This post carries forty-nine games over the seven series of the Tournament of Champions. All of the individual game winners represent their specific game, with the host determined by a coin flip that will also designate which style of pool is played. All series are played at the Ebay Center in Queens, with the silver cue taking all games as well. We begin with...
Wings, the 15-ball champion against the 7-ball champion Noelle, with the game of choice being 15-ball. Noelle of Central did a strong bit of work in the tight game 1, but she got a lucky break when Pearl's Wings scratched after sinking the 13, making the positioning a lot simpler for the last two shots as she went up 1-0. The Warriors' Noelle took game 2 as well, getting a frenzy of a shot to pot the 12 in the top left, which set up a soft carom off of the 6 to pot the 15 in the top side for the 2-0 series lead. Game 3 started with a lot of defense on the cluttered table, but things changed quickly once Noelle broke free, stunning the Surfers' Wings by shooting blind at the 3, which triggered a cluster-buster effect that saw the cue rebound back to put the 15 in the top side for another win, making it 3-0. Noelle secured advancement to the Champions' Cup Semifinals with a series of kindhearted attempts to avoid sinking the 15 early, until Wings left no choice but for Noelle to end the game. Wings struggled with accuracy, and he left the 10 in a carom-friendly location. Noelle executed in game 4 with a hard carom off the 10 that took the 15 to the top right, making it 4-0 in the series. Noelle won yet another game on carom in game 5, glancing the cue off the 9 to take the 15 straight to the bottom left, good enough to make it 5-0 in the series as Noelle continues to impress out of her comfort zone. Wings finally strung together a three-ball run late in game 6, but it didn't do any good for him, as he missed the 15 short, and Noelle buried it for another easy win, going up 6-0 in the series. Noelle finished the sweep with a very close carom off the 12 to take the 15 in the top right for a win that made it 7-0. Noelle will face the next winner in the Semifinals.
Next up, Snowball takes her Survival title against Paige, the 8-ball champion, with Survival the format of the series. Queens' Paige nearly lost game 1, but Snowball of Swordpoint failed in her attempt to get crafty, and Paige made her pay for it by taking the game when Snowball missed on a breakup shot at the start of rack two, making it 1-0 in the series early on. The Blades' Snowball played a much more accurate game 2, missing only one shot while the Flames' Paige lost a bit of control after a frenetic start, resulting in the series dropping to a 1-1 tie. Snowball paced herself evenly with Paige in game 3 before pushing the latter around significantly late in the first rack, and inducing a bad angle for her to shoot at the start of the second rack, which worked to give Snowball a 2-1 lead. Snowball nearly blew it in game 4, attempting to snooker Paige behind the rack, but she shattered a little too much of the cluster, allowing Paige to pick off a few and play defense until they were tied. At this point, Snowball buckled down, holding Paige off until Paige missed, giving Snowball the win to make it 3-1 in the series. Paige saved Snowball from a difficult shot in game 5's second rack, scratching to give away her last life, a move that earned Snowball a clinching victory as she went to 4-1 in the series. Snowball's miss in game 6 at the start of the second rack ended up working out wonderfully, disturbing but not completely freeing up the rack, which caused Paige to use a completely ineffective cluster buster shot that resulted in the loss of her last life, pushing the series to 5-1 for Snowball. Snowball again nearly blundered away game 7, but recovered in time for Paige to miss, making it a 6-1 final that sends Snowball to face Noelle in the Champions' Cup Semifinals.
The third series of the Tournament of Champions sees Rotation's champion Rainmane oppose the 9-ball champion, Goldy, in Rotation. Game 1 went very back-and-forth, as Everton's Goldy charged ahead late, only to fail to sink the 13 that allowed Web City's Rainmane to work solid positioning in tight with the top left, running out three balls for an 8-7 win and a 1-0 series lead. The Spiders' Rainmane again cashed in on the Eagles' Goldy missing the 13, using it to again win 8-7 and move to a 2-0 lead after Goldy melted late in a game again. Goldy answered in game 3, working a four-ball run-out that she capped with a 12-14 combination to the bottom left to take the game 8-4 and make it 2-1 in the series. Game 4 ended up being messy early, and lopsided late as Rainmane cruised to an 8-2 victory to take a commanding 3-1 series lead after stymieing Goldy throughout the game with accurate shooting and smothering defense. Goldy stayed alive with an impressive game 5 win, using a very precise four-ball run-out to clinch a victory at 8-4 and pull herself to a 3-2 deficit in the series, leaving things very much within reach. Goldy tied the series at 3 with a three-ball run-out to claim game 6, as Rainmane began to get very frustrated with the cluttered table at the start. Goldy played a more patient game and capitalized on the opportunity to win when it appeared to her. Rainmane took the series 4-3 after dominating in game 7, using a four-ball run to establish the lead and smart shooting at the end to make it an 8-3 victory that clinched Rainmane a spot in the Champions' Cup Semifinals, to oppose the next series winner.
Ending the first round/Quarterfinals of the Tournament of Champions, Fluffina, the 10-ball champion, plays against 12-ball titlist Acorn in a series of 10-ball. Lighton's Acorn took a sloppy game 1 after Maplewood's Fluffina couldn't contact the 9, making two shots after ball-in-hand for a 1-0 lead in the series. The Lumberjacks' Fluffina answered in game 2, as both players couldn't corral the 10 easily, and on the second go at it, the Prestige's Acorn left it short for Fluffina to tap in to tie the series at 1. In game 3, Fluffina was the one leaving the 10 short, at the bottom left this time, and Acorn was the one knocking it in, taking a 2-1 series lead in the process. Acorn took a 3-1 series lead with an impressive four-ball run-out capped by a 6-10 combination to the top left that he called for the win, which turned into a double-pot when the 8 also went to the top left, acting as icing on the cake. Acorn pulled off a much more stunning double-pot in game 5, caroming the cue off the 2 to take the 6 to the top left, which resulted in the 2 banking off the top rail, glancing the 5, and falling the bottom side, followed by the 4-7 combination to the bottom left as part of a five-ball run. Fluffina made it all an interesting footnote for the game, with the most dramatic shot of the ToC so far. Jockeying around the 9 ended favorably for Fluffina, as she tapped it to the bottom left. She got decent position for the 10, but appeared to leave it short at the top left. As she walked away shaking her head, it dropped in after hanging for a solid two or three seconds, giving Fluffina the win to make it 3-2 in the series. After Fluffina missed the 9, ending her three-ball run in game 6, Acorn skipped potting the 9 and used it as a distance-caroming device to tap the 10 into the top left to secure the series and his spot in the Semifinals with a clincher at 4-2 for the series. Acorn scratched after potting the 9 in a standard game 7, giving Fluffina the easy win that made it a 4-3 final for the series. Acorn and Rainmane are set to meet for the Semifinals.
The first Semifinal series in the Tournament of Champions sees Noelle of the 7-ball bracket take on Survival's best, Snowball, in a series of 7-ball. Central's Noelle made quick work of game 1, turning in a 3-7 combination that worked for her because she left the 7 short on the break shot, going up 1-0 over a punchless Snowball of Swordpoint. Noelle of the Warriors continued her strong play in game 2, although the Blades' Snowball put up a little more fight even as Noelle finished off the stanza with a long shot to sink the 7, making it 2-0 in the series. Snowball caught a break in game 3, as Noelle ended up scratching after she sank the 7, giving Snowball the win to make it 2-1 in the series. Noelle redeemed herself in game 4, while Snowball made an absolute mess out of the 6. This mess allowed Noelle to look a lot better, sinking the 6 and the 7 cleanly to take the game and move into a 3-1 series lead. Snowball shot herself in the foot in game 5, as her failed attempt at a 2-7 combination toward the top left set Noelle up to carom the cue off the 2 and put the 7 down in the top left for the clinching shot, winning the series at 4-1. Snowball pulled back to a 4-2 series with a three-ball run-out to lay claim to victory in game 6. Noelle played strong in game 7, but she couldn't corral the 7 late, and Snowball deposited it in the top side to make it a 4-3 series win for Noelle. Noelle, holding an 11-3 record today, will play the winner of the next series in the Tournament of Champions Final.
The other Semifinals sees Rotation champion Rainmane duel with 12-ball champion Acorn in Rotation. Lighton's Acorn dominated in game 1, working a seven-ball run to build up a massive lead over Web City's Rainmane very early on, and then he tapped the 5 in from medium range after Rainmane couldn't make legal contact, shutting her out 8-0 to take a 1-0 series lead. The Spiders' Rainmane shot back with a vengeance in game 2, holding the Prestige's Acorn up early before charging onto a six-ball run-out for the win, highlighted by a run-extending split-shot that saw the 8 go between the 13 and 15, sending the latter to the bottom right before she cut the 8 to seal it at 8-2 and tie the series at 1. In game 3, Rainmane continued her run of dominance, holding Acorn off significantly throughout the game to take it 8-2 and move into a 2-1 series lead. Acorn bounced back, winning game comfortably by a 9-4 score, coming on a double-pot of the 13 and 14 to the bottom right and top left on a cluster buster shot that started with the 12, all of which worked to tie the series at 2. Rainmane barely held on in game 5, blowing the lead she gained on a three-ball run as Acorn answered on a three-ball run to retie it, but Rainmane took care of the 15 when she got a shot, winning 8-7 and moving to a 3-2 series lead. Rainmane never let Acorn into game 6, dominating her way to an 8-1 win that made it 4-2 in the series, with her defense doing most of the talking in the series-clinching win. The first half of game 7 proved to be pretty close, but Rainmane burst ahead to an 8-3 win, ending on a kick off the right rail that bumped the 8 off the 12 and into the bottom side for the winning shot. The series ended 5-2 in favor of Rainmane, who is 9-5 to this point as she moves into the Champions' Cup Final.
As mentioned, the Final sees Rotation champion Rainmane battle 7-ball champion Noelle in Rotation for the Champions' Cup. Central's Noelle stunned Web City's Rainmane in game 1, running out the final five balls to roar to an 8-7 victory out of nowhere, taking a 1-0 series lead. The Spiders' Rainmane didn't stay down long, pulling nearly the same trick on the Warriors' Noelle in game 2, except she used a four-ball run and plucked the 13 on the next turn for an 8-6 win to retie the series at 1. Noelle shot back in game 3, a game that can only be described as equal parts brilliant and pathetic, with both players struggling and making spectacular kick shots and combinations in turn. Noelle ended up with the win, striking the 14 to the top left for an 8-7 win to make it 2-1 in the series. Noelle continued to dominate against a spiraling-out-of-control Rainmane in game 4, winning 8-1 with a three-ball run-out keyed by accuracy to make it a 3-1 series lead, putting Noelle on the edge of a trophy. Noelle took her time and played patient in game 5, until the shots aligned just right for her to pot two more balls and win 8-3 for the game to clinch the Champions' Cup at 4-1 in the series. Noelle rubbed salt in the wound as well as Rainmane the wrong way, letting Rainmane build up a big lead only to run out eight balls and take the 8-7 win to make it 5-1, nearly inciting an ugly ending to the series, although there's a game left for that to happen. Game 7 was a much tighter version of game 6, but Noelle still came out on top with the Champions' Cup to her credit with an 8-7 win for a 6-1 series win. Noelle will hold the title of 2015 Champion of Champions, the last one standing, adding another piece of hardware to the Central Warriors' shelf for a highly productive league year for the northeastern team.
That's all for today. Tomorrow, we have the one-day Clan Cup Playoffs between the eight Clubs.
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