The City Cup's opening round continues today with the matchups near the middle of the participating teams. First up...
5) Everton Eagles v. 12) Viewpoint Sound Meteors. The purple cue gets today's opening series, which could be a lesson in late-season momentum. Everton's Goldy nearly gave the team a dream start, but she scratched as she made the 7 on the break in 7-ball, gifting the win and 1-0 series lead to Viewpoint Sound's Josie. The Eagles' Vincent put in a good fight in 8-ball, but he wasn't able to grind out a win as the Meteors' Princess was steady on offense. Princess kept her advantage enough to give her team a 2-0 series lead. Goldy again took just one shot in 9-ball, but this time it got Everton on the board, cutting Viewpoint Sound's series lead to 2-1. Goldy denied Josie a shot for a second game by sinking the 9 to the bottom left. Panda made an impact for the Eagles in 10-ball, sniping the 8-10 combination to the bottom right after a close battle with the Meteors' Josie. The series is now tied at 2. Vincent couldn't keep the momentum going for Everton in 12-ball, falling short with his late offense while Hoot held strong. Hoot was able to make the final pair with trouble to give Viewpoint Sound a 3-2 series lead. Hoot couldn't get his offense going in 13-ball, as Vincent rallied on solids despite an unfavorable distribution early. Vincent's win helped the Eagles retie the series at 3 against the Meteors. Goldy had to battle for every shot in Rotation, but Viewpoint Sound's Princess got sloppy at the end and lost control. Goldy's composed effort earned her an 8-4 win, putting Everton up 4-3 in the series. Panda wasn't able to lock it down for the Eagles, his late three-ball run falling short while Princess scooped up the final pair to tie the series at 4. Panda fell apart in Accuracy as well, allowing Hoot to emerge with a 2-5 win in the game and a 5-4 series win for Viewpoint Sound overall. The Meteors will face the Queens Flames in the quarterfinals.
6) Whitewater Shores v. 11) Harrison Specters. The City Cup hosts join the action here, using the green cue. Whitewater's Rachel didn't get much going in 7-ball, and Harrison's Bucco was able to deliver a pair of shots at the end for the win. Harrison leads the series 1-0. The Shores' Shaggy had the lead for much of 8-ball, but she couldn't get the 8 down at the end. The Specters' Twinkie II stepped up with a five-ball run-out to grab the win, putting her team ahead 2-0 in the series. Harrison's Snuggle didn't get a shot in 9-ball, as Whitewater's Rachel redeemed herself by bumping the 9 to the bottom left on the break. Harrison still leads the series 2-1. Snuggle again faltered in 10-ball, but it was more from the strength of the Shores' Shaggy, who curled a shot on the 7 to ignite a four-ball run-out for the win. The series is tied at 2. Rachel stayed composed in a difficult game of 12-ball, fending off Twinkie II after the latter's four-ball run near the end. Rachel grabbed the win and gave Whitewater a 3-2 series lead over Harrison. Katharine checked in for the Shores and struggled a bit with positioning in 13-ball. Twinkie II was sharp at the end to grab the win, retying the series at 3. Rotation was a pivotal game, and it had plenty of turning points. Neither player could get a run, but Katharine was able to step in late for a pair of shots to win 8-7 over Bucco, propelling Whitewater to a 4-3 series lead. Katharine continued for the Shores in 15-ball, and she surged in the middle, only for Snuggle to reply for the Specters with a four-ball run-out. The series is tied once more at 4. Bucco led for almost all of Accuracy after Shaggy scratched on the break. Bucco then scratched late and missed on the last ball, allowing Shaggy to take the 2-3 win and 5-4 series win for Whitewater, who will play another Eastern team in the Web City Spiders in the quarterfinals.
7) Infinity Torpedoes v. 10) Pacific Volcanoes. The red cue gets the call for a battle of depth against top-end talent. Infinity's Blaze made a pair on the break and struck late in 7-ball to take the win and 1-0 series lead over Pacific and Leonette. The Torpedoes' Shelley led for much of 8-ball but it got away from her in the end. The Volcanoes' Smokey charged back on a five-ball run-out to tie the series at 1. Smokey was relentless in 9-ball with an eight-ball run-out, lifting Pacific to another win and a 2-1 series lead over Infinity's Blaze. In 10-ball, Blaze looked to get the upper hand early on, only for Smokey to reply at the end with a sharp pair for the win that extended the Volcanoes' series lead to 3-1. Fuchsia had an attack late in 12-ball to get within a ball of winning, but Ms. Kitty had enough of a lead and good positioning to make a pair of tap-ins for the win. Pacific now leads Infinity 4-1 in the series. Ms. Kitty tried to make a comeback in a tough 13-ball battle, but Shelley held her off after starting hot on solids. Shelley's win cut the Torpedoes' deficit to 4-2 against the Volcanoes. Fuchsia was caught off guard early in Rotation, and Leonette was strong enough to guide it home for an 8-3 win that secured the series at 5-2 for Pacific. Fuchsia showed a little better in 15-ball. The Volcanoes' Leonette made a four-ball run early, but Fuchsia replied with a four-ball run-out that ended on a 6-15 combination to the bottom left to get the Torpedoes to a 5-3 deficit. Infinity's Shelley skidded late in Accuracy after a good start, allowing Pacific's Ms. Kitty to take a 1-3 win to finish off a 6-3 series win. The Volcanoes will have the home-field advantage against the Terrace City Knights in the quarterfinals.
8) Lighton Prestige v. 9) Diamond Gems. The last series today uses the silver cue. Both players showed skill in 7-ball, but Lighton's Spirit got the better of Diamond's Shadow with a pair both early and late. Lighton leads the series 1-0. The Prestige's Citrus had a good showing in 8-ball until she illegally sank the 8 after trying to get a better position. This gifted the win to the Gems' Autumn, who did well to keep things close. The series is tied at 1. In a rematch of the 9-ball gold-medal series this year, Spirit and Shadow went to battle again. It was as close as expected, with Shadow winning on a perfectly weighted spinning cut on the 9 to the top left to give Diamond a 2-1 series lead over Lighton. In 10-ball, Spirit clearly had an edge on offense over the Gems' Leonardo. While no big runs developed, Spirit got the win on a late pair to pull the Prestige even again at 2-2. In 12-ball, Citrus struck first on stripes, but a pair of three-balls runs quickly gave the win to Autumn and Diamond, who now lead 3-2. Citrus stayed on for 13-ball and cleaned up some of her mistakes from earlier games. Leonardo wasn't able to settle in with positioning as Citrus helped the Prestige again pull even with the Gems at 3 games apiece. Leonardo got on the edge of victory in a pivotal Rotation battle, but he couldn't get one more shot down. Acorn fought all the way back from a six-point deficit, opening his turn at the table with an 8-7 win to give Lighton the upper hand 4-3 over Diamond. A battle between two of the league's most tactical captains saw Acorn and Shadow clash evenly. At the end, Acorn faded with a pair of scratches that allowed Shadow to piece together a win that kept the Gems alive with the series tied at 4. Acorn and Autumn went to battle in Accuracy with the series on the line, and it was close the whole way. Autumn dropped off with late misses, allowing Acorn to lock down a 1-2 win for the 5-4 series win that sent Lighton to the quarterfinals. They'll face the Victoria Spurs in a West Division grudge match.
We expect to only play the City Cup Quarterfinals tomorrow, but it's possible we push toward the end of this part of the postseason instead if time permits.
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