📝 Dallas succeed and Liquid freeze: OWCS NA Stage 1 Week 2 review

One week closer to the playoffs.

This past weekend brought a plethora of close and epic games, making the power structure in North America all the more confusing and exciting. With a much shorter regular season, every game matters even more than it ever has.

Game of the week: Team Liquid 0 - 3 Dallas Fuel

“It’s between us and SSG…[But] we’ll definitely be the best team in the region come playoffs.” - Luke "Lukemino" Fish

After having to sub in rookie flex-support Yasser "Escanor" Alotaibi on such short notice, Team Liquid were able to narrowly survive their match against Extinction in Week 1.

The Dallas Fuel, on the other hand, had convincingly won their match against Disguised and looked to be one of the strongest teams in the region. While Liquid were able to further integrate their new player and bring him into a lower-latency environment, catching up to the other elite teams in the region would be a tall order.

In order to shake things up, Team Liquid opted to run Colin "Coluge" Arai starting on Lijiang Tower, marking his first official Tier 1 Overwatch match since the 2024 Esports World Cup. And for a moment, Coluge’s D.Va and off-tank hero pool seemed to help Team Liquid out a lot, as they brought the map to three rounds before ultimately falling just shy of winning the map.

Aatlis, however, revealed many gaps in Team Liquid's strategy. For one, Dallas opted to ban Kiriko, which has been the one flex-support that Escanor has been consistent on. Along with this, Kim "Kellan" Min-jae brought out a surprise Reinhardt pick that caught Liquid off guard.

Normally, a tank player would select Ramattra, but Team Liquid had banned the hero, which paved the way for the German tank to make an appearance. Coluge was unable to utilize such a crucial counter, and also is not known for his Orisa. Because of this, Kellan was able to dominate the tank matchup and bring a swift 3-0 for the Fuel.

On the final map, Watchpoint: Gibraltar, Team Liquid looked drained. Rocco "Kronik" Iacobacci had appeared to take over the lobby, while Park "SeonJun" Seon-jun came up with a surprise dive-DPS core supported by Kellan that helped the Fuel full cap with several minutes in the bank. The only member of Liquid that refused to go down quietly was Elliot "TR33" Chu, who took over the lobby with a clutch Widowmaker.

Unfortunately for Liquid, not even TR33’s dominant hitscan could stop their opponent. While the map came down to Overtime in extra innings, Luke "Lukemino" Fish was able to secure the cart with a Brigitte play that allowed the Fuel to secure their second match victory.

The Dallas Fuel have proven themselves to be one of the two best teams in the region. The flexibility across the roster has proven very beneficial for this team, and even Kellan has shown great improvement on heroes outside his comfort zone.

As Lukemino mentioned in the post-match interview, they know the only other opponent that can truly challenge their authority is Spacestation Gaming, and they will face them in Week 3.

Team Liquid, on the other hand, continues to raise more eyebrows given their current situation. While Escanor did look improved on the flex-support, his inexperience with the role and lack of flexibility outside of Kiriko have shown other teams massive gaps in this roster.

Another big question is the tank position. Coluge has not played at the Tier 1 level since 2024, but unlike other players coming off long breaks, he spent most of his time playing professional Marvel Rivals rather than Overwatch.

While his hero pool did seem to help close some gaps from their first series, the rust showed against the Fuel. Head Coach Cas "Casores" van Andel will have big decisions to make, whether it is worth the risk to incorporate two new players into the lineup or to continue playing to their previous strengths.

Player of the week: Luke "Lukemino" Fish

While many support players this season have opted to remain within their spheres of flex or main support, the same cannot be said for Luke "Lukemino" Fish.

Lukemino has historically been a difficult player to categorize, as he has never shied away from flexing onto any support hero needed for his team. And this year, his flexibility has proven to be a mighty weapon in the Fuel’s arsenal.

The ability to swap and complement Christopher "Cjay" Smith with double-flex options, or stay true to main support, has allowed the Fuel to challenge the authority of the meta and achieve great success. Lukemino’s ability to swap from Lucio to Wuyang, and even to a deadly Illari, overwhelmed the opposition and brought the Fuel directly to the playoffs.

With the playoffs just around the corner, the rest of the region will need to prepare for a plethora of options from the Fuel backline. OWTV is proud to recognize Luke "Lukemino" Fish as this week’s North American player of the week.

Hero bans and map picks

Graphics from OWCS 2026 Hero Bans/Metas Spreadsheet by pthandley32

Compared to other regions, North America has become more diverse in the meta.Tanks have remained largely the same, with both D.Va and Zarya remaining as the two strongest options for many teams. Some teams, like LuneX and the Dallas Fuel, have experimented more with their individual tank players’ strengths, and have found success by playing outside of the two primary picks.

DPS picks have largely stayed based on individual preference and strengths. While Vendetta and Emre have remained as the most picked DPS, teams have slowly been introducing more Tracer and Pharah play, which has allowed for other compositions to shine.

Unlike the EMEA region, North America has been more willing to ban Lucio and Kiriko, resulting in greater variety among support options. We’ve seen an increase in Brigitte, Juno, Illari, and Wuyang appearing whenever the bans are available. These differences have also allowed DPS players to make their usual swaps to comfort heroes, which isn’t seen as much outside of North America.

Week 2 match summaries

Disguised 0 - 3 Extinction

“Everyone’s saying that [Disguised] are improving so much, we just wanna show we are improving more than they are.” - Carson "pdk" Terry

After giving both Dallas and Spacestation a scare, many were eager to see what Disguised could do against a weaker opponent in the region. Snagging a win over Extinction would be a great reset for this team and build momentum for the remainder of the stage.

But aside from some good performances by Evan "PGE" Ngo and Alexander "Tred" Madgwick-Smith, the team was thoroughly outclassed by Extinction. Similar to their previous matches, Disguised opted to utilize Joseph "Lep" Cambriani and Julian "Rokit" Pizana on off-meta picks to attempt to throw Extinction off guard, but ultimately were unsuccessful in their attempt.

With this loss, Disguised fell to 0-3 in the standings and had to refocus for their final game of the weekend against Team Liquid.

Extinction, on the other hand, recovered quickly from their 0-2 start and secured a much-needed victory. Ryan "ryan" Lawless and Stevie "sniper" Rivera once more took over the lobby on Tracer and D.Va, respectively, and completely overwhelmed any attacking attempt from Disguised.

This victory was also a lot more personal for Carson "pdk" Terry. After participating in two OWCS stages in 2025 with both DhillDucks and Sakura Esports, this victory against Disguised marked pdk’s first official victory in OWCS. A victory the significance of which was only heightened during pdk’s official post-match interview.

With spirits high and a scary offensive core, Extinction turned their attention towards Spacestation Gaming.

Dallas Fuel 3 - 2 LuneX Gaming

“I don’t think we ever lost a map to [LuneX] in scrims, so I’m pretty surprised it was this close.” - Coach Eric "Wheats" Perez

After rebounding from their loss to Spacestation, LuneX had recentered themselves and were now facing their scrim partners, the Dallas Fuel.

This match was close and went back and forth as both teams looked to gain an edge. Unfortunately for LuneX, Dallas had recognized that xten is a large part of this roster’s success and found every way possible to utilize Kellan’s dive expertise to shut her down.

Regardless of the result, there were many good signs for LuneX. Alexander "Zeb" Shepard has continued to show himself to be arguably the best Orisa player in the region, and the support line has shown a lot of flexibility outside of the Lucio/Kiriko dynamic. Although a loss, Z. "zzz" Harvey mentioned in a recent interview with OWTV that this team spends a lot of time reflecting, and are looking to rebound next week against Disguised and Team Liquid.

Watch Z: "The loss changed us a lot more than the win"

With this win, the Dallas Fuel cemented themselves not only as a top-two team in the region but also as the first team guaranteed for the Stage 1 Regional Playoffs.

Although a close call, this match has continued to show the flexibility within the support core of this roster. Both Lukemino and Christopher "Cjay" Smith have not been afraid to explore options outside of Lucio/Kiriko, especially Lukemino, with a deadly Illari that overwhelmed LuneX.

As Coach Wheats mentioned in the post-match interview, this roster was assembled to be more than a one-note D.Va/Lucio/Kiriko team, and while the team would like to make some refinements, it has proven to be a worthwhile gamble.

Dallas’ only remaining opponents are Spacestation Gaming and Extinction, two primarily D.Va teams. Dallas will get its chance to truly cement themselves in the OWCS era against two tough opponents next weekend.

Spacestation Gaming 3 - 0 Extinction

“We were maybe overconfident with our scrim results [against Disguised]...” - Coach Christopher "ChrisTFer" Graham

Extinction had proven themselves in the region by taking Liquid to 5 maps and defeating Disguised in a quick 3-0. With these results, many eyes were on their match against Spacestation Gaming and how they would perform.

But much like their win against LuneX in Week 1, Spacestation showed Extinction that there are indeed levels to this game. Outside of a back-and-forth Lijiang Tower, this match was very one-sided in favor of SSG. A lot of the momentum generated with their win against Disguised once more came to a screeching halt, as this game was over as quickly as it started.

Extinction’s final match of the stage will be against Dallas. If they hope to remain above the Relegation spots, they will need to have a good showing against the other best team in the region.

Spacestation wasted no time in their victory. Compared to their performance against Disguised, Coach Christopher "ChrisTFer" Graham stated that they worked to refine their reading in the meta and opted to play to their strengths rather than pick randomly.

This victory was also very crucial, as it not only continued to increase Spacestation’s credibility as the best in the region but also guaranteed them a spot in the upcoming Regional Playoffs.

While Extinction didn’t test them this match, their true test will be against the Dallas Fuel next weekend. If Spacestation wins that match, they will inarguably be the best team in North America heading into the playoffs.

Disguised 3 - 0 Team Liquid

“I am confident that we perform well under pressure.” - Assistant Coach Ethan "Cap" Walker

After a massive loss to Dallas, Team Liquid needed a rebound win. But unfortunately for them, that rebound never came.

Right out the gate, Coluge started the first two maps for Team Liquid, and looked unpolished compared to his opponent. Even though Boston "Infekted" Fine came in for the final map of Esperança, he couldn’t quite gel with the rest of the roster. Aside from massive performances by the DPS core of TR33 and Xavier "zeruhh" Zambrano, the entirety of Team Liquid looked drained.

This loss now puts the team in a tricky situation. Team Liquid now stands at a 1-2 record with both LuneX and Spacestation Gaming on the horizon. If they hope to avoid relegation, they will need to make massive turnarounds in such a short time.

After several close series, Disguised managed to pick up their first official OWCS victory.

Once more, PGE and Tred have continued to show their skill and expertise for this roster, and managed to hold their own against some of the most skilled players in North America. Special recognition goes to Rokit, who refined his hero selection and showed off a dominant Vendetta performance against their opponents.

Disguised, however, now sits in a similar situation as Team Liquid. Since they now sit at 1-3, their only remaining game next weekend is against LuneX, and they are thus on the cusp of relegation. If Disguised hope to make it to the playoffs, they will need to beat LuneX Gaming and also get some extra assistance from the other teams around them.