Two victories extend Heretics' stay at CDL Stage 1 Major

The Miami Heretics stayed alive by registering a pair of wins on Friday in the lower bracket of the Call of Duty League Stage 1 Major in Dallas.

After edging the Toronto KOI in lower-bracket first round, the Heretics swept the Vancouver Surge 3-0 in the lower-bracket second round. The Surge began the day with a 3-1 victory over the Carolina Royal Ravens.

In the other lower-bracket openers, FaZe Vegas eliminated the Boston Breach 3-1, and the Riyadh Falcons ousted Cloud9 New York 3-1.

All 12 Call of Duty League teams qualified for Major 1, which runs through Sunday. The teams that finished qualifying in the top eight spots began in the upper bracket, and places 9-12 were slotted into the lower bracket.

All matches are best-of-five until the grand final, which is best-of-seven. The winning club will take home $150,000 and 100 CDL points; the runner-up gets $90,000 and 75 CDL points.

On Friday, Toronto took Exposure Hardpoint 250-195 before Miami replied with a 6-5 win on Raid Search and Destroy and a 3-2 victory on Exposure Overload. The KOI extended the match with a 250-214 triumph on Colossus Hardpoint, but the Heretics sealed advancement with a 6-4 decision on Den Search and Destroy.

Miami then toppled Vancouver 250-246 on Exposure Hardpoint, 6-2 on Raid Search and Destroy and 4-3 on Scar Overload.

Earlier, Carolina captured Scar Hardpoint 250-248 before the Surge reeled off three straight wins: 6-2 on Raid Search and Destroy, 5-4 on Den Overload and 250-214 on Colossus Hardpoint.

Vegas claimed Den Hardpoint 250-127, but Boston equalized by taking Scar Search and Destroy 6-5. FaZe sealed the match by capturing Den Overload 4-3 and Exposure Hardpoint 250-173.

Riyadh eked out a 250-243 victory on Blackheart Hardpoint ahead of New York's 6-3 win on Colossus Search and Destroy. The Falcons then prevailed 4-1 on Exposure Overload and 250-185 on Den Hardpoint.

The Saturday schedule:

--Upper-bracket semifinal: Paris Gentle Mates vs. Los Angeles Thieves

--Upper-bracket semifinal: G2 Minnesota vs. OpTic Texas

--Lower-bracket round 2: FaZe Vegas vs. Riyadh Falcons

--Lower-bracket quarterfinal: Miami Heretics vs. team TBD

--Lower-bracket quarterfinal: FaZe Vegas/Riyadh Falcons winner vs. team TBD

Call of Duty League Season 7 Stage 1 Major prize pool:

1. $150,000, 100 CDL points

2. $90,000, 75 points

3. $50,000, 60 points

4. $30,000, 45 points

5-6. $15,000, 30 points

7-8. $7,500, 15 points -- Vancouver Surge, one team TBD

9-12. No money, no points -- Toronto KOI, Carolina Royal Ravens, Boston Breach, Cloud9 New York

--Field Level Media