Losers of the next nine series will be awarded bronze medals for their performances this year. This post will cover two days of action. First up...
AT&T Hall, Oceanside: Celestia (G) v. Lily (S). The Rotation series is first in this round. Oceanside's Celestia had a strong start to game 1, working enough of an offense to build a big lead. Eastside's Lily pushed back too late, and Celestia held on for an 8-5 win to go ahead 1-0 in the series. After a tight start to game 2, the Waves' Celestia eventually found a path forward and collected an 8-3 win when the Sharks' Lily stalled out on offense. Celestia leads the series 2-0. Lily put in her best effort yet in game 3, getting even late in the battle, but Celestia shook her off to grab an 8-6 win for the 3-0 series lead. Celestia kept rolling in game 4, taking the lead quickly and holding it at the end for an 8-3 win to seal the series at 4-0 over Lily. Celestia again stormed ahead with three balls from the break in game 5, but Lily finally struck back and landed an 8-7 win to get on the board. Celestia holds a 4-1 series lead. Lily got a jump in game 6, taking a big lead early and cruising to the finish for an 8-5 win that cut Celestia's advantage in the series to 4-2. Lily continued her momentum in a difficult game 7, taking an 8-6 win that left Celestia with a deceiving 4-3 series win. Celestia will visit the Everton Eagles captain Goldy later in the week for the Rotation title. This was Celestia's second kill, making Lily the 166th player out.
Nissan Hall, Infinity: Blaze (P) v. Nibbles (R). Next up is 7-ball as we continue through Tuesday's slate. Infinity's Blaze had a productive game 1, although Web City's Nibbles struck a three-ball run before missing on the 7. Blaze sent the 7 to the bottom right for the win and 1-0 series lead. The Spiders' Nibbles couldn't get any offense going in game 2, allowing the Torpedoes' Blaze to dictate the pace. Blaze was steady and picked up the win in three turns to go up 2-0 in the series. Blaze maintained his majority of the offense in game 3, but he flubbed a look on the 7 at the end. Nibbles was there to steal the win at the bottom right, cutting Blaze's series lead to 2-1. Blaze stay involved in game 4, but he rattled the 7 out of the top side this time. Nibbles cleaned it up at the bottom left for another win to tie the series at 2. Nibbles wasted no time in asserting himself in game 5, burying a six-ball run off the break. Both players missed the 7 once, and Nibbles made it on his second try to earn the 3-2 series lead over Blaze. Nibbles secured the series on the game 6 break, getting the 7 to tail the 1 into the bottom side for a 4-2 series lead. Blaze controlled things in game 7, but his six-ball run wasn't enough with a miss on the 7. Nibbles knocked it in at the bottom left for a 5-2 series win that sets him up to visit the Southridge Defenders' Wario in the final phase. Blaze is the 167th eliminated player, and Nibbles has three kills, all in the Finals.
Apple Center, Todavía: Ruby (R) v. Spirit (B). West Division stars collide in 10-ball. Todavía's Ruby took a cheap win in game 1 after poor play early on. She deflected off the 2 to tap the 10 in the bottom left when Lighton's Spirit failed to get any offense going. Ruby leads the series 1-0. Game 2 ended up going the distance after another slow start. The Stills' Ruby didn't find any magic this time, and the Prestige's Spirit upped the pace with a four-ball run-out for the win to tie the series at 1. Ruby sank the 10 on an uncalled play early in game 3, but she was fortunate that Spirit wasn't able to control the offense after that. Ruby finished with a four-ball run-out and got the win for a 2-1 series lead. Spirit tried to surge late in game 4, but she fell short with a miss on the 8. Ruby made the final pair in this one, earning the win for a 3-1 series win. Spirit couldn't get back up to pace in game 5, and Ruby was in control at the end with a five-ball run-out for the win. Ruby has clinched the series at 4-1 with her strong finish. Spirit was able to grab a win in game 6, finishing strong after a scratch from Ruby wasted her early offense. Spirit's win cut Ruby's series lead down to 4-2. Spirit collected another win in game 7, burying a three-ball run-out to end the difficult series. Ruby won the series 4-3 and will visit the Harrison Specters' Snuggle in the final phase.
T-Mobile Center, Victoria: Strawberry (B) v. Princess (G). Along to 15-ball, with timing coming into play for the cutoff. Victoria's Strawberry had a solid performance early in game 1, but Viewpoint Sound's Princess turned a contact play on the 7 into the 15 dropping in the top left as slop. Princess leads the series 1-0. The Spurs' Strawberry had the momentum late in game 2, but a miss on the 15 was costly. The Meteors' Princess converted her winning shot from distance to the top right, going ahead 2-0 in the series. Strawberry got a deserved win in game 3, picking up a four-ball run-out after Princess faltered late. Princess remains ahead 2-1 in the series. Strawberry looked ready to charge late in game 4, but she scratched as she made the 13. Princess pulled off the positioning just right and made the last pair for the win, going up 3-1 in the series. Princess didn't get much offense going in game 5, but a little defense covered her tracks. Strawberry fouled on a contact play for the 7, and Princess took the 7-15 combination to the bottom left from ball-in-hand to seal the series at 4-1. Princess didn't ease up in game 6, playing a close battle with Strawberry this time. Princess had the better of the late offense to earn the win and move to a 5-1 series lead. Princess couldn't lock down one more result in game 7, so Strawberry took control of the late offense to earn the win. Princess' 5-2 series win guarantees her a spot in the final phase versus Queens Flames veteran Briana. Strawberry is the 168th player out of the Tournament, and Princess now has five kills.
T-Mobile Center, Victoria: Spice (P) v. Tigerette (S). The venue doubleheader ends with 8-ball, also ending Tuesday's slate. Game 1 was an awkward battle. Victoria's Spice scratched on the break, and Boston's Tigerette made one of each, choosing to play solids. She botched her next shot, and Spice took control from there to get the win and 1-0 series lead. The Spurs' Spice had a six-ball run in game 2, but she missed her chance on the 8 after the Swifts' Tigerette left it standing to end a four-ball run. Tigerette made it on the second attempt to tie the series at 1. Spice fell behind quickly in game 3 and tried to play a defensive style. Tigerette didn't get slowed down, plowing through for an easy win to pull ahead 2-1 in the series. Tigerette started a little slower in game 4, allowing Spice to find a little rhythm on offense. Tigerette turned it around quick, blasting a five-ball run and a three-ball run-out for the win to move into a 3-1 series lead. Spice had game 5 in her hands, but she let it slip by twice missing on the 8. Tigerette rallied all the way back with a five-ball run-out for the win, securing the series at 4-1. Tigerette pulled off another great escape in game 6, as Spice again fell short on the 8. Tigerette rallied for a six-ball run-out this time, stretching her series lead to 5-1. Tigerette added one more win in game 7, another dominant push in the middle lifting her to a 6-1 series win over Spice. Tigerette will face Viewpoint Sound Meteors veteran Cobalt in the final phase. Tigerette has four kills and Spice is the 169th player out of the Tournament.
FedEx Arena, Eastside: Taylor M. (S) v. Ms. Kitty (G). A battle between captains starts Wednesday with 12-ball. Eastside's Taylor M. made one of each on the game 1 break and took stripes to control the side pockets. Pacific's Ms. Kitty couldn't keep pace and Taylor M. emerged with the win for a 1-0 series lead. The Sharks' Taylor M. had a solid start in game 2, but she butchered the finishing push. The Volcanoes' Ms. Kitty stepped up to earn a three-ball run-out for the win, tying the series at 1. Taylor M. got back on track with a four-ball run in game 3. Ms. Kitty tried to keep pace, but her positioning was bad. Taylor M. eventually won with the 10 at the top left to regain the series lead at 2-1. Taylor M. put in another good start in game 4, but Ms. Kitty showed some resilience and positioning skill this time to pull off a comeback win that tied the series at 2. Taylor M. was forced to take a defensive stance in game 5, but it didn't hold up as Ms. Kitty pushed through to earn the win and 3-2 series lead. Taylor M. had a fairly strong performance in game 6, but she couldn't get her last ball on a two-rail bank toward the top right. Ms. Kitty's last ball threw a defensive block and she cut it in at the top side for the win to clinch the series at 4-2. Taylor M. had everything organized to take game 7, but a scratch ruined her late push. Ms. Kitty swooped in for the win and 5-2 series win that puts her into the final phase versus the Web City Spiders' Jack. Ms. Kitty has eight kills and Taylor M. is the 170th player to exit the Tournament.
Nissan Hall, Infinity: Shelley (S) v. Potter (B). Moving along to Accuracy, we've got a solid veteran battle. Infinity's Shelley had an early miss and Pronger's Potter took control from there. Potter won 0-2, a perfect effort establishing his series lead at 1-0. The Tridents' Potter wasn't as dominant in shooting in game 2, but he was still very good while the Torpedoes' Shelley put in a similar effort. Potter was able to prevail with a 1-2 win to go ahead 2-0 in the series. In game 3, Potter made a ball on the break and a double-pot later, but it all went bad at the end. He skidded late and Shelley stayed perfect this time for the 0-2 win to cut Potter's series lead to 2-1. Both players bottomed out a bit in game 4, with Shelley in particular struggling to put in a good performance. Potter grabbed a 3-6 win this time to take a 3-1 series lead. Shelley didn't recover well enough in a slow start to game 5. Potter was there to clean up after each miss, and he took a 1-4 win to seal the series at 4-1. Shelley battled to force overtime in game 6, and Potter soft-broke on the extra rack to allow Shelley to grab a 2-3 win. Potter remains ahead 4-2 in the series. Shelley grabbed another win in game 7, holding firm for a 1-2 result to leave Potter with a 4-3 series win. Potter will visit the Tysini Hummingbirds' Leandra in the final phase. Potter is up to five kills, and Shelley is the 171st played to exit the Tournament.
Capital City SuperCenter, Capital City: Kelsea (R) v. Roxy (P). The 13-ball series goes next. Capital City's Kelsea was strong enough early in game 1 to set the tone. At the end, she played patient and struck when Southridge's Roxy couldn't build a comeback run. Kelsea leads the series 1-0. The Sharpshooters' Kelsea thought she had game 2 under control and took a casual approach at the end. The Defenders' Roxy stayed in it and got the win when Kelsea scratched late, allowing Roxy to tie the series at 1. Roxy had a push near the end of game 3, but her scratch cost her time. Kelsea held on with patience and precision to get this win, going ahead 2-1 in the series. Kelsea again took a big lead in a tough game 4 battle. Roxy had just enough positioning to make it work for a five-ball run-out that saw her bank two shots en route to the win. The series is tied again at 2. A thrilling and pivotal game 5 had a great finish. Roxy cut the 4 to the bottom left with the kick sending the 7 to the top side, but she missed her cut on the 8. Kelsea then made her last ball and the 8 on consecutive shots for the win to go up 3-2 in the series. Roxy did everything she could with defense at the top right, and the play worked enough to slow Kelsea down at the end. Roxy then made a pair for the win, tying the series once more at 3 to set up a decisive finale. Kelsea took a large lead early in game 7, then had to weather an attack from Roxy at the end. Kelsea held on and earned the 4-3 series win to earn the right to face the Pacific Volcanoes captain Ms. Kitty in the final phase. Roxy is the 172nd player out, and Kelsea has two kills.
Porsche Events Center, Zenith: Blizzard (S) v. Spirit (B). Closing out the day, there's a 9-ball set. Zenith's Blizzard had a productive game 1 despite not making many shots. Her blast on the 2 had enough force to get the 9 down at the top left for the win and 1-0 series lead over Lighton's Spirit. Shot quality didn't improve much in game 2, but the Prestige's Spirit was able to deflect a play off the 5 to make the 9 at the bottom left. This helped her tie the series at 1 against the Skywatchers' Blizzard. Spirit had a strong performance in game 3. Blizzard handled some offense early, but Spirit made the last four balls over two turns to get the win for a 2-1 series lead. Blizzard fouled at a bad time in game 4, allowing Spirit to make the 5-9 combination from ball-in-hand for the win and 3-1 series lead. Blizzard kept herself in the series with a six-ball run-out in game 5, making a 7-9 combination to the bottom left to cap it off. Spirit remains ahead 3-2 in the series. Blizzard built momentum with another big run in game 6, but she missed late. Spirit also missed on the 9, and Blizzard made it to the bottom side on her second try for the win to tie the series at 3. Game 7 went right down to the wire, with Spirit cutting the 9 to the bottom right for the win and 4-3 series win. She'll visit her father, Diamond Gems captain Shadow, in the final phase. Blizzard is the 173rd player out and Spirit has three kills.
Tomorrow begins the last two days of the regular season, and then a push after that for administrative duties. For now, we hope to have the Tournament of Champions on Sunday, but that is subject to change.
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