Park Sang-hyeon ('JjapJaedong'), the back-to-back champion and top tournament favorite, defeated Lee Jae-dong 3-1 to advance to the semifinals.
In Match 3 of the Google Play ASL Season 22 quarterfinals held at FreecUP Studio in Daechi-dong, Seoul, on September 28, Park lost Set 1 to Lee Jae-dong's tactical prowess and psychological warfare, but swept the next three sets to secure his spot in the semifinals.
In Set 1 on Attitude, Lee opened with a 12 Hatchery while Park started with Gas Pool, with Park producing early Zerglings to launch an immediate attack. Despite a wide tech gap, Lee routed a group of Zerglings around to flank Park's rear while holding his ground at the high-ground ramp of his main base rather than his natural expansion. After successfully defending, Lee devastated Park's main base with his commando Zerglings to claim the opening set.
In Set 2, Lee once again opened with a natural Hatchery first, while Park opted for a gasless 9 Spawning Pool into a high-ground Hatchery build. Park pulled out Lee's Drones with his initial six Zerglings, picking off two. Maintaining a fast tech advantage while covertly accumulating Zerglings, Park breached Lee's natural defense line with a decisive attack to tie the match 1-1.
Set 3 on Odyssey featured an even sharper clash in build orders. Since the map's main base layout resembles "Fast Infinite," Lee expected Park to also take a natural expansion and opted for a greedier opening: three Hatcheries before a Spawning Pool, followed by gas and then a Spawning Pool. However, Park's early Spawning Pool attack reduced Lee to just three Drones. Although fast mineral income allows for quicker recovery than on standard maps, Park was already transitioning into a three-Hatchery Lair tech, leaving Lee at a severe disadvantage. Lee ultimately lost the subsequent Zergling skirmishes as Park took a 2-1 lead.
Having opened aggressively in previous games, Park shifted strategy in Set 4 by starting with a greedy natural Hatchery, while Lee went with a safe Pool-first build. Capitalizing on his slight economic edge, Park used a swarm of Zerglings to destroy Lee's delayed natural expansion and maintained a solid Mutalisk timing to take firm control of the game. Securing double gas, Park successfully fended off Lee's final assault to seal a 3-1 victory and advance to the semifinals.
