2017 Qualifiers - Day 9

It's a new day of qualifiers. We have not remedied the silver cue issue, but the temporary fix is holding well, so that will be used today. It gets a very early start, as...

Rainmane of the Midland Predators will use that very silver cue for 10-ball to lead off the first group today. It was a rough outing for Rainmane, as she couldn't get anything on the break and took two errors before ending the game with 24 shots, as she failed to get clear sight lines on her attempts. Next up, Marsell of the Whitewater Shores makes his debut for the team, playing 7-ball with the blue cue. Marsell couldn't make anything on his break, and he had one error for a scratch after setting himself up poorly, ending with 12 shots for the game. That takes us to the lunch break, and the first player after that is Lionel, the Commerce Tradewinds veteran, who will use the blue cue for his 12-ball qualifier. Lionel needed only 16 shots after making two balls on the break, and he had no errors in a remarkable outing. Following that, Southern Monarchs captain Panda shoots 12-ball with the silver cue. Panda took 27 shots for the game, after making two balls on the break, as his three errors and bad positions on the balls made it a difficult game for the veteran. The group ends with Pacific Volcanoes veteran Leonette shooting 10-ball with the blue cue. Leonette got a ball on the break and took an error for a scratch and still managed to keep her score down at 11 in a remarkable table-clearing effort for the average veteran player.

The second group begins with Valencia of the Golden Pilots shooting 9-ball with the silver cue. Valencia had a ball on the break, and played very well over the next 10 shots, avoiding any errors to record a strong game. The seventh player of the day is Goatee, the Westside Rockers veteran, who will shoot 9-ball with the blue cue. Goatee had two balls on the break, and she kept her game pretty solid, stumbling at the 6 but taking no errors and ending the appearance with only 11 shots. Next up, Isabella, the Atlantic Pirates rookie, makes her second career appearance in 8-ball with the red cue. Isabella made a ball on the break, and then impressively remained poised despite some tough shots, finishing with a score of 18 and no errors. Continuing along, Juno, the Stonebridge Wolves captain, shoots 8-ball with the silver cue in her second qualifier of the year. Juno had a weak break, failing to shatter the rack much, but she showed well in tight spaces, taking no errors and only 18 shots after flubbing her first shot from the course of play. Ending the batch, Sierra of the Todavía Stills plays 10-ball with the silver cue. Sierra played with no regard for the rules of the game, taking six errors including a scratch on her otherwise empty break, and she finished with 23 shots for the game.

Batch three starts with Victoria Spurs rookie Wario, who shoots 9-ball with the blue cue. Wario made a ball on the break, and felt he had enough time to try a trick shot on the 9, which failed, but he rallied to clear the table with no errors in 11 shots, a good score for the inexperienced player. Oreo, the Terrace City Knights veteran, plays the next game, using the red cue for her 8-ball qualifier. Oreo had a difficult start to the game, but rounded into form after an empty break and finished with 20 shots and no errors for the appearance. Moving along, Sprinkles, the Capital City Sharpshooters stalwart, plays 8-ball with the red cue. Sprinkles couldn't get a ball on the break, and she saw her shooting accuracy dip near the end of the turn. She had five errors charged for illegally potting the 8 at the end, giving her 26 shots in a poor outing. The fourteenth player drawn to shoot today is Ted, the Web City Spiders rookie, who will use the blue cue for his 8-ball qualifier. Ted seemed to do well on his turn, despite getting nothing on the break, but he faded late, taking his only error and ending with 21 shots for the game. Wrapping up the batch, Americus of the Atlantic Pirates shoots 8-ball as well, bringing the red cue back to do so. Americus held her own despite another empty break for the league, and she needed 22 shots with one error to complete the game, with her scratch setting up a double-kiss on the 9 off the right rail to the top side.

The fourth group gets going with Acorn, the Lighton Prestige captain, shooting 8-ball with the silver cue. Acorn got a ball on the break, a feat in and of itself, and then rallied through the rack with little opposition, taking the table in 16 shots with no errors for a very good qualifying effort. The next game belongs to Yekaterina Vasilyeva, the Victoria Spurs sophomore, who shoots 10-ball with the red cue this time. Yekaterina didn't quite get anything on the break, and she didn't get very good positions to shoot from either, so her score of 19 with two errors was rather impressive given the challenges. The eighteenth player to shoot today is Ruby, the Archtown Arrows star, who is set to play 9-ball with the silver cue. Ruby had a ball on the break, and then needed only 7 shots before a remarkable double-pot that sent the 6 to the bottom side and the 9 off the right rail to the bottom left to end the game with no errors. Next up, Lorde, the Commerce Tradewinds sophomore, shoots 10-ball with the blue cue. Lorde took a ball on the break and also had two errors for an illegally potted ball via illegal contact, but she was on a roll and closed with 13 shots for the game. Finishing this group, Strut, the Golden Pilots veteran, is up to play 10-ball with the silver cue. Strut wanted a bit more in this performance, and got an empty break and three errors en route to 21 shots that weren't particularly easy for him to accomplish.

Group five opens with Precious, the Pronger Tridents captain, shooting 9-ball with the blue cue. Precious needed only 11 shots despite getting just a hanger for her break, and she took no errors in a very solid appearance for the high-expectations veteran. Solaris, the Infinity Torpedoes rookie, gets the next game, shooting 10-ball with the silver cue with the hopes of a good outing. Solaris had two errors after an empty break for this game, but his pacing on cut shots, along with impeccable angling, allowed him to take the game in 18 shots, a very sturdy total for the youngster. Following that, Whitewater Shores captain Bear plays 8-ball with the red cue in his second qualifier of the year. Bear didn't have another stunning game, but played very solidly after his empty break, going for 20 shots and no errors in the game. The 24th player called to shoot today is Smokey of the Diamond Gems, shooting Rotation with the silver cue. Smokey chose to illegally err twice, raising his errors mark to six and his score to 26 shots after making a pair of balls and a scratch from the eventful break. Bringing up the rear for this bunch, Paps, the Eastside Sharks newcomer, wins the speed race as he is the first to finish qualifying, playing Accuracy with the red cue. Paps completed the game in a quick 15 shots, getting two balls on the break to help the cause, and he took no errors. He ended his qualifying session with 165 total shots.

The sixth group kicks off with Infinity Torpedoes captain Smudge shooting 8-ball with the blue cue. Smudge struggled to find any clear shots after an empty break that scattered a little too well, and she took no errors in the game, working her way to 22 shots to finish it. The last player before the mid-afternoon break is Twinkie I, the Prestige veteran, who shoots 9-ball with the red cue. Twinkie I had two errors in the game that also saw her frustrated by an empty break. Her shooting was acceptable, leading to 15 shots to finish the appearance. After the downtime, play resumes with Boston Swifts superstar captain Patches shooting Rotation with the red cue. Patches played a decent game for going empty on the break and needing three errors in the middle of the appearance, as she closed with 29 shots for a solid appearance. The 29th player drawn today is Patches' Swifts teammate Sweetheart, who uses the blue cue for her 10-ball game. Sweetheart had an unfortunate three errors on one play, one for illegal contact and two for illegally potted balls, as she needed 20 shots with nothing on the break to complete the outing. The group ends with Nicole of the Capital City Sharpshooters playing 9-ball with the silver cue. Nicole had 17 shots for the game, failing to make anything on the break but also avoiding errors in a sub-standard performance.

Leading off group seven, the Waves' Caitlin is back at the table for 10-ball with the silver cue. Caitlin had one error in her game, going empty on the break as well, and she managed to finish the appearance in a crisp 19 shots, ending strong with good shots at the end. Following that, Midland Predators rookie Fuchsia plays 12-ball with the red cue. Fuchsia had two balls on the break, and she took only one error in a dominant game, navigating unfavorable positions with relative ease. She ended with a vicious spinning kick on the 15 to the bottom side, sealing the game at 19 shots. Next up, Cheddar of the North Modernistic Nighthawks plays 8-ball with the silver cue in her second game with the team. Cheddar struggled in this game, needing 22 shots with one error after making nothing from the break. Moving along, Celestia of the Oceanside Waves plays 12-ball with the red cue. Celestia had a ball on the break, but that wasn't enough to prevent her from struggling, as she took three errors to preserve positioning, giving her 22 shots in the end as she finished a challenging rack. The group ends with the 35th game of the day, belonging to Waluigi, the Maplewood Lumberjacks rookie, who will shoot 12-ball with the blue cue. Waluigi buried three balls on the break, and this game him a lot of open space, which translated to him taking no errors and only 17 shots to complete the appearance.

The eighth bunch gets going with Dusky of the Archtown Arrows making her second appearance of the year, using the blue cue for 8-ball. Dusky had a terrible game, needing 26 shots with one error after getting nothing on her break, and her performance has her near the bottom of the event's standings. The 37th player drawn today is Ted, the Spiders rookie, who is back at the table for 9-ball with the silver cue. Ted had a rough game, getting nothing from the break to help the cause, and then taking two errors among 16 shots to slow down his performance. Fluffina, the Maplewood Lumberjacks captain, gets the next game, shooting 9-ball with the blue cue in this appearance. Fluffina scored 9 for her turn, including an error and a ball on the break, which occurred just about at the same time. Following that is Sparkles of the Todavía Stills, who has the red cue in hand for her 9-ball qualifier. Sparkles did get a ball on the break, and she played a clean game with no errors, ending on 13 shots in a decent game. Lionel of the Commerce Tradewinds seals this group with a game of Rotation with the red cue. Lionel took nothing on the break in this game, and had three early errors as he failed to work out of troublesome shots. He settled in well, cruising up until the 15, which pushed his score to 30 with just the three errors.

That'll be all we've got tonight, as we think this is enough for the day. We'll be back tomorrow for likely another 40-game set.