How Will Tina and Veronica Survive Rachel’s Departure?

Much to the dismay of long-term fans, the former “Mean Girl” alliance has been split up — in the most unexpected way possible. Veronica and Tina remain in the game, but Rachel has gone home.

Now, the two girls are left to navigate the game without their fitness trainer friend.

Tina may be in the most difficult position because she’s left without a star. This means she’ll need to go in an elimination to earn one, and the competition is getting tougher by the week. As we know, Rachel is no stranger to winning, and she’d likely give Tina a star if she had the opportunity. Not only that, but Rachel would likely give Tina the best Arena match-up possible if she had control.

Meanwhile, Veronica is in a fairly ideal situation — for her. She was gifted a star by Rachel, and she continues to hold onto it. Now, her goal is to prevent other people from taking it, and this allows her to use her social prowess. This is where Veronica shines. She’s been known to talk sense into people, and usually, that “sense” benefits her game.

If the two remaining “Mean Girls” want to make it further in the game, they’ll need to leverage every option they have. This means:

• Selling themselves as a package deal. As players are looking to avoid elimination (or get a good match up), having two votes on their sides are better than one.
• Use Jasmine’s star. In the short term, Cara Maria placed a “starget” on Jasmine. Likely, Cara wanted to use that as a shield for herself, but it will also benefit Veronica. This will help Veronica fly under the radar for as long as possible.
• Perhaps the ballsiest move would be to rely on Rachel’s newfound ally Cara Maria. While this could put a target on Tina and Veronica’s backs, Cara could benefit from having numbers on her side. This could be a high risk with a high reward.

Sadly, it seems Veronica and Tina will have an uphill battle for the rest of this competition. They’re likely to get targeted sooner or later, but if they can make it to the end together, they will earn serious praise from Challenge fans.