Tournament X - Finals Phase D

The Championship series are here, where nine (or possibly eight) winners will punch their tickets to Tournament of Champions. Leading off...

AT&T Hall, Oceanside: Celestia (B) v. Jack (P). The first champion of the day will be in 12-ball. Web City's Jack yielded a wild-card ball in game 1, and that gave Oceanside's Celestia just enough flexibility to hang on for the win. Celestia has a 1-0 series lead. The Waves' Celestia had a solid break in game 2, but couldn't generate much after that. The Spiders' Jack ripped a five-ball run and then ended on the next turn at the bottom left to tie the series at 1. Jack kept his offense strong in game 3, starting off with solids and working around the table. A scratch slowed Celestia, and she just missed a chance at a late run. Jack finished with a pair at the right corners to go ahead 2-1 in the series. Jack yielded a wild-card ball at the start of game 4, and Celestia punished that at the end. She blocked Jack's play at the top side, then turned in a three-ball run-out for the win to retie the series at 2. Celestia produced a lot of offense on the game 5 break, and Jack wasn't able to get anything going. Celestia finished with a three-ball run-out again to pull ahead 3-2 in the series. Celestia didn't make things easy on herself with a scratch in game 6, but Jack was too far back to challenge. Celestia had time to make her last pair of shots without trouble, securing the series at 4-2. Celestia didn't need to do anything special in game 7, and she wasn't able to find much offense. Jack salvaged a result with a three-ball run-out, leaving Celestia as the 12-ball champion on a 4-3 series win. Jack is 164th player out, and Celestia has four kills. The Spiders are the 23rd team depleted of bids.

Cisco Arena, Tysini: Sugar (R) v. Twilight (P). We'll crown the 13-ball champion next. There was nothing pretty about game 1 for either player, but Central's Twilight will regret an overfill at the top side. Tysini's Sugar mostly took over after that and earned a slow win to take the 1-0 series lead. The Warriors' Twilight did a little better early in game 2, but the Hummingbirds' Sugar answered on a four-ball run. Two turns later, Sugar made the final pair for the win to extend her series lead to 2-0. A somewhat slow start in game 3 turned into Sugar ripping a five-ball run in the middle. Twilight couldn't match that pace, and Sugar emerged with a win and 3-0 series lead. Sugar was a little slower after a scratch at the start of game 4, but Twilight couldn't break Sugar's defense at the end. Sugar worked a four-ball run-out for the win, clinching the series at 4-0. Twilight worked a three-ball run in game 5, but positioning at the end held her back. Sugar was patient and found a four-ball run-out late for the comeback to stretch her series lead to 5-0. Sugar had struggles with positioning in game 6, but she still kept things close until she missed on the 8. Twilight made the final pair to avoid the sweep, cutting Sugar's series lead to 5-1. Sugar again faltered late in game 7, missing multiple chances to push for the victory. Twilight wasn't sharp either, but good enough to get another win. Sugar won the series 5-2 as the 13-ball champion. Twilight is the 165th eliminated player, while Sugar has two kills. The Warriors are the 24th team done.

Apple Center, Todavía: Easter (G) v. Sweetheart (P). Next up is Rotation between Prime club-mates. Boston's Sweetheart took the early lead in game 1, then faded a bit before recovering late to get an 8-6 win over Todavía's Easter. Sweetheart leads the series 1-0. The Swifts' Sweetheart again grabbed the lead in game 2, but the Stills' Easter pushed on a three-ball run to tie it late. Sweetheart then put the 15 in the bottom right for an 8-7 win that gave her a 2-0 series lead. Easter got back into things as Sweetheart scratched on the break in game 3. Easter led wire-to-wire with an 8-5 win cutting Sweetheart's series lead to 2-1. Easter didn't follow up so well in game 4, allowing Sweetheart to dictate play again. Sweetheart pulled away at the end for an 8-4 win, pushing her series lead to 3-1. Sweetheart held the lead after a three-ball run in game 5, but she wasn't able to finish it off. Easter played dangerously and barely escaped with an 8-7 win to pull back to a 3-2 deficit. Easter made three balls on the break in game 6, but that was all she could muster. Sweetheart won with an eight-ball run-out on her first turn for the 8-3 win to create a 4-2 series lead. Sweetheart took it easy in game 7, and Easter was able to march her way to an 8-2 win. Sweetheart is the Rotation champion by a 4-3 series score, and Easter is the 166th player out this year. Sweetheart has four kills.

Sony Center, Queens: Mario (G) v. Kitty (R). Southeastern rivals battle for the 7-ball title. Queens' Mario had trouble early on and then scratched after an unlikely cut on the 7 to the bottom left. Midland's Kitty took the gift to reward her previous four-ball run, giving her a 1-0 series lead. The Flames' Mario had another late foul in game 2, this time missing contact on the 6. The Predators' Kitty stepped in to make the final pair from ball-in-hand for a 2-0 series lead with the win. Kitty brought an early finish in game 3, converting her second trick attempt on the 7 with a deflection off the 3 to drive it to the bottom side. Kitty leads Mario 3-0 in the series. Mario had a three-ball run in game 4, but that was all he could offer. Kitty picked up the pace at the end to get another win, sealing the series in her favor at 4-0. Mario got on the board in game 5 with a pair of three-ball runs to finally shake off his disappointment from game 1. Mario's win helped him avoid the sweep as Kitty now leads 4-1. Kitty got back on track in game 6, converting a pair of shots at the end after Mario was unable to secure the 6. Kitty stretched her lead to 5-1. Mario got another game back in game 7, working a five-ball run-out with some sharp cuts to leave Kitty on a 5-2 series win. Kitty is the 7-ball champion and now has five kills while Mario is the 167th ousted player. Celebrity is the 5th club to run out of bids, while the Flames are the 25th team to exit.

Subway Arena, Stonebridge: Juno (S) v. Spirit (B). The visitor's first of two title bids is here in 10-ball. Stonebridge's Juno made quick work of game 1, finishing on a four-ball run-out with a 7-10 double-pot combination to the bottom side to earn the 1-0 series lead over Lighton's Spirit. The Prestige's Spirit had an awkward play on the 5 in game 2, and that led to a 5-10 combination lining up at the bottom right. The Wolves' Juno converted that shot for the win, going up 2-0 in the series. Juno blew a contact play on the 5 in game 3, finally giving Spirit something to work with. Spirit submitted a four-ball run-out for the win to cut the series to 2-1. Juno had a three-ball run in the middle of game 4, but she left herself no position on the 8. A missed contact foul allowed Spirit to work a three-ball run-out from ball-in-hand for the win to tie the series at 2. Juno had a pair of three-ball runs in game 5, but she suffered a critical failure with her miss on the 10 at the bottom right. Spirit cleaned it up at the top side for a win to pull ahead 3-2 in the series. Juno enjoyed a majority of the offense again in game 6, and this time she was able to cash in as Spirit faltered on her shots. Juno has retied the series at 3. Juno stepped up at the end of game 7 to strike down a pair of shots for the win, leaving Spirit with the loss. Juno won the series 4-3, assuring their will be nine champions this year as she represents 10-ball in the Tournament of Champions.

Pepsi Arena, Lighton: Spirit (G) v. Precious (S). The host completes her doubleheader in a marquee series of Accuracy. Pronger's Precious didn't budge from perfection in game 1, while Lighton's Spirit missed her last two shots. Precious won 0-2 for a 1-0 series lead. The Prestige's Spirit wrangled control away from the Tridents' Precious early in game 2, and that helped Spirit dictate the pace of play. Spirit was able to nab a 1-4 win this time, tying the series at 1. Precious got a little too tense in game 3, failing to make the simple plays. Spirit took advantage of it and then held on amid a late fade to get the 3-4 win for the 2-1 series lead. Precious thought she had Spirit done with in game 4, but Spirit's savvy positioning play forced Precious to fall behind on the last ball. Spirit converted for a 2-3 win and leads the series 3-1. Spirit used a double-pot to gain the last-shot advantage in game 5, but Precious scratched while making a shot to take it back. At the end, Spirit missed late, and Precious won 1-2 to pull back in the 3-2 series. Spirit made an absolute mess of game 6, but still almost got away with it as Precious was only marginally better. Precious didn't trail, but escaped with a 5-6 win to tie the series at 3. Precious was on the ropes late in game 7 as Spirit just needed to convert the last ball to win. She failed, and Precious forced overtime, where Spirit went with a soft break and got nothing. Precious then slammed into the cluster to get the winning point for a 3-4 win and 4-3 series win as the Accuracy champion. Spirit is the 168th player out, and Precious has three kills. The Prestige are the 26th team out.

Capital City SuperCenter, Capital City: Missy (P) v. Jake (B). The first of the premier titles is in 9-ball. Capital City's Missy found a three-ball run in the middle of game 1, but couldn't finish it off. Royal's Jake picked up the 9 instead for the win and 1-0 series lead. The Crowns' Jake fired off a five-ball run to start game 2, followed by the Sharpshooters' Missy making a pair before a scratch. Jake then added the final pair for the win, going ahead 2-0 in the series. Jake made quick work of game 3, potting a pair on the break before delivering a 1-9 kick combination to the bottom side on the next shot. Jake's series lead over Missy is at a dominant 3-0. Missy wasn't able to find any momentum in game 4, fouling almost as often as she converted a shot. Jake was able to run away with another win on a four-ball run-out, clinching the series at 4-0. Jake added on again in game 5, as Missy scratched while attempting a kick on the 5. Jake took the ball-in-hand on the 5 and added a 6-9 combination to the top left to go ahead 5-0 in the series. Jake wasn't able to keep the sweep opportunity going, as Missy stood up for a three-ball run-out capped by a 6-9 combination to the top left in game 6. Jake remains ahead 5-1 in the series. Missy got another for the road in game 7, making a four-ball run and adding the 9 on the next turn. Jake won the series 5-2 anyway and will be the 9-ball champion this year. Missy is the 169th eliminated player, and Jake has four kills. The Sharpshooters are also the 27th eliminated team.

Chevrolet Center, Everton: Vincent (B) v. Sarah (R). Club-mates tangle in 15-ball. Everton's Vincent made a couple too many errors in game 1, and Tysini's Sarah eventually decided to pot the 8-15 combination to the top right on ball-in-hand. Sarah leads her former teammate 1-0 in the series. The Hummingbirds' Sarah was unlucky to get called for illegal contact when both players bizarrely ignored the 1 at the top side. The Eagles' Vincent settled in well and made a four-ball run-out at the end to tie the series at 1. Vincent tried to work out some tricks after his offense dried up in game 3. He attempted a 12-15 bank combination to the top side from a bad angle, but it failed, and Sarah made the 15 to the same spot on a deflection for the win. Sarah leads the series 2-1. Vincent had a brutal blunder on illegal contact, which set the 15 in motion to carom all the way into the top right on a slow roll. This gifted Sarah another win, giving her a 3-1 series lead. Sarah had most of the offense in game 5, working a four-ball run and a five-ball run before a poorly-timed scratch. Vincent then made the 13 and 15 on separate turns to steal the win, pulling back to a 3-2 series. Vincent kept himself in it again in game 6, as Sarah wasn't sharp enough in the middle to break up Vincent's momentum. At the end, Vincent won on a five-ball run-out to tie the series at 3. It could have gone either way in game 7, but it was Vincent's positioning play that became a scratch as he sank the 14. Sarah took the 15 for free, winning the game and the 4-3 series to advance as the 15-ball champion. Sarah will lead the league with nine kills this year, making Vincent the 170th ousted player. The Eagles are the 28th team done.

Apple Center, Todavía: Pedey (G) v. Gradley (R). The final series of the regular season is for the 8-ball championship. Todavía's Pedey kept the pace up in game 1, although Boston's Gradley pushed him hard. Gradley was a little short on his last shot, and Pedey made a three-ball run-out for the win and 1-0 series lead. The Swifts' Gradley took over game 2 on a four-ball run, but had nothing left on the 8. He missed a few times, then scratched when he made it to gift the win and 2-0 series lead to the Stills' Pedey. In game 3, Pedey took stripes on the break but lost three shots later as his cluster-buster caught the 8 into the top left. Gradley didn't take a shot as he got on the board in a 2-1 series. Pedey got himself back on track with a five-ball run in game 4. Gradley had some chances to make noise, but Pedey shut him down in his win to produce a 3-1 series lead. An early battle saw both players come away on nearly level terms before Pedey took a scratch. Gradley fired off a three-ball run-out after that for the win, staying alive but trailing 3-2 in the series. Another even start saw Gradley pull away a little quicker this time, and Pedey was unable to catch up with him. Gradley buried the 8 in the bottom left for the win to tie the series at 3. Gradley grabbed the early lead in game 7, putting Pedey under immense pressure. Pedey rallied and got down to his last ball, but he took out the 8 illegally at the end, gifting the 4-3 series win to Gradley. Pedey is the 171st and final player to exit in the regular season portion of the Tournament, while Gradley picked up his sixth kill and also team-killed the Stills as the 29th and final team out of bids. 

That's it for the regular season. For now, the league will take a break after an unprecedented push to complete the Tournament. The playoffs are loosely expected to begin on October 4.