We're back for another four series today, beginning with...
Bryant v. Precious v. Mario at UPS Hall, Maplewood. Precious stayed reserved early in game 1, letting Bryant take the mediums and Mario claim the lows before striking on a seven-ball run. This took Mario out, but she had to beat Bryant a turn later after they each missed. Precious has her first win of the series. Precious had a slow start again in game 2, and Bryant and Mario didn't give her space for a big run. Instead, Bryant took her out late in the game before falling to Mario after his collateral damage play backfired on him. Mario has his first win of the series. Game 3 began with a nice run from Bryant as he again claimed the mediums. Precious then took the lows, and while Mario had one turn in defense of the highs, Bryant quickly offed him. Precious nearly got Bryant back on a three-ball run, but Bryant responded with a three-ball run-out for his first win. Bryant and Precious seem to have made a loose agreement as of game 4, as they both worked on getting Mario out of action before turning on each other. Bryant had the late surge, but he came up short this time, with Precious making the last shot for her second win. Bryant took the lows early in game 5, but Precious turned on him with a deep run on her second turn, claiming the mediums. None of it mattered in the end, as Mario beat them both on a six-ball run-out, ousting Bryant two shots before Precious for his second win of the series. Mario set the tone by taking the lows early in game 6, followed by Precious with the mediums. Both of them had decent runs, but a bit too much against each other, as Mario stormed back with a five-ball run-out on his second turn, again taking out Bryant first in his third win. Bryant had a good surge in a rough game 7. He protected the lows fairly well for most of the game, but his final run saw him take out Mario before a photo finish where his 3 fell just before Precious' 9. Therefore, Precious got the win, and Bryant took second place, the win being Precious' third of the series. Mario didn't gain control of game 8 readily, struggling to keep his last low on the table after Bryant's vicious attack. Bryant had a chance to get the win, but he scratched, and he would be the first one out thanks to Mario's three-ball run. Precious almost stole the win away, but Mario knocked her out a turn later for his fourth win. Precious kept herself in the series with a dominant effort in game 9. She took the mediums, and then watched as Bryant fumbled his chance to claim the lows. Instead, Mario took them, which ended up backfiring on him as Precious made a seven-ball run-out with collateral damage that gave Bryant second place in her fourth win of the series. Game 10 went very smoothly for Precious, as she made an opening run of five balls and a closing run of three without taking much damage in between. Mario took the second place point, but Precious will head into the third round after this fifth win.
Kirstin v. Wario v. Wings at Chevrolet Center, Everton. Kirstin had a forgettable start to the series, as Wario's five-ball run and Wings' run to claim the lows left her mediums devastated. Wings then brought the game to a close with a run at the end, knocking Kirstin and Wario out for his first win of the series. Wings had a nice run at the start of game 2, and Wario followed up to take the lows after Wings claimed the highs. Neither player was prepared for such an abrupt loss, as Kirstin rushed forward with an eight-ball run-out for her first win, including one late piece of collateral damage before she beat Wings. Game 3 saw a balanced performance on all sides. Wings had a hot start, but Kirstin picked up pace in the middle, and Wario brought the game to a rapid close with a four-ball run-out to beat Wings and then Kirstin for his first win. Game 4 saw empty performance on everyone's first turns, but Wario cranked a five-ball run on his second turn, followed by a four-ball run by Kirstin and another four-ball run from Wings that put Wario out of the game. Kirstin then tapped in Wings' last ball to earn her second win of the series. Kirstin assembled a seven-ball run on her second turn of game 5, combating Wario's early push in defense of the mediums. Kirstin's run took Wings out of the game, and Wario countered on a three-ball run, but he failed on the fourth shot, and Kirstin buried his 9 for her third win. Wings got badly outplayed in game 6, but a late five-ball run from Kirstin leveled the playing field, and while Wario knocked Kirstin out, he couldn't beat Wings, who made a lucky shot on the 13 to take his second win of the series. Wings showed up with a bit more intensity in game 7, guarding the lows fairly well. A scratch by Kirstin after one of her runs allowed Wings to take over, and while he started the run with collateral damage, he ended with his third win on a six-ball run-out, with Kirstin earning the second place point. Wings struggled a bit, scratching on the break in game 8. Kirstin claimed the lows with a four-ball run after that, and Wario took the highs on his turn. Wings did alright on his second turn, but Kirstin unleashed a five-ball run-out for her fourth win of the series, and Wario got the point for second place. Wings woke up again with a seven-ball run in game 9, weakening both of his opponents, but Wario would take him out before Kirstin poked in Wario's 12 for her fifth win to advance to the third round.
Nibbles v. Starlight v. Chris at Volkswagen Stadium Events Center, Viewpoint Sound. Starlight had the first run in the game, making six balls in a row with a little collateral damage. Chris followed up with a short run, but he couldn't hang on in the end, as a five-ball run-out from Nibbles took Chris down just before Starlight. Nibbles picked up his first win in the series. Nibbles had a similar start in game 2, with Starlight stepping in to claim the highs on a three-ball run followed by Chris taking the lows on a five-ball run. Nibbles countered a bit late, but Starlight beat Chris and Nibbles with a four-ball run-out for her first win of the series. Starlight ripped a six-ball run from the break of game 3, but the game slowed down, an unfavorable pace for the energetic star player. Chris and Nibbles ground their way to a successful outing, and Chris took the win on a pair of shots at the end, besting Starlight on the last shot for his first win. Starlight had a four-ball run early in game 4, giving herself some leverage with the lows, but after a couple of hangers-on, Chris emerged with a win on a six-ball run-out, with Nibbles getting second place this time. The win was Chris' second. Chris and Nibbles had a quick battle in game 5, with Chris cranking two mediums on the break. Nibbles followed on a seven-ball run to take Starlight out, and while Chris had a chance to counterattack, he failed, and Nibbles won with collateral damage on a pair of shots on his second turn. Nibbles has two wins in the series. Game 6 didn't feature any dominance, but a couple of scratches brought Starlight to frustration. She would end up being the first one out, as Chris had a late breakthrough to win on a six-ball run-out, earning his third victory. Chris didn't have his best performance in game 7, but he was definitely better than Starlight. Nibbles made sure of that with a late five-ball run in defense of the highs, but he couldn't make Chris' 9, and Chris took a pair of shots at the end for his fourth win of the series. Nibbles again took Starlight out of game 8 in quick fashion, choosing to battle head-to-head with Chris. This didn't work out for Nibbles, as Chris made the last pair of shots for his fifth win, punching his ticket to the third round.
Daisy v. Steven v. Dreamy at Google Hall, Modernistic. Steven stole the show in game 1, making a ten-ball run-out after Daisy couldn't get anything from the break. Steven orchestrated the performance very delicately, and picked up his first win with a wonderful and clean performance. Game 2 saw some bitterness between Steven and Daisy as they guarded the lows and highs respectively. The combined efforts of the two of them led Dreamy to slipping under the radar until she knocked out Daisy, and beat Steven a turn later for her first win of the series. Steven cracked out another big run in game 3, this time on his second turn after Daisy selected the mediums to combat his highs. Dreamy had an unproductive second turn, leaving Steven to win on an eight-ball run-out for his second victory. Daisy got a break from being relentlessly attacked in game 4, instead launching most of the offense herself. Daisy made sure to pummel the highs at her first opportunity, while Dreamy ultimately knocked Steven from the game. Daisy then beat Dreamy one-on-one for her first win of the series. Daisy scratched on the break in game 5, ruining any chance of getting a jump on her opponents. Steven and Dreamy combined with force to keep her down, pitting her with the mediums. Steven would knock her out as he attacked the lows, but Dreamy took the win, her second, a couple of turns later. Dreamy knocked an eight-ball run from the break in game 6, including collateral damage, but the speculative play failed her. Steven responded on a five-ball run-out, bumping Dreamy down to third and gifting the second place point to Daisy as he took his third win. Steven had another binge run in game 7, an eight-ball epic that wiped Daisy out of the game after her misguided selection of highs. Steven couldn't make Dreamy's last medium, and she shot back for her third win with a three-ball run-out to keep the series close. Daisy decided to poke into the series again with a win in game 8. Her second victory came as she and Steven combined to take Daisy out of the game with their various runs. Daisy then bested Steven by giving him an unwinnable situation, good enough to get herself back on track for now. Steven took the highs in game 9, and he did so on a five-ball run. Dreamy replied with a short run to take the lows, and then used a seven-ball run-out on her second turn to get the win, her fourth of the series, giving her an inside edge in the late stages here. Steven chose to defend the mediums, and got a huge boost at the start with his five-ball run. Daisy selected the highs, and guarded them well, earning herself a point as Dreamy was bumped from the game first. Daisy had a chance to get the win, but she missed her shot, and Steven made his to take his fourth win. Steven started with a five-ball run again in game 11, taking the highs, and when Dreamy and Daisy couldn't slow him down, he won on a four-ball run-out, giving Daisy another point after bumping Daisy early. Steven won his fifth game to earn passage for a rematch in the third round.
Reminder: no games tomorrow, then four series on Friday and three more on Saturday to close out the round. Sunday will be an off-day for administrative purposes, and then we should finish this preseason adventure a week from today.
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