Sports
Top teams Natus Vincere, Team Vitality clinch sports in BLAST Open Spring grand final
BLAST Premier 2022 CS:GO Team Vitality continued its dominance while Natus Vincere held strong to set up a matchup of top-seeded teams in the best-of-five grand final after wins in the semifinals of the BLAST Open Spring on Saturday at Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Both teams received byes to the semifinals after undefeated runs in group play. Team Vitality still has yet to drop a game as they defeated Aurora Gaming 2-0 to set up a clash with Natus Vincere, which downed PARIVISION 2-1.
The 16 teams in the $400,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive event were split into two groups of eight that contested double-elimination brackets in Copenhagen, Denmark. The top three finishers in each bracket advanced to the six-team playoffs in Rotterdam.
The winning team will earn $150,000 along with three BLAST Frequent Flyer tokens.
Team Vitality was dominant against Aurora Gaming, claiming 13-5 victories on Inferno and Nuke. Israel’s Shahar ‘flameZ’ Shushan had a match-high 37 kills and a plus-15 K-D differential. Ali ‘Wicadia’ Haydar Yalcin had a team-best 30 kills for the all-Turkish side, but had a minus-2 K-D differential.
Natus Vincere had a tougher time with PARIVISION but still came away with the victory, winning 13-11 on Dust II and 13-7 on Mirage to clinch it after falling 13-8 on Inferno. Ukrainian Ihor ‘w0nderful’ Zhdanov paced Natus Vincere with 59 kills and a match-best plus-17 K-D differential. Dzhami ‘Jame’ Ali led the way for all-Russian PARIVISION with 50 kills and a plus-3 K-D differential.
BLAST Open Spring prize pool (cash prize, BLAST Frequent Flyer tokens)
1. $150,000, 3
2. $60,000, 1
3-4. $40,000, 1 — PARIVISION, Aurora Gaming
5-6. $20,000, 1 — Team Falcons, The MongolZ
7-8. $10,000 — FURIA, Team Spirit
9-12. $7,500 — TYLOO, NRG, 9z Team, Team Liquid
13-16. $5,000 — FaZe Clan, B8, MOUZ, Ninjas in Pyjamas
–Field Level Media
Sports
Gary Woodland holds third-round lead at Houston Open
Mar 28, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Gary Woodland hits a tee shot on the ninth hole during the third round of the Texas Children’s Houston Open golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images Gary Woodland shot 5-under-par 65 on Saturday to maintain the lead through three rounds of the Texas Children’s Houston Open as he seeks his first victory in nearly seven years in Houston.
Woodland is at 18 under despite his highest score of the tournament.
Hard-charging Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark posted the best round of the day with a 63, so he’s one stroke back going into Sunday’s final round at Memorial Park Golf Course
Woodland had four birdies on a six-hole stretch on the backside to maintain the lead. The last three of those birdies came with putts inside of 7 feet.
Hojgaard also was 4 under on that same six-hole stretch, with a 14-foot putt his longest birdie among those holes.
Both golfers had pars on No. 18.
Defending champion Min Woo Lee of Australia shot 67 to sit at 12 under, joined by Michael Thorbjornsen (66).
Lee took a bunker shot on one knee on No. 17, rolling the ball close enough for a birdie putt.
Sam Stevens (67) and Australia’s Jason Day (68) are at 11 under.
First-round leader Paul Waring of England moved back into contention by shooting 66. He’s at 10 under with Sahith Theegala (66) and Canada’s Sudarshan Yellamaraju (65).
–Field Level Media
Sports
OpTic Texas, FaZe Vegas earn 3-0 wins in CDL Stage 2 Major
OpTic Texas dominated on Saturday, advancing to the Upper Bracket Final, as the Call of Duty League’s Stage 2 Major continued in Marston Green, England.
Texas faced G2 Minnesota in their Saturday matchup. They opened play with a 250-107 win on Den Hardpoint. Then, Texas cruised to a 6-2 victory on Raid Search and Destroy, before sealing the 3-0 sweep with 4-2 win on Den Overload.
FaZe Vegas also completed a 3-0 sweep in their shutout of Paris Gentle Mates. Paris entered Saturday with back-to-back wins, but their momentum ran out against Vegas.
Vegas had a 250-190 victory on Exposure Hardpoint, and a decisive 6-0 win on Raid Search and Destroy. They finished the matchup with a 3-2 win on Exposure Overload.
Texas and Vegas will meet on Sunday in the Upper Bracket Final.
Toronto KOI and LA Thieves will meet in the Lower Bracket Semifinal. Toronto defeated Paris 3-1, while LA defeated Minnesota 3-1. The Thieves closed out their matchup with an impressive 250-94 win on Den Hardpoint.
The Sunday schedule:
–Upper Bracket Final — OpTic Texas vs. FaZe Vegas
–Lower Bracket Semifinal — Toronto KOI vs. LA Thieves
–Lower Bracket Final — team TBD vs. team TBD
–Grand Final — team TBD vs. team TBD
Call of Duty League’s Stage 2 Major prize pool, with money winnings and CDL points
1. $150,000, 100
2. $90,000, 75
3. $50,000, 60
4. $30,000, 45
5-6. $15,000, 30 — Paris Gentle Mates, G2 Minnesota
7-8. $7,500, 15 — Riyadh Falcons, Miami Heretics
9-10. no money, no points — Vancouver Surge, Carolina Royal Ravens
–Field Level Media
Sports
Iowa-Illinois interrupted for 11 minutes due to horn
Mar 28, 2026; Houston, TX, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood talks with an official in the first half against the Iowa Hawkeyes during an Elite Eight game of the South Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images HOUSTON — The NCAA Tournament South Region final between ninth-seeded Iowa and third-seeded Illinois on Saturday experienced an extended delay when the horn stuck with 7:43 remaining in the first half and the Hawkeyes leading 22-20.
The delay lasted more than 10 minutes, and when the game resumed, the center-hung scoreboard was no longer operational.
The Iowa-Illinois winner will advance to the Final Four in Indianapolis next weekend.
–MK Bower, Field Level Media
Gary Woodland holds third-round lead at Houston Open
OpTic Texas, FaZe Vegas earn 3-0 wins in CDL Stage 2 Major
