The heavy Major favourites are headed to the Grand Final in Austin, with Vitality taking down MOUZ in Saturday’s first semifinal.

Not only did Vitality secure a place in Sunday’s title-decider, Dan “apEX” Madesclaire and company also claimed their eighth consecutive win over MOUZ.

The win came after three maps, starting with a strong opener from Vitality, who stole MOUZ’s pick of Mirage, largely off the back of a dominant CT side led by Shahar “flameZ” Shushan.

The first map ended 13-8 in favour of Vitality.

Impressive reset

With their backs against the wall and one foot out of the tournament, MOUZ were under serious pressure heading into Inferno.

But that didn’t faze the young squad.

They came out swinging, completely shutting down Vitality with a 13-4 win to tie the series. Ádám “torzsi” Torzsás deserves special mention for his 1.74 rating on the map.

Vitality train headed for the title

The deciding map was Train, as MOUZ opted to ban Dust2 – a decision that surprised some.

But with Vitality on the other side of the server, there are no easy choices. The world’s No. 1 team quickly took control of the map, racing to a 10-2 lead by halftime.

In the second half, Vitality closed it out without much resistance, finishing 13-6 to take the series and book their spot in the Grand Final.

Vitality will now face the winner of paiN vs. The MongolZ, which will be played later this evening inside Moody Arena.

Sunday’s final offers a shot at another trophy, and another chance for Vitality to cement their place in CS history.

Match statistics

Vitality vs MOUZ 2-1 | BLAST.tv Austin Major Semifinal

8-13 (Mirage) – ropz | 1.81 rating

13-4 (Inferno) – torzsi | 1.74 rating

13-6 (Train) – ZywOo | 1.78 rating