We're back after taking the whole weekend off, ready to kick off the third round. I must give warning: while I expect the week to only need eight full game days (60 games per day), my ability to string those together is greatly hampered by other obligations. Therefore, I'd expect this to take approximately two weeks, and the round should be complete by the end of the month. As for the main part of the tournament, I could see it being completed by the end of June, even at a slow pace. Without further delay, let's begin with...
Cisco Arena, Tysini: Leandra v. Watermelon. The round begins with 9-ball and the red cue between two West Division stars and rivals. Tysini's Leandra couldn't keep herself from scratching in game 1, making it difficult to sustain offense. Pearl's Watermelon capitalized with a five-ball run-out to take a 1-0 series lead. The Hummingbirds' Leandra pulled back pretty well in game 2, using illegal contact by the Surfers' Watermelon to pot a four-ball run-out, tying the series at 1 with the string of good shots. Game 3 saw a bit of back-and-forth play near the end after Leandra started well, with Watermelon taking four of the last five to win and gain a 2-1 series lead. Leandra fired back with a bit of a cheap-shot win, using ball-in-hand from Watermelon's illegal contact on the 8 early in game 4 to pot the 2-9 combination to the bottom right. This retied the series at 2, setting up a single decisive game. Leandra again had a good push at the start of game 5, but faded late, with her kick off the 6 failing to sink the 9 but setting up the final piece of Watermelon's three-ball run-out. Watermelon had to use a second-option double-kiss to pot the 8, but she got the win and took the series 3-2. Ranked #61 in 9-ball, Watermelon is in the bracket semifinals now.
Toyota Arena, Freedom: Nikolai v. Leandra. Leandra is on the road now, playing 15-ball with the red cue in a round-opening doubleheader. Neither player was all that sharp in game 1, as both had a lot of misses, especially late. Freedom's Nikolai had the worst, missing a straight-on shot for the 15, allowing Tysini's Leandra a second chance that she made to win the game and make it 1-0 in the series. The Cascades' Nikolai had many more bounces fall favorably for him in a cleaner game 2, and he ended with a four-ball run-out after a foul from the Hummingbirds' Leandra, with his win tying the series at 1. Leandra played extremely well in game 3, earning a six-ball run-out with two banks on the 10 and 11 to the top side before working positioning on cut shots to do the rest and retake the series lead at 2-1 over Nikolai. Nikolai pressed hard, looking for the win in game 4. He had a four-ball run late, but peaked too early, allowing Leandra to tap in the 14 and 15 for the win, securing the series at 3-1. Leandra seemed to carry the upper hand in most of game 5, but she left the 15 short at the bottom left, and Nikolai salvaged the win. Leandra is ranked #81 in 15-ball, and she advances to the bracket semifinals on a 3-2 series win.
Nestle's Warriors Hall, Central: Dustin v. B. Chapman. The blue cue makes an appearance in 8-ball now. Central's Dustin built up a lead in game 1 and nearly watched it crumble as Chapman of Victoria went on a four-ball run, but she missed the 8, and Dustin made the last two shots to win and take a 1-0 series lead. The Warriors' Dustin used a similar game plan in game 2, and it worked, as the Spurs' Chapman saw a three-ball run end when the 12 came up short at the top right. Dustin deftly banked the 3 to the bottom right and tapped the 8 to the top side, winning for a 2-0 series lead. In game 3, Dustin scratched off the break before making his early rally on his second turn. Chapman kept pace with him well, using a three-ball run ending in a setup shot with the 7 at the top right before winning easily on her next turn by making the 7 and then the 8 after Dustin couldn't pot the 8. This win by Chapman made it a 2-1 series. Chapman looked very threatening as she assembled a six-ball run in game 4, but she missed wide on the 8, and Dustin made the last two shots to take the win and clinch the series at 3-1. Chapman thought she had game 5 under control with her five-ball run, but Dustin fired right back with a heady five-ball run-out to take the series 4-1 with brilliant shooting. Dustin, ranked #10 in 8-ball, will host a series in the bracket semifinals. Dustin's win was his second kill of the year, as Chapman is the first player this round and 29th overall to be eliminated. Her Spurs future is in doubt currently.
Volkswagen Stadium Events Center, Viewpoint Sound: Mams v. Stinky. The silver cue gets going with 15-ball. Viewpoint Sound's Mams proved very savvy in game 1, beating Freedom's Stinky early with a 4-15 combination that glanced off the 9 and into the top side for the win and a 1-0 series lead. Both players exchanged four-ball runs late in game 2, but the Cascades' Stinky needed his to be a bit longer, as he left the 15 short and the Meteors' Mams tapped it in at the top right to take a 2-0 lead in the series. Game 3 got off to a slow start, with neither player getting a good look until Stinky missed contact on the 2, and his shot set up a 2-15 combination to the bottom right that Mams readily took to win the game and secure the series at 3-0. Stinky made a hugely impressive run in game 4, running out the last nine balls to get the win, and finishing in style with a kick on the 15 to the top right. This made it a 3-1 series lead for Mams, who didn't do poorly in the game, but didn't get a chance in the end. Stinky picked up a quick win after a bad break in game 5, bouncing the 2 into the 15 and then watching it rattle off the 13 and drop into the bottom right to make it a 3-2 series win for Mams. Ranked #52 in 15-ball, Mams heads to the bracket semifinals.
GE Stadium Events Center, Southridge: Boots v. Chelsea. The blue cue returns to action for a 12-ball series. Southridge's Boots got off to a good start, but couldn't set up her 15 at the top side, allowing Eastside's Chelsea to navigate the table and use defense before pulling off the win for a 1-0 series lead. Game 2 saw a bit of floundering on both sides, with a couple of scratches turning the game into a chess match. Eventually, the Sharks' Chelsea got the upper hand at the bottom side, beating the Defenders' Boots to it and winning to make it 2-0 in the series. Chelsea had a solid break in game 3, but she gave up a wild card ball that would haunt her, and when she couldn't get set after a scratch, Boots finished the game by potting the 14 in the bottom side to make it a 2-1 series. Chelsea rallied back into game 4, dealing with a bit of early trouble before making the most of half-decent shots to get the win and seal the series at 3-1 over Boots, who was just a bit too slow in setting her shots up. Boots dominated in game 5, rallying for a five-ball run that nearly ran the table, but served as a good setup with the 14 near the bottom left to be scored two turns later. Chelsea got some back, but had to settle for a 3-2 series win. Ranked #27 for 12-ball, Chelsea is through to the bracket semifinals.
Coca-Cola Field Exhibition Center, Boston: Patches v. Chimpy. The red cue starts a tripleheader of Accuracy that will see each cue get a go. Game 1 saw smooth shooting early on from both players, until Boston's Patches had a miss. Modernistic's Chimpy clamped down from there, holding on to win 1-3 to earn the 1-0 series lead. The Swifts' Patches had a much easier time in game 2, as the Union's Chimpy held with her until he missed a shot after her cluster-buster attempt. Chimpy missed three more, losing 2-6 as Patches tied the series at 1 with a confident finish. Chimpy flourished again late in game 3 as Patches was content to match him until a late miss put her in chase mode. She played well, but he was sharp enough to hold her off and take the win 2-4 for a 2-1 series lead. Patches held a lead for most of game 4, but melted under pressure with three straight misses sending her to another 2-4 defeat, allowing Chimpy to claim the series at 3-1. Patches made sure to finish out the series strong, holding Chimpy down for much of game 5 before he finally made a few misses and Patches won 1-3. Chimpy took the series 3-2, and Accuracy's #78 ranked player will show in the bracket semifinals.
Home Depot Forum, Web City: Shadow v. Spice. The silver cue gets the middle series of the Accuracy trifecta. Web City's Shadow made a 1-11-13-12-10-4 combination to the top right in game 1. This helped him weather some late issues, as Victoria's Spice nearly dragged him down into the fray, but he survived for the 2-3 win and 1-0 series lead. The Spiders' Shadow buckled down to play perfectly in game 2, taking the win against a hapless Spice of the Spurs by an 0-3 margin, giving Shadow a 2-0 series lead with the dominant appearance. Shadow played less dominantly in game 3, even falling into a late tie with Spice as he struggled near the end, but Spice missed her next shot and lost 3-4, giving Shadow the series at 3-0. Shadow returned to dominance in game 4, making all of his eight shots, while Spice had a single miss and ended up with an 0-1 loss because of it as Shadow made it 4-0 in the series with another stunningly simple effort. Shadow finally broke in game 5, missing a whole bunch of shots and still narrowly losing, as Spice fell apart late and won 6-7. Shadow took the series 4-1, and the #68 ranked Accuracy player is into the bracket semifinals.
Toyota Arena, Freedom: Roxy v. A. Charlton. Now, it's the blue cue's turn for some Accuracy. Golden's Charlton held on well early, but Freedom's Roxy eventually gained the upper hand against her, winning 1-3 as Charlton scratched on her last shot, giving Roxy the 1-0 series lead with relative ease. The Cascades' Roxy held the lead again for much of game 2, but slipped into a tie with the Pilots' Charlton. Roxy proved keen to position the ball poorly for Charlton, and the tactic worked, as she drove the 7 wide at the top left for a Roxy tap-in to win 3-4 and take a 2-0 series lead. Charlton couldn't deal very well with a poor break from Roxy, and she missed early and often en route to a 3-6 loss that secured the series at 3-0 for Roxy. Charlton played easily her best game of the series in game 4, dominating pretty firmly as Roxy fell apart in the middle stages, allowing Charlton to push her around in the 1-3 win that made it 3-1 in the series. Game 5 saw Roxy fall behind early on, only to push Charlton back at the end to force overtime, where Charlton's break went bad, and Roxy made a ball to win 2-3, grabbing the series at 4-1. Roxy is ranked #62 for Accuracy, and she'll be on the road in the bracket semifinals.
Nike Field Events Center, Commerce: Lorde v. Crystal. The silver cue has two straight series of 8-ball now. Commerce's Lorde took a reckless and unnecessary shot that resulted in her losing game 1, as she failed to get position and sank the 8 illegally to gift Queens' Crystal the win and a 1-0 series lead. The Flames' Crystal nearly had the same type of fatal shot in game 2, but with much less intention to do so. Luckily for her, the 8 stayed up, and the Tradewinds' Lorde couldn't catch up, allowing Crystal to finish the game with two easy shots to gain a 2-0 series lead. Learning nothing from her earlier mistake, Lorde again put the 8 near a pocket in game 3, but then had to use dig-out shots to get better positioning. Crystal had no such issues, and with help from Lorde, keyed up a four-ball run-out of mostly tap-ins to secure the series at 3-0 with a win. Lorde finally got a game, and it came with the 8 staying away from the pocket until the end, as Crystal had trouble building on her good shooting over the middle and Lorde finished it off to make it a 3-1 series. Lorde had a good rally late in game 5 after a butchered shot by Crystal, but she ultimately missed the 8 and Crystal picked it up instead, giving her the 4-1 series win. Crystal is ranked #73 and headed to the bracket semifinals.
Chevrolet Center, Everton: Goldy v. Sugar. Staying on the 8-ball silver cue bracket, we have a series from the Northeast. Everton's Goldy went on a late three-ball run in game 1, also potting the last ball for Web City's Sugar. Goldy missed her last ball, allowing Sugar to steal the game with the 8, good for a 1-0 series lead. The Spiders' Sugar again snuck in around behind the Eagles' Goldy, who failed to finish off the game quickly, and Sugar made her last two shots to go up 2-0 in the series. Goldy finally managed to finish off a game, winning game 3 with a three-ball run-out before Sugar could get onto the 8, allowing Goldy to cut the series to 2-1. Both players started game 4 the same way: with a four-ball run ending in a scratch. Goldy had a bit more success after the start, winning the game while Sugar only potted one more ball. Goldy's win tied the series at 2, setting up a big finale in a series that has already seen one momentum shift. Sugar blazed out from the start of game 5, putting Goldy in an unfavorable position early on. Goldy played a strong defensive game, but the 6 was too far off the 11 to prevent Sugar from using it as her set-up to the 8, which she made to win the game and take the series 3-2. Ranked #78 for 8-ball, Sugar heads to the bracket semifinals.
Nissan Hall, Infinity: Whiskers v. Citrus. The silver cue stays up for a series of 7-ball this time. Diamond's Citrus played a patient game 1, allowing Infinity's Whiskers to do a lot of the early shooting, and then Citrus broke out for a three-ball run-out, taking the win and a 1-0 series lead. The Gems' Citrus was called for illegal contact on the 6 as she sank the 5, setting the Torpedoes' Whiskers up for the last two balls from ball-in-hand, which tied the series at 1 as she sank them. Citrus had started the game on a three-ball run. In a similar situation in game 3, Citrus potentially got away with illegal contact on the 4 while shooting the 3, but the play was inconclusive. Citrus then buried a 4-6 combination and finished off a five-ball run-out to regain a 2-1 series lead over Whiskers. Citrus continued to play well in the ends of games, winning game 4 with a four-ball run-out to seal the series at 3-1, although she'll really need another winner to get out without much criticism. That's exactly what she did in game 5, although it was the sloppiest game of the series. Citrus finally took control late in the game and made two shots to win, taking the series 4-1. Ranked #34 in 7-ball, Citrus has home table advantage for the bracket semifinals.
Gillette Center, Swordpoint: Shawn v. Kelly. The red cue comes back on for a series of 8-ball. Viewpoint Sound's Kelly had control from the moment she cued a five-ball run on her first turn, but a pair of deflections while she shot the 8 potted the ball and the cue for a loss, giving Swordpoint's Shawn an unearned win for a 1-0 series lead. The Blades' Shawn appeared to have the upper hand in game 2, working a four-ball run in tight space, and the Meteors' Kelly scratched as she tried to do the same. Kelly got a second chance and managed a four-ball run-out, winning the game to tie the series at 1. Kelly got what she wanted off of her break, but she had late troubles as Shawn got in the way defensively. He wiped this all out with a five-ball run-out, using precise accuracy to complete the game and retake the series lead at 2-1 with his gutsy win. Kelly fired right back, running the table on her third turn in game 4. She picked her shots well, and once she got going, Shawn didn't see the table again, as all eight were on the money. Kelly's win retied the series at 2. Kelly had all of the pressure on Shawn in game 5, but he managed to wrangle with it and put up a five-ball run-out, winning the game and taking the series 3-2. Shawn is ranked #4 in 8-ball, and will host a bracket semifinal at this venue. With the loss, Kelly finds herself eliminated, the 32nd player knocked out. Shawn has his first kill of the year.
Samsung Arena, Whitewater: Wild Thing v. Shannon. The silver cue plays Accuracy this time. Wild Thing of Whitewater made a mess out of game 1, scratching on the break and missing a lot more in the middle. Southern's Shannon was nearly flawless, winning 1-5 for the 1-0 series lead. The Shores' Wild Thing was no better in game 2, nearly blowing the lead he established late in the game, but the Monarchs' Shannon couldn't capitalize on the 10 he left hanging, and she lost 5-6 as Wild Thing tied the series at 1. Wild Thing did a bit better in game 3, keeping his shooting under control. He had to come from behind to get the win over Shannon, be she obliged, faltering late before losing 2-4. Wild Thing took a 2-1 series lead after the win. Wild Thing made a rookie mistake in game 4, leaving his base hand on the table and getting bruised when a ball hit it, as well as getting penalized. Shannon answered with a perfectly shot game, winning 0-2, with Wild Thing only missing one more shot but never getting a chance as Shannon retied the series at 2. Wild Thing paid dearly in game 5 for trying to go for a tough angle shot over a distance shot. This miss tied the game, and Shannon's knock-in sent it to overtime, where Shannon had Wild Thing pinned and he had to break poorly. Shannon made one off the break, winning 3-4 to grab the series win at 3-2. Shannon is ranked #84 for Accuracy, and advances to the bracket semifinals.
Kraft Forum, Royal: Nightfur v. Dominic. The last series of the day is in 12-ball, with the blue cue in action. Game 1 saw a wonderful finish after a standard start. Atlantic's Dominic tried to set himself up illegally, but the shot was not great. Royal's Nightfur made one ball, but couldn't bury the other. Dominic then took care of his easy shot but got snookered by Nightfur's defensive posture. Dominic fearlessly jumped the 3 of Nightfur to make his 9 in the top left, winning for a 1-0 series lead. Game 2 saw the Crowns' Nightfur surrender a wild card ball that appeared to be instant doom. The Pirates' Dominic made it tough on himself, as he ended up waiting out Nightfur, who removed her defense and then lost two turns later when Dominic exposed the gap. Dominic is up 2-0 in the series, which has so far been very cerebral and close. Dominic was just a step ahead of Nightfur again in his game 3 win, working a tough-angle cut on the 6 to the bottom side before burying the 2 to win just as Nightfur was about to get set up. Dominic clinched the series at 3-0 with the win. Getting things set up, or the inability to, was a recurring theme in game 4, as Nightfur couldn't quite settle the 3 around the bottom side, allowing Dominic to push from right to left to set himself up for two easy tap-ins to win the game, making it 4-0 in the series. Nightfur finally got around Dominic in game 5, picking up the win with a pretty well-played game, but Dominic will win the series 4-1. Ranked #55 in 12-ball, Dominic will visit Chelsea of the Eastside Sharks in the bracket semifinals, playing at HP Field Events Center.
That's all for today. We won't be as rigid with the 60 games per day thing, as this one had 70, but we'll try to maintain a pace at about that level to get through the round promptly. Check back in tomorrow for more pool action.
No comments:
Post a Comment