Brett Stottlemyer
Brett Stottlemyer stopped a loss-side challenge from Mike Davis to win the 1st Annual Men's Virginia State 10-Ball Championships, while Janet Atwell took an undefeated route to be crowned Virginia State's first female 10-ball champion. Held under the auspices of the Action Pool Tour on the weekend of February 23-34, the two events drew 64 men and 21 women to Diamond Billiards in Midlothian, VA.
Stottlemeyer's nine-match journey to the winners' circle went through Chris Pyle, Mike Glen, Chris Futrell, and Tony Long, before arriving among the winners' side final four and a match against Action Pool Tour director Ozzy Reynolds. Danny Mastermaker and Kevin West squared off in the other winners' side semifinal. Stottlemyer and Reynolds locked up in a double hill battle that eventually sent Stottlemyer to the hot seat match. He was met there by Mastermaker, who'd sent West west 8-3. Stottlemyer gave up only two racks to Mastermaker, and sat in the hot seat, waiting on Davis.
Mike Davis, who'd won two on the winners' side before being sent to the loss bracket by Tim Colvin 8-4, embarked on a seven-match, loss-side winning streak that went through Shaun Wilkie, John Newton, Greg Sabins, and B.J. Ussery, which was when he picked up Reynolds. West drew Eric Moore, who'd defeated Colvin 6-2, and Long 7-2. Davis dropped Reynolds 6-1 and in the quarterfinals, faced Moore, who'd eliminated West 6-3.
Davis got by Moore 6-4, and survived a double hill battle against Mastermaker in the semifinals. He then opened the true double elimination finals with a commanding 8-2 win, but Stottlemyer fought back in the race-to-6 second set to win 6-4 and claim the event title.
Janet Atwell's path to victory started with a double hill struggle against Meredith Lynch, after which she gave up only three racks over the next two matches against Belinda Calhoun (one) and her winners' side final four opponent, Kimberly Whitman (two). She faced and defeated Falon Newton in the hot seat match 8-5.
On the loss side, Whitman and Judie Wilson met in the quarterfinals, once Whitman had downed Amy Foster 6-3 and Wilson had eliminated Kia Sidbury by the same score. It was Whitman, with another 6-3 win, over Wilson, who advanced to the semifinals against Newton. Newton spoiled Whitman's re-match bid against Atwell, and earned her own. Atwell took the final match over Newton 8-6 to lay claim to the first Virginia State female 10-ball championship title.
