Taking the First Win

By then, Baron Nashor and the fourth Elemental Dragon had both respawned. NIP played it safe and went for the fourth Elemental Dragon first, while Top Esports decided to gamble on a trade for Baron Nashor. They headed straight for the Baron pit without so much as looking at the dragon.

But PPgod had warded the Baron pit, so NIP saw Top Esports' plan to trade objectives plain as day. They immediately abandoned the half-finished dragon and rushed toward Baron.

Top Esports wasn't taking it down quickly enough to stop NIP from getting there.

By the time NIP reached the pit, Top Esports hadn't even taken half of Baron's health.

Seeing NIP arrive, Top Esports hesitated, torn between fighting and retreating. A crucial pillar from Troll cut off their escape, and Poppy activated Keeper's Verdict and charged straight into the Baron pit.

Rell went in to engage too, and Top Esports simply crumbled. Sejuani used Q to dash over the wall and fled without looking back, leaving Viktor and Braum in the pit to be focused down.

They died in an instant.

Kai'Sa landed a W on Xayah, who still had two-thirds health, then flew in a second later. Her burst was staggering, instantly leaving Xayah critically low. Xayah hurriedly used her ultimate to dodge the damage, but she had already taken Kai'Sa's entire combo. Using her ultimate now merely delayed her death. Sejuani and Wolf Mother had escaped along the lower route, while Xayah alone had gone toward Krugs. There was no one to save her.

Xayah used Flash after her ultimate ended, but Kai'Sa seemed to have anticipated it. While Xayah was still in her ultimate, Kai'Sa had already activated E to sprint forward, keeping the low-health Xayah within attack range and finishing her off.

With Sejuani and