The second round of the Tournament rolls on today, beginning with...
Chevrolet Center, Everton: Goldy v. Roxy. The silver cue has the first series in 15-ball between a pair of veterans. Everton's Goldy had a productive attack in a tough game 1, making a late six-ball run before missing twice on the 15. Freedom's Roxy took the 15 on her second try, good for the win and a 1-0 series lead despite her lack of offense. The Cascades' Roxy put together a nice five-ball run-out at the end of game 2, making up for a lousy break that slowed down the offense for both herself and the Eagles' Goldy. Roxy's big finishing run secured the series in her favor at 2-0. Roxy had a better break in game 3, and continued to push play later on, but she missed on a straight shot at the 15. Goldy mopped it up to salvage a win from a brutal series, which saw Roxy advance on a 2-1 win. Roxy will visit the Archtown Arrows captain Ruby in the third round.
Sprint Hall, Victoria: Strawberry v. Twinkie III. Two Youth Movement club-mates clash in 8-ball with the blue cue. Victoria's Strawberry had a solid on the break in game 1, but her offense slowed down after that, while Whitewater's Twinkie III got onto her last stripe within two turns. Strawberry had a three-ball run to get closer, but Twinkie III won two turns later for the 1-0 series lead. The Shores' Twinkie III had a good break in game 2, but neither player could get truly clear shots going for awhile. Twinkie III got onto the 8 rather quickly after Strawberry double-potted two of her opponents' balls, and Twinkie III eventually did take the win for a 2-0 series lead. Twinkie III found a six-ball run to help her offense along in game 3, pacing her attack until she won with a pair of shots on the next turn. Twinkie III swept Strawberry 3-0 to earn another visiting spot in the third round.
Toyota Arena, Freedom: Stinky v. Salmo. The visitor faces elimination in 7-ball with the silver cue. Freedom's Stinky had an unremarkable start to game 1, while Eastside's Salmo brought the game to an early end with a cut on the 3 to the top left that sent the cue down the table and back to tap in the 7 to the same spot. Salmo's amazing shot gave him a 1-0 series lead. Game 2 started a bit slowly, but the Sharks' Salmo found a five-ball run on his second turn to inject some life into the game. The Cascades' Stinky wouldn't get the game get past him, potting the last two balls for the win to tie the series at 1. Stinky had a bit of luck on his side to open game 3 on a three-ball run, but his finishing three-ball run-out to eliminate Salmo was pure class, including the bank of the 7 to the top side on the winning shot. Stinky took the series 2-1 to get to the third round as well as recording his first kill of the year. Salmo is the fifth player out of the Tournament.
Mercedes-Benz Forum, Harrison: Lexi Woode v. Shaggy. The silver cue stays up for this series of 9-ball. Harrison's Lexi had a majority of the offense in game 1, thanks in part to scratches and narrow misses from Whitewater's Shaggy. Lexi made the last three balls over two turns for the win and a 1-0 series lead. The Specters' Lexi again had a majority of possession in game 2, with a four-ball run in the middle helping her cause. It wasn't enough, as the Shores' Shaggy made two shots at the end to pull even in a 1-1 series. Shaggy didn't make anything on her game 3 break, but she looked a bit more lively in attack until illegal contact. Lexi chose to make the 2-4 combination, and then took the 2 to the top right before missing on the 5. Shaggy cranked a shot on the 5, which set off an 8-6-9 combination to the top right for the win, somewhat accidentally. Shaggy's good fortune gives her a 2-1 series win and a road spot in the third round.
GE Stadium Events Center, Southridge: Bianca v. Crystal. A rising star meets a strong captain after the break in 15-ball with the silver cue. Neither player could develop a large run in game 1, leaving shorter attacks as the method of offense. In the end, Southridge's Bianca lacked on her later shots, allowing Queens' Crystal to pick up the win with a pair of shots, giving the visitor a 1-0 lead in the series. Both players found more stable offense in game 2, as they each had a pair of three-ball runs. On the latter run for the Defenders' Bianca, she scratched while potting the 14, and the Flames' Crystal took over from ball-in-hand to make a three-ball run-out for the win, clinching the series at 2-0. Crystal got even better in game 3, while Bianca stayed mostly steady in her performance. Crystal made nine of the last ten balls, using a five-ball run and then a pair of pairs to get the win for a 3-0 series sweep. Crystal will oppose Commerce Tradewinds captain Tigerette in round three.
Nestle's Warriors Hall, Central: Noelle v. Steven. The blue cue is back for a 12-ball series here. Central's Noelle made a pair of shots on the break, but saw Atlantic's Steven make a five-ball run and gain enviable positioning on his first turn. Noelle answered with a three-ball run and some defense, and that defense held, as Steven ultimately potted Noelle's last ball instead of his own. Noelle is lucky to be ahead 1-0 in the series. Offense took a bit more time to develop in game 2, with the Warriors' Noelle making a three-ball run before the Pirates' Steven went on a four-ball run to get down to his last ball. Noelle fired back, making two well-positioned shots to go ahead 2-0 in the series with this win. Noelle had a productive start in game 3, but she couldn't get anything else going, and Steven calmly worked himself into position to get the win. Steven did win, sinking the 7 to the bottom left. Noelle advances on a 2-1 series win, and she will host the Queens Flames' Hannah in the third round.
Ebay Center, Queens: Violetta v. Quincy. Promising young talents meet in 15-ball with the red cue when these club-mates collide. Queens' Violetta had the better of the early play in game 1, but Terrace City's Quincy had an eye on the 15 the whole time. Quincy got the win on a four-ball run-out, missing trick plays on the 15 twice while potting a ball before double-potting the 14 and 15 for a 1-0 series lead. The Knights' Quincy tried to take game 2 early on a deflected shot off the 2 to push the 15 near the top right. He wouldn't give up easily, eventually making the 5-15 on a kick combination to the top left, but a more patient Flames' Violetta got the win when Quincy saw the cue fall in the bottom side. The series is tied at 1 after that error from the rookie. Quincy kept the pressure up for most of game 3, a close game that saw each player shine at various times. Quincy ran out of steam late in the game, scratching on his second try at the 15 to give Violetta a clean shot from ball-in-hand. Violetta converted for the 2-1 series win, and she'll host Maplewood Lumberjacks veteran Bryant in the third round.
Honda Driftwood Coliseum, Pearl: Beth v. Ice Cream. A returning veteran is set to host a Rotation series with the blue cue. Pearl's Beth started off better in game 1, but a stagnant area right after the start gave way to a big attack from Boston's Ice Cream. The lead held up against Beth's counterattack, and Ice Cream won 8-5 in the end, taking a 1-0 series lead. The Surfers' Beth had plenty of chances to build an attack in game 2, but she wasted nearly all of them with misses and errors. The Swifts' Ice Cream went mostly unchallenged in her 8-2 win, sealing the series at 2-0 in the process. Ice Cream started well in game 3 this time, but Beth soon matched her offense. Ice Cream then found her second wind, and rallied to an 8-3 win over the next few shots to secure a 3-0 series sweep. Ice Cream will be on the road for her third round series.
Chevrolet Center, Everton: Kirstin v. Snowball. The red cue is back to play some 15-ball between struggling veterans. Everton's Kirstin had a four-ball run in the middle of game 1 to pressure Swordpoint's Snowball, and then backed up that run with a three-ball run-out to get the win. Kirstin's strong but scattered offense gave her a 1-0 series lead early on. The Blades' Snowball had a five-ball run-out in game 2, a strong finish after capitalizing on some timid play from the Eagles' Kirstin. Snowball's strong finish tied the series at 1. Game 3 saw an even balance between the players for much of the rack, with no one gaining an advantage. Kirstin took control at the very end, assembling a three-ball run-out with a hammered shot on the 15 to the bottom right to get the win and a 2-1 series win. Kirstin will host the North Modernistic Nighthawks rookie Gal in the third round.
Honda Driftwood Coliseum, Pearl: Watermelon v. Strawberry. Back on the coast, the visitor takes on another club-mate in 12-ball with the red cue. Pearl's Watermelon had a good offense early in game 1, but she gave Victoria's Strawberry wild-card balls on her first two turns. Strawberry struggled, briefly giving Watermelon a wild-card ball as well, but Strawberry found her way at the end to pick up the win for a 1-0 series lead. The Spurs' Strawberry made three balls on the game 2 break, one of which was illegal. From here, Strawberry couldn't find much offense at all, and that made things slightly easier for the Surfers' Watermelon, who took a four-ball run and a pair of shots on consecutive turns to get the win. Watermelon's surge tied the series at 1. Game 3 saw Watermelon take a five-ball run after Strawberry did a lot of the early offense. Both players needed the bottom left in the end, and while Strawberry tried to play defense, Watermelon made her shot anyway to get the win and a 2-1 series win. Watermelon will travel to nearby Oceanside for a captains' battle with the Waves' Snuggle in the third round.
Nike Field Events Center, Commerce: Rosemary v. Goldy. A rookie takes on a legend in this 7-ball series with the blue cue. Commerce's Rosemary made one ball on the break and then the 4-7 combination to the bottom right at the end to get the win despite a dangerous three-ball run by Everton's Goldy on her only turn. Rosemary leads the series 1-0. The Eagles' Goldy again found a majority of the possession in game 2, with a four-ball run after a slow start. Once again, the Tradewinds' Rosemary made Goldy's possession useless with a three-ball run-out to take the win and secure the series at 2-0. Goldy still did a fair amount of possession in game 3, making her share of shots, but she missed on the 7 late and Rosemary was there to clean it up for another win. Rosemary swept the series 3-0 to earn her spot in the third round as a visitor.
Cisco Arena, Tysini: Brownie v. Sparkles. The blue cue wraps up today's action ahead of a one-day break with a 9-ball series. Tysini's Brownie started game 1 with a pair on the break, but Golden's Sparkles did the rest of the offense, knocking in a pair, a three-ball run, and then a game-winning pair to take a 1-0 series lead. The Pilots' Sparkles kept going with a pair on the break in game 2, but her offense stalled out here, as the Hummingbirds' Brownie answered with a pair on her first turn and then converted the 5-9 combination to the bottom right a turn later after Sparkles failed to make the same shot. Brownie's win tied the series at 1. Brownie had a three-ball run from the break in game 3 before things slowed down a bit. When the pace picked up again, it was Sparkles on a five-ball run-out for the win and a 2-1 series win. Sparkles will be on the road for her third round series.
That's all for today's action in the Tournament. We will take tomorrow off to make up some Hutton Cup time, and then return on Sunday.
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