After Sentinels' victory over 2G Esports, Jordan "Zellsis" Montemurro reflects on the 5-0 track record of the team in the VCT Americas Stage 2 and analyses the loss of the opening match on Sunset. The American player also recounts pivotal moments in his career, and considers the influence of Sean "Bang" Bezerra and Marshall "N4RRATE" Massey as the team prepares for the VALORANT Champions in Paris.
How do you feel about your performance and the team’s performance overall?
Jordan "Zellsis" Montemurro: "I never shoot against 2G Esports. If you look at all our matches against them, I think I'm always single-digit kills. The kids are like plus 30, plus 20, everything like that. So 2G is just unreal. They're just a good team, and I can't take them down. But I feel good that we got the win. We got the clean 5-0 record in the split, and it feels nice going into playoffs with that confidence.
What happened on Sunset, and what was missing for the team to close it out?
Zellsis: It's definitely doesn't help that I have four kills, but otherwise we still could have won. They're just like a really good Sunset team. They have a lot of fast plays with ultimates and everything like that, and like misdirections. And it caught us off guard a little bit. We threw a couple of rounds on attack. I think it was just that we weren't like "on stage". We were like in the back room, the Halloween Abyss. We just started a little bit cold, trying to win the game by ourselves rather than being a team. And then I think after we lost the first map, we just kind of locked in as a team.
How would you define the “Zellsis style” in three or more characteristics?
Zellsis: There's definitely some trash talk, but I've been trying to be positive with everyone and all the teams. I'm not really trash-talking; I'm trying to hype everyone up. I kind of enjoy it. It brings me a little bit of wholesome happiness. So I'm enjoying it. But playoffs will be a different matter. So, the trash talk is coming back. There's definitely going to be some trash talk. I think it's just high energy and a vibe merchant, and everything like that. Those are just some "Zellsis characteristics".
You’ve kept that smile and high energy through many Stages in VCT Americas. What habits, routines, or philosophies help you sustain that vibe on stage when you’re not at your best?
Zellsis: Even when I'm not feeling my best, it's important to be the hype vibe guy. Well, like hype vibe and leader, whatever. Because there's more to what I do on stage than just yelling and screaming. But even when I'm not feeling my best, I still check all the boxes because my teammates are unbelievable, and they can carry if I'm having a bad day. And I just need to be the good support player, or make sure that all the boxes are checked for myself and my teammates, making sure I'm reminding them about alt points or comms or everything like that.
You mentioned your specific responsibilities. What is your role in the SEN lineup in terms of in-game leadership and preparation?
Zellsis: I don't really do a lot of the team prep. That's mostly just Kaplan (Adam Kaplan), Gunther (Luke Clives), and JohnQT (Mohamed Amine Ouarid). But like the leadership role, JohnQT and I share it a lot. It's just making sure we're disciplined in rounds, making sure we're not throwing easy rounds, mid-round, stuff like that. Those are like the characteristics that we share in terms of leadership and everything like that. And then just yelling and hyping up the guys. I think those are just the main things.
We mostly see you on Sentinel. In your opinion, what qualities are needed to play Sentinel in VCT and international events?
Zellsis: Sentinel kind of fits me a lot because of I played CS:GO professionally. I think Sentinel is kind of like a CS role in terms of knowing timings when you can, and when you can't lurk, knowing when you need to just group with your team. Those things are very like CS characteristics, and for me Sentinel fits like a CS player perfectly because that's what you do on Sentinel. You need to be able to like anchor and all that stuff. It's a little hard and VALORANT to anchor sites the same way, because there's a bunch of utility getting thrown at you, flashes, stuns, Neon ultimate, Yoru TP, Omen flash. There's just so much to do when you anchor, so it's a little bit harder, but I think those are the important characteristics for Sentinel.
Photo by Tina Jo/Riot Games
Since you brought up Counter-Strike, what are the key differences between your pro play in Counter-Strike and in VALORANT?
Zellsis: Well, I won in VALORANT, so... Yippee! I played CS:GO but didn't play CS2, so it's hard for me to say how the game is now. But CS:GO, was a lot of more about individual mechanics than VALORANT. I think you still have to have mechanics in VALORANT, but there's a lot more precision utility than in CS. You still have smokes, flashes, and mollies, but you also get iPads, direct stuns, everything like that. So I think those are the differences. Team play is also more important in VALORANT than in CS. Those are the little differences, it's a different gameplay but the same kind of style.
Reflecting on your career, what low point secretly became a turning point, and how did it change your standards?
Zellsis: There were two low points in my CS career when I had my little stunt with Cloud9, and they didn't end up keeping me. That was a very low point for me. I went through a very dark time after that, not knowing where I was heading in life. The second low point was on V1 when, before franchising, we lost to Complexity and Girl Kissers in the LCQ split. It was just a really bad result. I felt like I was stuck in a rut and not getting anywhere. I was depressed and didn't want to play anymore. I stated to post that I wasn't going to play with my team anymore.
It was unfair to them and to me to keep competing, so I was going to bench myself. Those are the two lowest points, but I'm glad I didn't give up it was a big shout-out to Rawkus (Shane Flaherty). It was a small message that kind of got me out of my funk and back to grinding. Rawkus was the one who, just after the V1 stint, when we lost, talked to me like a friend. He was the head coach of Sentinels at the time. He really liked me as a player, and they needed subs for LCQ. He brought me in, which got me to where I am now, so I'm forever grateful to him.
If you could change one thing in your practice environment tomorrow to bring Sentinels closer to winning Champions in Paris, what would it be, and why?
Zellsis: I don't think I would change anything right now. We're on a very good trajectory. Rather than change, we just need to keep doing what we're doing. Not doing too much or too little, just kind of keep on that same wave that we're writing right now. We've found a really good, solid form within the coaching staff, how we do server time and practice, and VOD's and matches and everything like that. If we keep that up, we're going to have good results for Champions.
Since N4RRATE and Bang joined Sentinels, what have you learned from them on or off the server that isn’t visible publicly?
Zellsis: They're just the younger, newer generation coming up, coming in. Bang's been around for a long time, but he's kind of just been middle of the pack always. It's time for him to win a championship or a trophy. He'll have a long career ahead of him, same with N4RRATE. N4RRATE is different, he's kind of like a rookie. Karmine Corp was his first year professionally. He played on MAD Lions before, but KC was his first ever pro team, and then Sentinels is his second, so I still consider him like a young rookie. They're just very smart how they think about the game. I like to think that as you get older, you need to have an open mind to how the younger generation, the star players, play the game. I need to learn from them and adapt from them. Obviously, I have a lot of experience, but at the end of the day, they can always teach you new things as well. So if you have an open mind as an older player that you'll just keep improving with them or learning new things with them. So I think those are things that they provide for me inside the game."
Header Photo Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games
