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Sakura sign pdk, Natsuki, xomba and Zei while CLEAR, cinnabar, peace, Marf and SNR depart

by Garbis 'Vanskus' Vizoian

Sakura Esports sign Carson “pdk” Terry, Niels "Natsuki" van Herwijnen, “xomba”, and Robin “Zei”. Jonathan "CLEAR" Foraker, Valerie "cinnabar" Aseoche, Devin “peace” Vasquez depart, Boston "Marf" DeLeonardo, and Sascha "SNR" Rogge depart.

CLEAR played for Bleed Esports during EWC 2024. Photo by Tyler Grenfell at EWC 2024.
CLEAR played for Bleed Esports during EWC 2024. Photo by Tyler Grenfell at EWC 2024.

Three out and three in as Sakura Esports announces their roster for the Overwatch Champions Series Stage 3 2025. Sakura finished the OWCS Stage 2 regular season in 5th place, barely missing out on 4th place and a spot in the Upper Bracket Semifinals during the Regional Playoffs. Their road to the Midseason Championship was cut short when they were ultimately knocked out of the Regional Playoffs by Spacestation Gaming.

A turbulent off-season saw Sakura parting ways with half their player roster, plus both their coaches, only three months into their tenure with the team. During OWCS Stage 2, Sakura became a barrier for teams trying to escape the two relegation spots at the bottom of the table. The team achieved this result in large part due to CLEAR, whose influence was palpable during the entirety of Stage 2. He has since moved to Nosebleed Esports and will play in the OWCS Pacific Stage 3. peace and cinnabar, DPS and support players respectively, have also left Sakura to join ex-Supernova.

Sakura’s roster shake-up may destabilise their chances going into Stage 3, but the team is poised to continue their form with key new signings. Natsuki joins the team from 1DIPVS100GORILLAS. The Dutch Support will be quickly trying to acclimate to playing during US time zones before the OWCS kicks off on Sept. 6, 2025. Sakura has also locked down two key DPS signings in xomba and pdk. The pair are joining the team after displaying promising individual performances at Extinction and Dhillducks, respectively, during OWCS Stage 2.

The stakes are high for the American team, and as Sakura prepares for the start of the regular season, they’ll be relying heavily on their new signings to hit the ground running. The team will also be expecting a return to form from Alexander “Zeb” Shepard on tank, as he steps up to fill the big gap left by CLEAR.

The Sakura Esports Roster before the start of OWCS Stage 3:

  • Shima "xten" - Damage
  • “xomba” - Damage
  • Carson “pdk” Terry - Flex
  • Alexander "Zeb" Shepard - Tank
  • Z. "zzz" Harvey - Support
  • Niels "Natsuki" van Herwijnen - Support

Sakura Esports Support Staff

  • Robin “Zei” - Coach