We're here for a new day of Tournament play. We will take tomorrow, Sunday, off, but a full slate is expected today, beginning with...
Nike Field Events Center, Commerce: Niki v. Spot. The silver cue picks up where it left off yesterday, in another Accuracy series. Commerce's Niki and Pronger's Spot had an excellent battle in game 1, both perfect deep into the game. Spot fell off first, but forced Niki back into a tie before ultimately losing the game to her 2-3. Niki leads the series 1-0. In game 2, the stretch of perfection was much shorter, and it was the Tridents' Spot who broke it. He slipped well behind and never caught up in the end, as the Tradewinds' Niki held steady to win 2-4 and clinch the series at 2-0. Game 3 took an ugly turn in the middle, and it became a question of who wanted to lose less. Niki would scoop up a 5-6 win in the end after a spate of awful misses, and she swept Spot 3-0 to advance to the second round.
UPS Hall, Maplewood: Gabe v. Snowball. The red cue steps in for 15-ball between these two experienced players. Maplewood's Gabe had all the momentum in game 1, with a three-ball run, a four-ball run, and some good defense, but his illegal contact on the 13 set Swordpoint's Snowball up to take the game on a three-ball run-out. Her final shot was deflected off the 12 to pot the 15 in the bottom right for the 1-0 series lead. The Blades' Snowball was more involved in game 2, although a scratch after making the 10 on a trick play off the 8 threatened her position. The Lumberjacks' Gabe made a push, but Snowball finished with another deflected kick off the 12 to take the 15 at the bottom right, clinching the series at 2-0. Gabe took a twist on Snowball's finishing move after another fast-paced and competitive game. He glanced off the 12 and made the 14-15 combination to the top right, draining the 14 in the bottom right off another kiss for a double-pot. Snowball took the series 2-1 to get to the second round.
Starbucks Arena, Archtown: Wild Thing v. Sugar. The Northeast gets a taste of 12-ball in their derby, as the blue cue makes its daily debut. Web City's Sugar struck first, but she didn't have the best distribution, even after Archtown's Wild Thing gave up a wild-card ball. Wild Thing had a four-ball run at one point, putting Sugar in trouble, and Wild Thing won a turn later for a 1-0 series lead. The Arrows' Wild Thing fell behind in game 2 to the Spiders' Sugar as well, as the visitor established herself faster. Wild Thing busted a couple of clusters and defended well late, getting his chance when Sugar missed contact on her last ball. Wild Thing won from ball-in-hand, securing the series at 2-0. Wild Thing skipped the comeback kid routine in game 3, making a lot of balls early on with good positioning. Sugar had a three-ball run and nearly won herself, but Wild Thing made his last two balls to ensure the 3-0 series sweep. Wild Thing heads into the second round.
Home Depot Forum, Web City: Ted v. Dusty. A sophomore faces a legend in Accuracy with the red cue. Web City's Ted had nothing extraordinary in game 1, but he played steady, and Golden's Dusty couldn't match the effort. Ted won 1-5 to take the 1-0 series lead after his solid performance. The Pilots' Dusty showed a lot of improvement in game 2, keeping a lead for most of the game. The Spiders' Ted made her miss late, forcing overtime, but Ted fell on the first turn here, and Dusty made the necessary shot to win 1-2, tying the series at 1 game apiece. Dusty fell behind fairly early in game 3, but she quickly righted her course, getting Ted to miss a couple of times later on to tie the game. At the end, Dusty left Ted with a tough final shot, and when he missed, she converted to win 3-4 and take the series 2-1. Dusty's heads-up play helped her get to the second round.
Coca-Cola Field Exhibition Center, Boston: Gradley v. Mario. A tough veteran meets a sophomore in 8-ball with the blue cue. Boston's Gradley had a slow start in game 1 that was only slightly less frustrating than the implosion by Central's Mario late in the game. Mario's failings to make his shots allowed Gradley a four-ball run-out for the win and the 1-0 series lead. The Swifts' Gradley looked a little more confident in game 2, but his play was not much better. The Warriors' Mario also took a step back, but he picked up the pace after Gradley's three-ball run, making the last two shots of the game to tie the series at 1. Gradley did his part well after a sloppy start in game 3. The two players separated themselves, but it was Mario who had defensive positioning on the 8. Gradley ignored that on his four-ball run-out, taking the win for a 2-1 series win to head into the second round.
Ebay Center, Queens: Briana Livilotti v. Shelley. A rookie and a returnee are on the schedule for 10-ball with the blue cue. Queens' Briana had a hot start with a four-ball run from the break, but she peaked too early and it was mostly Infinity's Shelley from here, who won in three turns after Briana's late scratch to take a 1-0 series lead. The Flames' Briana had two scratches in game 2, the second one nearly costing her the game. However, the Torpedoes' Shelley couldn't convert the 6-10 combination to the top right, and Briana took over with a five-ball run-out for the win, tying the series at 1. Shelley had a three-ball run after a shaky start on both sides in game 3, but she couldn't muster any offense again. Briana took the last three balls on two turns for the win, taking the series at 2-1 as well as she heads into the second round.
Google Hall, Modernistic: Daisy v. Hoppy. The red cue is back in this one, playing a series of 12-ball between sophomores. Modernistic's Daisy took a strong break in game 1, getting two balls potted. Southern's Hoppy battled back and nearly got herself lined up, but Daisy's defense bought some time. Hoppy scratched, and Daisy won two turns later for a 1-0 series lead. The Union's Daisy had another good break, but game 2 required a lot more thought and a little luck. The Monarchs' Hoppy got close to the finish line, but a couple of scratches set Daisy up, as she made the 11 to the bottom side and kicked the 14 in the bottom left for the win, clinching the series at 2-0. Game 3 was another slow-moving style of game, and by the end, Daisy had little energy to battle defensively against Hoppy. Daisy also surrendered a wild-card ball, giving Hoppy the needed flexibility to pick up the win. Daisy won the series 2-1, advancing to the second round.
Honda Driftwood Coliseum, Pearl: Beth v. Nibbles. The red cue remains in action in 15-ball, administering a Coastal Derby. Pearl's Beth struck first in game 1, and while the start was chaotic, featuring a jump to pot the 3 by Viewpoint Sound's Nibbles, the end was frantic too. Beth made a good rally with a five-ball run, and when Nibbles failed to reply, she added a three-ball run-out for the win and a 1-0 series lead. The Meteors' Nibbles looked desperate to attempt a jump to get to the 4, and this one failed in all forms, giving the Surfers' Beth some possession. Nibbles would storm back on an eight-ball run, but in attempting to get position on the 15, he scratched, and Beth took the game from ball-in-hand to clinch the series at 2-0. Nibbles had another strong possession effort in game 3, including a four-ball run early on that ended in a scratch. Beth had her fair share of good shots, none better than her cross-table 12-15 combination to the top left that Nibbles left aligned for her. Beth took the series in a sweep at 3-0 to advance to the second round.
BMW RockDome, Westside: Goatee v. Mitchell. A star veteran clashes with a rookie in Accuracy with the silver cue. Harrison's Mitchell did not have an easy start to game 1, but he pushed Westside's Goatee behind late in the game, winning 4-5. The rookie took a 1-0 series lead with the bold comeback. The Rockers' Goatee never had a lead to give up in game 2, as the Specters' Mitchell controlled the game the entire time. He wavered at some points, but his lead held until the end at 4-5, helping him clinch the series at 2-0. Mitchell tried to hold on in an even sloppier game 3, but he scratched on the final shot, losing 5-6 to Goatee in this one. Mitchell took the messy series 2-1 to move into the second round.
Intel Center, Diamond: Smokey v. Luigi. A fearsome captain opposes a sophomore in 15-ball, with the red cue back in play. North Modernistic's Luigi didn't have much for offense, but neither did Diamond's Smokey, setting up a shot of the year candidate. Luigi banged the 2 and 15 into motion primarily, with others moving, and got the 2 near the top side to deflect the 15 in on its rebound from the left rail, good for Luigi to take the 1-0 series lead. An early finish would have been welcomed in game 2; instead, the Nighthawks' Luigi exchanged spurts of flailing shots amid a less-than-energetic effort from the Gems' Smokey. In the end, Smokey mustered the skill to pot the last two balls for the win, tying the series in unremarkable fashion at 1. Game 3 saw a bit more composure from the two hard-shooting players. Luigi didn't have as much, but it worked out for him, as his late scratch left Smokey with two shots to win. Smokey made only the 14, and Luigi mopped up the 15 to take the series 2-1 as he makes it to the second round.
Audi Hall, Terrace City: Melissa Benoist v. Cheddar. An Urban Derby is played in 15-ball with the blue cue. Terrace City's Melissa had the makings of a good finish after a tight start in game 1, but her four-ball run and three-ball run were undone by a scratch. North Modernistic's Cheddar took the game from here, making the last two balls from ball-in-hand for the 1-0 series lead. The Knights' Melissa had another solid performance, matching the Nighthawks' Cheddar early on in game 2. They played close until Cheddar had a run and a scratch. Melissa took over and won on a five-ball run-out to tie the series at 1. Cheddar put her own entry in the hat for shot of the year in game 3, as Melissa went narrowly empty on the break. Cheddar then hit a 1-9-15 combination to the top right through traffic, and the 9 drained in the bottom right to make it a double-pot for the series win. Cheddar's 2-1 series takes her to the second round.
Subway Arena, Stonebridge: Cobalt v. Bianca. The silver cue wraps up the day in 8-ball between these sophomores. Both players had early three-ball runs, but Southridge's Bianca was generous to give away some collateral damage on hers. She had a chance to make amends late, but missed on her last stripe, bailing out Cobalt, who tapped in the 8 he nearly sank illegally a turn before. Cobalt leads the series 1-0. The Defenders' Bianca had a strong game 2, making a seven-ball run on her first turn. This put the Wolves' Cobalt on alert, and while he chipped back and Bianca did have one scratch late, she would recover to make the final pair of shots before Cobalt could get on the 8. Bianca's win tied the series at 1. Game 3 saw each player use the strategy that worked for them, with short runs by Cobalt and a five-ball run and three-ball run-out from the more streaky Bianca, who took the win and the 2-1 series win to get to the second round.
Tournament play is scheduled to resume Monday, while Premier Week 10 ends tomorrow.
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