She’d shut her out in the battle for the hot seat, but Cassidy Mulligan came back from the semifinals to win the first set of the two-set finals against Jessica Barnes at the May 26 stop on the Bay Area Amateur Tour. Though Mulligan would battle to double hill in the second set, Barnes prevailed to win the $220-added event that had drawn 11 entrants to Wally’s in Lakeland, FL.

Barnes would give up only one rack in the two matches that left her in the hot seat. She sent Lisa McElroy west 6-1, and facing Mulligan, who’d defeated Echo Pinkley 4-2, she didn’t give up any. 

McElroy moved over to face Cortney Bernard, who’d been sent to the loss side by Mulligan, and then defeated Tammy Gillis, double hill, and Terri Cockrell 4-1. Pinkley picked up Marci Whitaker, who, after falling to McElroy in the winners’ bracket, defeated Sabra MacArthur-Beahn 3-3 (MacArthur-Beahn racing to 7) and Kelly Cavanaugh 3-5 (Cavanaugh also racing to 7).

Pinkley and McElroy got right back on track; Pinkley downing Whitaker 5-1 and McElroy eliminating Bernard 3-1. McElroy then shut out Pinkley in the quarterfinals to face Mulligan in the semifinals. The three left standing were now the same final three who had battled on the tour’s last stop in March; Mulligan had won that event, McElroy was second and Barnes had finished third. By reaching the hot seat, Barnes had already prevented a repeat of that finish. Mulligan, looking for her second straight tour victory, gave up only a single rack in a semifinal victory over McElroy, and turned to a second chance against Barnes.

Barnes, racing to six in the opening set of the true double elimination final, took the first four games, but Mulligan, racing to four, took the next four to force a second set. Mulligan, this time, racing only to three, took the opening game, but Barnes, now needing five, took the next two. Mulligan won the next game, which put her on the hill, but Barnes chalked up three in a row to spoil Mulligan’s two-straight bid and win the event title.

Jeannie Seaver dominated the season-opening stop of the Bay Area Amateur Tour on Saturday, February 11, winning, on average, four out of every five games she played and going (almost needless to say) undefeated to capture the event title. Seaver’s 46-game journey took her past 2011’s tour champion Kelly Cavanaugh twice. The $300-added event drew 18 entrants to a new venue for the BAAT Tour – Cue-Phoria, in Casselberry, FL.

Seaver and Cavanaugh met first among the winners’ side final four, as tour newcomer, Echo Pinkley, was squaring off against Jessica Barnes. Seaver gave up two of her (total tournament) nine racks in a 6-2 victory that sent Cavanaugh west, as Pinkley downed Barnes 5-4 (Barnes needing to reach six games). Seaver then gave up only a single rack in the match that sent Pinkley to the semifinals, and left her sitting in the hot seat.

Cavanaugh moved over and won three straight double hill matches that propelled her into a rematch against Seaver in the finals. First up was Lisa McElroy, who’d been sent over by Pinkley, and then won two straight double hill matches, against Cassidy Mulligan and Alice Parnell. Barnes, in the meantime, drew Michelle Parker, who’d gotten by Chris Fields 3-3 (Fields needing six), and Marci Whitaker, double hill, to reach her. Cavanaugh survived a double hill match versus McElroy (5-2), and in the quarterfinals, faced Barnes, who’d shut out Parker.

In a straight-up race to four, Cavanaugh left Barnes in fourth place with a double hill win, and moved on to face Pinkley. With Pinkley needing to win one less game (5-4), Cavanaugh left Pinkley in third place, double hill, to earn a second chance at Seaver. For nought, however, as Seaver gave up only two racks in the final for a 6-2 win that concluded her undefeated day.