We're back with some Monday billiards, the first match being from...
Amazon Field Exhibition Hall, Golden: Valencia v. Gizmo. The silver cue will lead off with a series of 8-ball. Central's Gizmo started off well but got threatened by a four-ball run from Golden's Valencia, which lost steam just in time for Gizmo to take the win and a 1-0 series lead. The Warriors' Gizmo took charge in game 2, using three balls to guard the bottom right before picking them off easily. The defense stymied the Pilots' Valencia, who could only watch Gizmo run away with the win and a 2-0 series lead. Valencia recovered a bit with a stronger game 3 effort, holding off Gizmo's attacks for a bit. She gave up a late four-ball run, but he left her lined up on the 8, and her win makes it a 2-1 series. Valencia did well in game 4, scoring a five-ball run to put pressure on Gizmo. He answered well, potting three in a row, but the last was the 8 in an illegal fashion as he called the wrong pocket, so Valencia tied the series at 2. Gizmo held on patiently in game 5, and struck with his three-ball run-out after Valencia ended a four-ball run, stealing the series 3-2. Gizmo advances his #87 ranked 8-ball bid to the third round.
Honda Driftwood Coliseum, Pearl: Watermelon v. Smudge. The red cue is in for this series of 12-ball. Pearl's Watermelon took advantage of a kick on the 5 that knocked the 6 into the 15 and then the top side, streamlining her shots to topple Infinity's Smudge as the host gains a 1-0 series lead with good shooting in game 1. The Torpedoes' Smudge made all of her shots from ball-in-hand as the Surfers' Watermelon had two missed contacts after giving away a wild card ball, pacing Smudge to the win that tied the series at 1 after game 2. Smudge had to give up two wild card balls before striking the 10 to the top right from distance to get the win against a cagey Watermelon. Smudge leads 2-1 in the series. Watermelon pulled back, staving off a furious late rally from Smudge to earn a win and tie the series at 2. The pair fought vigorously in game 5, but Watermelon's late scratch set her back too far, and Smudge capped the game with a win, taking the series 3-2 as well. Smudge, ranked #58 for 12-ball, will play in the third round.
Toyota Arena, Freedom: Roxy v. Rainmane. The silver cue returns for another 8-ball series in the Eastern Hills. Web City's Rainmane began with a strong game 1 win, setting the 8 up at the bottom left to play defense as Freedom's Roxy got neutralized, leading to a 1-0 series lead for Rainmane. The Cascades' Roxy returned the defensive favor in game 2, keeping the Spiders' Rainmane away from the 15 before finishing the game on a cut to the top right, tying the series at 1. Rainmane had to fight back with Roxy in game 3, as the finish was close, but Rainmane made the 8 to take a 2-1 series lead after the close game. Rainmane held on again in game 4 as Roxy had the better of play until Rainmane's three-ball run-out secured her the series at 3-1. Roxy just had a step on Rainmane in game 5, using that to her advantage in the end as she won to make it a 3-2 series. Rainmane, ranked #28 for 8-ball, will host a third round series against the Central Warriors' Gizmo at Home Depot Forum in Web City.
Nike Field Events Center, Commerce: Tigerette v. Stripes. This mother-daughter regional rivalry series is Accuracy with the blue cue. Their aggressive shooting styles bit both of them badly in game 1, with Terrace City's Stripes being just a bit worse than Commerce's Tigerette, who won 7-8 to take a 1-0 series lead. The Knights' Stripes buckled down after an early miss, and her late defense frustrated the Tradewinds' Tigerette as she ended up losing 1-5, making it a 1-1 series. Tigerette overcame a pair of early misses in game 3, watching her defense stop Stripes' charge effectively as the host earned a 2-3 win and took a 2-1 series lead. Tigerette had no issues in game 4, as Stripes was ineffective with her shooting and took the loss 3-6, giving Tigerette the series at 3-1. Tigerette faded a bit late in game 5, but held on for a 2-4 win to claim a 4-1 series win. Tigerette is ranked #8 for Accuracy and heads into the third round confident with her win.
Toyota Arena, Freedom: Nikolai v. Dustin. The red cue returns for 15-ball between a rookie and an established star. Freedom's Nikolai played better in game 1, ousting Central's Dustin first with a near potting of the 15 that Dustin cleared and then a three-ball run-out to officially earn the 1-0 series lead. Game 2 started really poorly on both sides, with the Warriors' Dustin first emerging with a four-ball run just after midway, but the Cascades' Nikolai won as Dustin left the 15 short at the top left, grabbing a 2-0 lead in the series. Nikolai clinched the series at 3-0 with his game 3 win, a back-and-forth battle that Dustin couldn't gain an upper-hand in for any length of time. Dustin did get the upper hand when Nikolai snookered himself in game 4, and Dustin used the 2 to pot the 14 at the top right and then sink a 2-15 bank combination to the top side to get on the board in the now 3-1 series. Dustin ended up getting away with another one in game 5, barely winning in a difficult game. Nikolai took the series 3-2, and his #54 ranked 15-ball bid is into the third round now.
Sprint Hall, Victoria: Kavan v. Brownie. The red cue stays up for a series of 12-ball. Victoria's Kavan had no answer for a five-ball blitz from Harrison's Brownie in game 1, and she even got away with giving a wild card ball away before finishing the win for a 1-0 series lead. The Specters' Brownie gave away a wild card ball at the start, and while the Spurs' Kavan lost hit, he set up his last two shots after that well enough to grab the game 2 to tie the series at 1. Brownie got away with a win in game 3 after giving Kavan a wild card ball again, but his defense failed him to let Brownie take the 2-1 series lead. Kavan answered Brownie's two-ball break with a five-ball run and a good set-up shot for his final ball, which he made on his second turn to retie the series at 2. Kavan got lucky in game 5, as Brownie illegally potted two of his balls, and the added flexibility outlasted her defense as he won to take the series 3-2. Ranked #41 for 12-ball, Kavan will play in the third round.
Pepsi Arena, Lighton: Acorn v. Sprinkles. The afternoon will end with the blue cue and a series of 8-ball between family members. Capital City's Sprinkles had an early run challenged late in game 1 by Acorn of Lighton scoring a three-ball run, but he came up short on the 8, and Sprinkles potted it two shots later for a 1-0 series lead. The Sharpshooters' Sprinkles had to come from behind in this game as the Prestige's Acorn had a more solid effort, but he stalled out too soon and Sprinkles took the win for a 2-0 series lead after game 2. Acorn fired back with a highly unstable game 3 victory that saw five total scratches between the two sides. Sprinkles in particular had bad timing for scratching, and that allowed Acorn to get on the board and make it a 2-1 series. Sprinkles went for the dazzling comeback in game 4, following up Acorn's five-ball run from the break that ended in a scratch with a six-ball run-out to clinch the series at 3-1 for herself. The players exchanged five-ball runs in the middle of game 5, but Sprinkles closed things out on a three-ball run-out, giving her a 4-1 series win. Sprinkles is ranked #46 for 8-ball, and takes the campaign into the third round after taking out the bracket's top seed.
Cisco Arena, Tysini: Charli XCX v. Sugar. The night begins with more 8-ball from the silver cue. This series is incorrectly listed by venue on the schedule. Web City's Sugar had the better of play in game 1, ending with six straight balls made, including the 8 and two of Charli of Tysini's on the final shot that gave the visitor a 1-0 series lead. The Hummingbirds' Charli answered with a strong game 2, but had to stave off a four-ball run late in the game by the Spiders' Sugar. This made it a 1-1 series. Sugar did well with a six-ball run in game 3, answered by Charli's five-ball run. Sugar got the last laugh, scoring the last two balls to win the game and take a 2-1 series lead. Charli once again made an answer, even as Sugar used a five-ball run. Charli fought back and got the win on a precise three-ball run-out, tying the series at 2. Game 5 proved to be the closest game, with less runs and more tight and defensive play. Sugar ended up getting a narrow win in the end to take the series 3-2. Ranked #78 for 8-ball, Sugar is through to the third round.
Apple Center, Todavía: Leonardo v. Roxy. The blue cue is up for a game of 7-ball in this series. Freedom's Roxy answered an early four-ball run by Todavía's Leonardo with a three-ball run-out to gain a 1-0 series lead. The Cascades' Roxy played even better in game 2, piecing together a four-ball run-out after pushing the Stills' Leonardo around during the early parts of the game en route to a 2-0 series lead. Leonardo blew a straight-in shot from ball-in-hand in game 3, costing him the game as Roxy tapped it in and sealed the series at 3-0. Roxy bossed possession again in game 4, and Leonardo again came up short by missing the 7, allowing Roxy another tap-in for a win to make it a 4-0 series. Roxy completed the sweep with a big win in game 5, owning possession to take the series in a 5-0 sweep. Ranked #78, Roxy will play in the third round.
Coca-Cola Field Exhibition Center, Boston: Gradley v. Bryant. The red cue is in action for the last time tonight in a series of Accuracy. Maplewood's Bryant outplayed Boston's Gradley in game 1, but the final score was a bit ugly because of the start and end, with a 5-6 final giving Bryant the 1-0 series lead. The Lumberjacks' Bryant appeared to be in trouble late in game 2, but three straight misses from the Swifts' Gradley bailed him out to a 4-5 win to take a 2-0 series lead. Bryant sealed the series at 3-0 with a reasonably good game 3, although he and Gradley struggled again at the end and the final was 3-4. Bryant had a decent game 4 as well, watching Gradley's early stumble derail him to another 3-4 loss that gave Bryant a 4-0 lead in the series. Gradley finally got a game as Bryant's game 5 was forgettable, a 1-4 loss that made it a 4-1 series win in his favor. Bryant is ranked #74 for Accuracy and will advance to the third round.
Samsung Arena, Whitewater: Wild Thing v. Cassandra. The latest pool installment of the Bloodbath Derby is in 7-ball with the silver cue. Whitewater's Wild Thing never let Diamond's Cassandra touch the cue, running the table in seven clean shots from break to finish with great positioning pacing him to a 1-0 series lead. The Gems' Cassandra got lucky a bit in game 2, as the Shores' Wild Thing missed a short shot on the 7 at the top left that Cassandra tapped in to win the game and tie the series at 1. Wild Thing restored a sense of dominance in game 3, running out the last five balls to keep Cassandra seated as he gained the series lead at 2-1. Cassandra made the first three balls in game 4 but had reason to worry with Wild Thing running out the last four balls, but also scratching, giving Cassandra the win to tie the series again at 2. Cassandra stole the series away with a long-distance shot on the 7 in game 5 after Wild Thing did everything possible defensively. The cut dropped in the top left for the 3-2 series win, sending the #43 ranked 7-ball player Cassandra to the third round.
BMW RockDome, Westside: Misty v. Spice. The final series of the night is 8-ball with the blue cue. Spice will also lead tomorrow's games off at home. Westside's Misty had a late four-ball run in game 1 come up just short in the face of a three-ball run-out by Victoria's Spice, who took a 1-0 series lead with the bold ending. The Spurs' Spice made another rally in game 2 to make it a 2-0 series, pulling in a four-ball run-out with excellent execution to stun the Rockers' Misty again. The theatrics got even greater in game 3, as Spice shocked Misty with a six-ball run-out using excellent positioning and execution to secure the series at 3-0 in a great finish. Game 4 proved to be their closest game yet, with both jockeying at the end before Misty made the last two balls to get on the board with a 3-1 series in Spice's favor. Spice had a strategic scratch in game 5, and when Misty missed contact, Spice turned in a three-ball run-out to win the game and take the series 4-1. Spice is ranked #86 for 8-ball and will play in the third round.
It was a good and busy day for the league, and we'll have more of the same tomorrow in all likelihood.
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