With a 9-7 victory on Saturday, Ikumi Ushiroda has upset #3 ranked Helena Thornfeldt at the WPBA Cuetec Cues Midwest Classic in Peoria, IL.
Ushiroda, the reigning regional tour champion, jumped ahead of Thornfeldt 6-2 to start off the match. Thornfeldt, however, took advantage of a little nervousness on Ushiroda's part and came back to win five of the next six games to knot the match at 7-7.
The fifteenth game was Ushiroda's break, but she missed the 3-ball early in the rack. A fortunate roll on that miss, left Thornfeldt hooked and forced to jump just to hit the 3-ball. Thornfeldt successfully hit the 3-ball, leaving it in the jaws of the pocket. From there, Ushiroda ran out the rack to take the lead again at 8-7.
Thornfeldt came up dry on her break in game sixteen, leaving Ushiroda a bank on the 1-ball. Ushiroda banked the 1-ball, leaving herself a bank on the 2-ball. Ushiroda would not be stopped in this final rack, as she banked the 2-ball and ran out the rack from there.
Ushiroda will face #2 ranked Karen Corr in her next match, with a guaranteed fifth place finish already. Ushiroda's previous best finish was 13th place twice.
Complete brackets are available for this event on the WPBA website at www.wpba.com
