The second day of the Semifinals is here, beginning with...
Nightfur v. Shiny. The two favorites for TYAT MVP clash in 15-ball with the silver cue. Lighton's Shiny capitalized on the 15 being close to the top left by making a 5-7-15 combination there after Royal's Nightfur committed an error. Shiny leads the series 1-0. The Prestige's Shiny maintained a majority of the offense in game 2, although she still needed the Crowns' Nightfur to miss the 15 at the end. Nightfur whiffed at the top right, and Shiny tapped it down for the 2-0 series lead. Nightfur had a chance to win game 3 after Shiny missed the 14 to end a run. Nightfur made it, but left the 15 short at the top side, and Shiny tapped it down to extend her series lead to 3-0. Fortune favored Shiny after a bad break in game 4, as Nightfur only chipped in modestly on offense. Shiny then threw a shot at the 9 which sent the 15 caroming to the bottom right for the win and 4-0 series lead. Shiny was merciless in game 5, as Nightfur made a late four-ball run but couldn't sink either of the last two balls. Shiny made sure her early four-ball run wasn't wasted as she got the win to clinch the series at 5-0. Nightfur finally got on the board in game 6 with a three-ball run-out to beat Shiny after a rather shaky effort on both sides. Shiny's series lead remains firm at 5-1. Nightfur got a little more redemption in game 7, making the 15 on her second attempt as Shiny has clearly gone into a reserved mode of play. Nightfur had a six-ball run in game 8, but couldn't get the 10 to fall at the top left. Shiny made it and a 13-15 combination at the bottom left to get the win, pushing her series lead up to 6-2. Shiny picked off the 15 at the end of a competitive game 9 as well, ending the series with a 7-2 win over Nightfur. Shiny will face her mother, Everton Eagles captain Goldy, in the 15-ball finals.
Princess v. Spirit. Elite talents meet in 10-ball with the purple cue. Both players showed respect for each other, especially as Tysini's Princess overcooked a shot on the 9 late in game 1. Lighton's Spirit then made the final pair for the win and 1-0 series lead. The Hummingbirds' Princess worked a four-ball run in game 2 as well, but missed the 6 at the bottom left. The Prestige's Spirit replied with a three-ball run-out for the win and 2-0 series lead. Princess made a three-ball run in game 3 but had a conundrum on the 7, which she sent wide of the bottom right. Spirit made it, then banked the 8 to the top right and cut the 10 to the top left for the win, extending her lead to 3-0. Princess stopped the bleeding in game 4 with a quick finish. Spirit was out of sorts on her shots, and Princess put the 3 in the top side before a well-timed 4-10 combination to the bottom left got her a win. Spirit's lead is down to 3-1. Spirit shot right back in game 5 with a 3-10 combination to the top left, the early finish pushing her to a 4-1 series lead after Princess sputtered early. Princess had a little offense in game 6, but couldn't do anything about how it ended. Spirit roared forward with a six-ball run-out for the win, which helped her secure the series at 5-1. Spirit stayed dominant in game 7, mashing a five-ball run early on. Princess made the 6, but scratched on the same play, and Spirit answered with a three-ball run-out to go ahead 6-1. Princess made a five-ball run in game 8, but again tried to do too much on the 7. Spirit took over from here and won with a four-ball run-out, stretching her advantage to 7-1. Spirit had full control by the end of game 9, smashing a six-ball run-out to finish off her 8-1 series win over Princess. Spirit has punched her ticket to the 10-ball finals.
Sweetheart v. Slinks. In Rotation, the green cue gets its turn today. Boston's Sweetheart made a five-ball run off a ball-in-hand play in game 1, but it wasn't enough. Harrison's Slinks replied with a pair and some defense, then made a four-ball run-out for the 8-7 win and 1-0 series lead. The Specters' Slinks made a four-ball run early in game 2, then had to take her time before grabbing the 8-5 win over the Swifts' Sweetheart. Slinks' steady bursts of offense have her ahead 2-0 in the series. Slinks had some good plays early in game 3, but Sweetheart burst to life over two turns to gain the lead. Sweetheart won 8-4 with a two-rail bank of the 11 to the top side, helping her cut Slinks' series lead to 2-1. Sweetheart had a huge lead in game 5, but Slinks took over with a late four-ball run. Sweetheart got one back, but a failed jump allowed Slinks to poke the 13 to the bottom left for the 8-6 win and 3-1 series lead. Sweetheart again did reasonably well early on, only for Slinks to track her down with a five-ball run-out to close out game 5 with an 8-6 win. Slinks stretched her advantage to 4-1. Sweetheart had to scrap for offense late in game 6, as Slinks protected her lead effectively. Sweetheart pulled even, but Slinks won 8-7 in the end, sealing the series in her favor at 5-1. Sweetheart salvaged a result in game 7, outpacing Slinks near the end to pick up an 8-5 victory. Slinks remains ahead 5-2 in the series. Sweetheart smashed a five-ball run from the break in game 8, then made a three-ball run-out on her next turn for the quick 8-0 win. Slinks' series lead shrunk to 5-3. Sweetheart unleashed another massive play with a seven-ball run in game 9. It took her some time, but she beat Slinks 8-4 this time. Slinks still won the series 5-4, narrowly reaching the Rotation finals.
Shiny v. Dusky. The designated host gets a second series today, playing Accuracy with the red cue. Archtown's Dusky was in fine shape early in game 1, but faded near the end, and Web City's Shiny was merciless in picking up a 1-4 win. Shiny leads the series 1-0. The Spiders' Shiny quickly got into trouble after scratching on the break in game 2. The Arrows' Dusky faded late but held on for a 3-5 win to tie the series at 1. Shiny rounded back into form with an exclamation point, staying perfect in game 3 for the 0-2 win over Dusky. Shiny regained the series lead at 2-1. Shiny was alright in game 4, but couldn't avoid overtime, where she scratched on the break. Dusky took her lone shot easily to win 2-3, retying the series at 2. Shiny lost the last-shot advantage in game 5 after an early double-pot, and that would be costly with another empty overtime break. Dusky buried a shot and picked up a 1-2 win this time, going ahead 3-2 in the series. Dusky faltered in game 6, missing twice early on. Shiny had a scratch in the middle, but maintained the margin for a 1-2 win to retie the series again at 3. Overtime continued to haunt Shiny in game 7, as her break this time came close but failed to yield a ball. Dusky picked off her single shot for the 1-2 win, retaking the series lead at 4-3 on another close victory. Dusky made three balls on the break in game 8, but faltered multiple times down the stretch. Shiny had no such failures, going perfect again in a 0-3 win that tied the series at 4. Shiny came within a shot of victory twice in game 9, missing once to force overtime and again in the extra rack. Dusky stepped up on her second shot of overtime for the 3-4 win and 5-4 series win. Dusky will play in the Accuracy finals.
Spice v. Dusty. Reality club-mates battle in 7-ball with the blue cue to end the day. A slow start to game 1 gave way as Victoria's Spice buried a five-ball run-out for the win and 1-0 series lead over Golden's Dusty. The Spurs' Spice enjoyed her break in game 2, sending the 7 to the top side for an instant win and 2-0 series lead. Spice went empty on the break in game 3, but made a six-ball run on her second turn. The Pilots' Dusty interjected with a bank of the 7 to the bottom right for the win, cutting the series to 2-1. Dusty kept her offense up in game 4, making four balls over two turns, but that wasn't enough. Spice banked the 7 to the top left for the win and boosted her series lead to 3-1. Spice made three balls on the break in game 5, but couldn't get anything after that. Dusty won with a pair this time, pulling back to a 3-2 deficit in the series. Dusty applied pressure with her offense in game 6, but it was Spice fouling as she sank the 7 in the bottom right that tipped the game. Dusty got the free win to tie the series at 3 games each. A pivotal game 7 saw offense stagnate with many balls stuck along rails. Dusty had a short run but couldn't finish it off, as Spice won at the bottom left. Spice leads the series again at 4-3. Spice didn't want to play quietly in game 8, striking early and skidding her hand off the edge of a pocket. Shaking it off, Spice capitalized on Dusty's miss on the 5, with Spice burying a three-ball run-out for the win on the next turn. Spice clinched the series at 5-3. Dusty was determined in game 9, and that turned into a four-ball run-out for the win as she double-potted the 3 and the 7 to the side pockets. Spice won the series 5-4 to earn her place in the 7-ball finals.
One more full day of Semifinals will go tomorrow before the round ends Sunday with approximately half as much play.
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