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Dufresne comes from the loss side to win second 2019 Tri-State event, first of 2019-2020 season

(l to r): Luis Jimenez & Pascal Dufresne

It was apparently the Tri-State Tour’s turn on Pascal Dufresne’s calendar. He won a stop on the Tri-State Tour back in March, which was a part of the Tri-State Tour’s 2018-2019 season. In April, he chalked up a victory on the Predator Pro Am Tour. On Sunday, September 22, Dufresne came back from a winners’ side semifinal loss to down Luis Jimenez in the finals of the $1,000-added, Double Points Tri-State event that had drawn 19 entrants to BQE Billiards in Jackson Heights (Queens), NY. It was his second 2019 win on the Tri-State Tour, but his first of the 2019-2020 tour season.
 
They met twice. The first time was in a winners’ side semifinal, as Robert Calton and Shweta Zaveri were battling it out in the other one. Jimenez, who’d cashed in 10 stops on the Tri-State Tour this year, including two runner-up finishes (March & July) was looking for his first win on the tour in (as far as we can determine) five years. He sent Dufresne to the loss side 7-5, as Calton sent Zaveri over 7-4. Jimenez guaranteed himself, at minimum, another runner-up finish with a 7-2 win over Calton in the hot seat match.
 
On the loss side, Zaveri picked up Thomas Schreiber, who’d been defeated by Dufresne in a winners’ side quarterfinal and then defeated Amanda Andries 7-4 and Lionel Swanston 6-5. Dufresne drew Joshua Joseph, who’d recently eliminated Michael Fedak and Allison LaFleur, both 6-3.
 
Dufresne and Zaveri got right back to work. Zaveri downed Schreiber 8-2, as Dufresne advanced to join her in the quarterfinals with a 7-3 win over Joseph. Dufresne ended Zaveri’s bid for a rematch against Calton in the semifinals by defeating her 8-3.
 
Dufresne complete his loss-side campaign with a 7-5 victory over Calton in those semifinals. He then proceeded to spoil Luis Jimenez’ bid for a victory on the 2019-2020 Tri-State Tour season by defeating him 9-7 in the finals.
 
Tour representatives thanked the ownership and staff at BQE Billiards, as well as sponsors Ozone Billiards, Sterling-Gaming, Kamui Tips, Phil Capelle, Pool & Billiards, Professor Q Ball, Bender Cues,  Paul Dayton Cues, Bludworth Ball Cleaner, Joe Romer Trophies and Quick Slick. The next stop on the Tri-State Tour, scheduled for Saturday, September 28, will be hosted by Shooter’s Family Billiards in Wayne, NJ.

Burrows wins (*) final stop on Tri-State’s 2018/2019 season, splits top two prizes with Joseph

(l to r): Joshua Joseph & Ashley Burrows

Ashley Burrows would go undefeated into the hot seat at the Tri-State Tour’s last event of the 2018/2019 season. Joshua Joseph would win six on the loss side of the bracket and earn the right to meet her in a final match. The two opted out of that final match, leaving Burrows, the undefeated occupant of the hot seat, as the official winner and Joseph, in his highest finish on the tour, as runner-up. The $1,000-added event drew 48 entrants to Clifton Billiards in Clifton, NJ.
 
Joseph, appearing in his eighth event of the 2018/2019 season, solidified his position among the D+ class of competitors. He finished the season in third place, guaranteeing him an invite to the year-ending Invitational Tournament. Though her (*) victory advanced Burrows among her fellow B class players, she was 400 points away from the 16-player cutoff point for an invite to the year-ending Invitational Tournament. That tournament, scheduled for the weekend of June 29-30, will feature the top 16 players from each of six divisions and crown a champion for each of them, as well as a Tri-State Tour Grand Champion, who, at the end of the 2017/2018 season, was Erick Carrasco.
 
Burrow’s path to the hot seat went through Joe Palone, survived a double hill battle against Paul Madonia, and sent Levie Lampaan and Paul Wilkens to the loss side, to draw Manny Gomez in one of the winners’ side semifinals. Bianca Martinez, in the meantime, well-positioned at #8 to earn an invite to the D+ event of the Invitational faced Rick Rodriguez in the other winners’ side semifinal.
 
Burrows and Martinez became the first women, in an ill-defined long time, to square off in the hot seat match of a Tri-State tournament. Burrows had sent Gomez to the loss side 7-5, as Martinez was busy sending Rodriguez west 7-1. Burrows claimed the hot seat over Martinez 8-6 in what would prove to be her last match.
 
On the loss side, Gomez and Rodriguez ran right into their second straight loss. Gomez drew Jason Goberdhan, who’d defeated Bob Toomey, double hill and Paul Wilkens 7-1 to meet and defeat Gomez 6-3. Rodriguez picked up Joshua Joseph, who was three matches into his six-match, loss-side winning streak and had most recently defeated the competitor who’d sent him to the loss side Marco Daniele 5-3 and shut out Ada Lio. He downed Rodriguez 7-4 to join Goberdhan in the quarterfinals.
 
Joseph defeated Goberdhan 7-3 in those quarterfinals and then, double hill, defeatEd Martinez in the semifinals. Joseph and Burrows agreed on the split and ended the regular 2018/2019 Tri-State Tour season. 
Tour representatives thanked the ownership and staff at Clifton Billiards, as well as sponsors Ozone Billiards, Sterling-Gaming, Kamui Tips, Phil Capelle, BlueBook Publishing, Human Kinetics, Pool & Billiards, Professor Q Ball, Bender Cues, and DIGICUE OB. The next scheduled Tri-State Tour event will be its annual Tri-State Invitational, scheduled for the weekend of June 29-30 and hosted by Steinway Billiards in Astoria (Queens), NY.

Sherman goes undefeated to capture her first Tri-State title

Sabrina Sherman & Mac Jankov

Appearing for only the 7th time on the Tri-State Tour’s 2018/2019 season, Sabrina Sherman (as a C player; 7th among women and 17th in the C class overall) went undefeated through a field of 34 entrants, on hand for the Sunday, February 24 stop on the tour. Sherman, who finished in the money twice during the 2017/2018 tour season (4th & 5th) and runner-up Mac Jankov (the tour’s top-ranked C player; 17 appearances) opted out of a final match, leaving Sherman, in the hot seat, as the event’s official winner. The $1,000-added event was hosted by Steinway Billiards in Astoria (Queens), NY.
 
Sherman’s trail to the victory went through Jason Goberdhan, Debra Pritchett and Alfredo Alatamirano, before arriving at a winners’ side semifinal matchup versus Dave Monahan. Jankov, in the meantime, squared off against Stewart Warnock, Sr.
 
Sherman downed Monahan, double hill, and in the hot seat match faced Jankov, who’d sent Warnock, Sr. to the loss side 7-4. Already guaranteed her best finish on the tour, Sherman claimed the hot seat 6-4 in what proved to be her last match.
 
On the loss side, Monahan picked up Joshua Joseph, who was in the midst of a six-match, loss-side winning streak that would take him as far as the semifinals. He’d defeated Amanda Andries 6-4 and Corey Avallone 6-1 to reach Monahan. Warnock, Sr. drew Andrew Ciccoria, who’d most recently eliminated Junko Rummel and Dejan Kocev, both 6-3.
 
Warnick, Sr. shut Ciccoria out and in the quarterfinals, faced Joseph, who’d defeated Monahan 7-3. Joseph advanced one more step, downing Warnock, Sr. 6-4 in those quarterfinals.
 
In the event’s final match, Jankov earned himself a second shot at Sherman by stopping Joseph’s loss-side run 6-4 in the semifinals. Jankov and Sherman made the decision not to play a final and Sherman went home with her first official title.
 
Tour representatives thanked Manny Stamatakis and his Steinway Billiards staff for their hospitality, as well as sponsors Ozone Billiards, Sterling-Gaming, Kamui Tips, Phil Capelle, BlueBook Publishing, Human Kinetics, Pool & Billiards, Professor Q Ball, Bender Cues, DIGICUE OB, and Hustlin USA. The next stop on the Tri-State Tour, scheduled for March 10, will once again be hosted by Steinway Billiards.

Sieczka and Trzeciak split top prizes on Tri-State

Frank Sieczka and Artur Trzeciak

 

Frank Sieczka came to Shooter’s Family Billiards in Wayne, NJ on Sunday, September 23, looking to chalk up his second victory of the 2018-2019 Tri-State Tour season. His good friend and travel partner, Artur Trzeciak, came in search of his first recorded event victory ever. Sieczka made it to the hot seat. Trzeciak won five on the loss side to meet him in the finals. They opted out of the final match, leaving the undefeated Sieczka as the official winner, and Trzeciak with his first runner-up finish. The $1,000-added, 8-ball event drew 40 entrants.
 
Trzeciak won his first two matches before running into Joshua Joseph in a winners’ side quarterfinal. A 4-2 victory by Joseph sent Trzeciak to the loss side and advanced Joseph to a winners’ side semifinal against Bernie Vogelsang. Sieczka, in the meantime, worked his way through four opponents (Joe Mazzeo, Sean Emmitt, Paul Madonia and Victor Silva) to arrive at the other winners’ side semifinal against Joshua Joseph’s father, Mark Joseph.
 
Sieczka sent the elder Joseph to the loss side 5-2, as Vogelsang sent the son west 6-4. Sieczka played what proved to be his last match, downing Vogelsang 6-4 to claim the hot seat, and essentially, win the event title.
 
On the loss side, the elder Joseph (Mark) ran into Greg Partlow, who’d benefited from a forfeit by Allison LaFleur and eliminated Victor Silva, double hill. The son, Joshua, got a re-match against the ‘finals bound’ Trzeciak, who, following his defeat by Joshua, had eliminated Chris Rudy, double hill, and Joe Romeo 5-1. Father and son got to leave at the same time; Dad downed by Partlow, double hill, while son was shutout in his re-match versus Trzeciak.
 
Trzeciak battled to double hill in the quarterfinals against Partlow before dropping the final 8-ball and advancing to his last match of the night, against Vogelsang in the semifinals. He won that match 6-4, agreed to the split with Sieczka, and presumably, with cash in both their pockets, they left together.
 
Tour representatives thanked the ownership and staff at Shooter’s Family Billiards, along with sponsors Ozone Billiards, Sterling-Gaming, Kamui Tips, Phil Capelle, BlueBook Publishing, Human Kinetics, Pool & Billiards, Professor Q Ball, Bender Cues and DIGICUE OB. The next stop on the Tri-State Tour, scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 30, will be a Double Points event, hosted by BQE Billiards in Jackson Heights, NY.