“Heartbroken”: Sentinels Valorant players react to LCQ elimination
Chris Betancourt/Riot GamesSentinels’ Valorant players took to social media to react to the team’s elimination from the VCT Americas LCQ on Tuesday.
Sentinels’ VCT 2023 season reached an end on July 18 after the team was soundly beaten by Leviatán in the lower bracket of the Americas’ last-chance qualifier for Valorant Champions.
It was a disappointing end to a season that started with high expectations, following the signing of four new players, including Brazilian duo Gustavo ‘Sacy’ Rossi and Bryan ‘pANcada’ Luna, who had won Valorant Champions 2022 with LOUD a few months earlier.
Chris Betancourt/Riot GamesThe team never lived up to the massive hype surrounding it and went through some roster instability, particularly around the midway point of the season, when Tyson ‘TenZ’ Ngo had to deal with a finger injury and illness.
Jimmy ‘Marved’ Nguyen’s arrival breathed new life into the squad, but Sentinels still couldn’t reach the playoff stages of VCT Americas after a dramatic five-way tie in the standings. The LCQ stood as the final chance for Sentinels to salvage the season, but after a promising victory against 100 Thieves, the team came up short in the following two matches, against Cloud9 and Leviatán.
Sentinels players comment on LCQ elimination
TenZ was one of the first players to react to Sentinels’ season-ending defeat. The Canadian expressed his disappointment that the roster did not play to its full potential and took his share of the blame for the team’s failings.
“Really just heartbroken at the moment,” he wrote. “Appreciate all the hard work this team put in, but to all the fans I’m sorry.”
Tagging his teammates and the coaching staff, he added: “Had a lot of fun playing and learning alongside all of you this year and it f**king sucks to go out this early in the year. I wish I could have played better personally and I’m sorry to let you guys down.”
pANcada echoed TenZ’s thoughts that the team did not fulfill all of its potential, saying: “We tried until the end, but I feel that we couldn’t show even half of our potential. That really sucks.”
Sacy, who has competed in esports for almost a decade, said that this was “the most painful” defeat of his career.
“In the face of so many personal problems that I have had to deal with this year, I never stopped being a professional and giving my all,” he said. “I’m sad that I couldn’t meet my own expectations.”
Marved, who took over as IGL following Rory ‘dephh’ Jackson’s departure, praised his “incredible” teammates for their hard work. He also said that he was disappointed in himself. “I came in late and tried to lead these talented players, and feel like I let them down.”
Zachary ‘zekken’ Patrone said that he will use this year as a learning experience to continue his improvement.
“We gave everything we had and more, despite the circumstances,” he said. “So thankful for my teammates and coaches, couldn’t have asked for anything more. They’re incredible to work with.”
The future of Sentinels’ squad has become a hot topic in the Valorant scene in recent days. Earlier this month, NRG captain Pujan ‘FNS’ Mehta said that the team could change as many as four players and that Sacy and pANcada will most likely be heading back to Brazilian teams.
Keep track of all the changes in the Valorant scene with our off-season rostermania tracker.