LiNkzr immediately handled him with a headshot within seconds of the doors opening. Seconds later, Asher was sniped by LiNkzr. Easily, Houston took control of the point first.

LiNkzr, perhaps, got a bit too comfortable on his roost, getting floored by Shaz’s orbs. But Jake would get revenge for his teammate, zipping in as Tracer and emptying a clip into Shaz. With Coolmatt on D.Va pushing so far up, the Gladiators struggled to even get close to the point. When they next did, it was LiNkzr now on McCree ruining their push, able to take BigGoose out of the picture. But LA still had Shaz’s Transcendence to sustain their presence, and Hydration was able to pick up a Dragonblade kill onto LiNkzr. With LiNkzr and Boink out of the fight, Houston retreated. LA took the point and just at the right time too, with Houston already up 99 percent on the control meter.

Jake switched off Tracer to Junkrat, a move that paid off immediately as he caught Hydration, followed quickly by a finish onto iRemiix. In overtime, LA only had so many people to throw at the objective before Houston finished it up.

The teams next went to the Ruins, where LiNkzr and Asher both went Widowmaker. Very quickly, Houston took control of the point. Jake in the backline on Tracer was able to take BigGoose out with a Pulse Bomb, stalling LA’s first push onto the point. When they did come forward, it was from the rooms on the left, which Coolmatt flew up to take care of. With 90 percent already on the control meter, LA wasn’t even close to the payload. In an attempt to contest, Shaz would use his Transcendence to get an LA presence onto the point, but the rest of Houston would also be there supported by Rawkus’ Transcendence. As soon as it ended, Asher found a crucial pick onto Boink’s Mercy, giving LA the opportunity to take the point.

But just as it was on the Well, it was too little too late for LA. Houston was already up 99 percent. LA was only able to push off Houston once before they came roaring back with a Dragonblade and Valkyrie available. With his ultimate, LiNkzr took out Hydration. Not finding much else, he circled back to the point to help de-mech and destroy Bischu. He then finished up his performance with a flawless reflect of Asher’s snipe, wiping Widowmaker off the map. Just like that, Houston secured their win over LA.

Map Score: Gladiators 0, Outlaws 2

Match Score: Gladiators 0, Outlaws 3

Map Four: El Dorado

On defense, Houston set up behind an Orisa shield on the high ground. Hydration on Pharah was able to slightly flank that setup, forcing the Outlaws back onto the courtyard. However, LA was driven back after losing Hydration and BigGoose. The next engagement was the one that stuck, with Valkyrie’s popped on both sides. But LA was eventually driven back. Surefour, however, remained in the Houston backlines on Tracker, trying to find his chance to strike.

Jakerat dispatched the next LA push with a Riptire that took out two of the Gladiators. With time ticking down into overtime, LA was on their last push. Surefour would be downed by Jake in the back, accomplishing nothing for all his sneaking around. With LiNkzr as Widowmaker standing uncontested on the archway in the back, it wasn’t long before he found the headshots necessary to hinder the Gladiators’ attack. Soon enough, the LA push was over, barely past the archway.

Next: Overwatch League, Week 3: Boston Uprising takes down Dallas Fuel

With such a short distance to go, it took Houston mere seconds to push the payload from the spawn to the goal line. Houston would end the night with a clean 4-0 sweep.

Map Score: Gladiators 0, Outlaws 1

Final Match Score: Gladiators 0, Outlaws 4

Player of the Match: Jake, Houston Outlaws