Four years ago, Frank Sieczka chalked up his first victory on the Tri-State Tour. The following year, he added two more tour victories. And then, as far as the winners’ circle went. . .crickets. He was runner-up in two events last year, and in March of this year, he placed fifth in an event won by Joe Romeo. On Saturday, July 21, Sieczka worked his way back into a Tri-State victory, going undefeated, though challenged at the end by Romeo, who’d been sent to the loss side in the opening round and won eight in a row to get into the finals. The $1,000-added 8-Ball event drew 28 entrants to Clifton Billiards in Clifton, NJ.
With Romeo toiling away on the loss side, Sieczka advanced to meet Greg Partlow in a winners’ side semifinal. Joseph Bossert faced Jake Kislowski in the other winners’ side semifinal. Sieczka downed Partlow 5-2 and in the hot seat match, faced Bossert, who’d sent Kislowski west in a double hill battle. Sieczka then defeated Bossert 5-3 and sat in the hot seat, awaiting the return of Romeo. . .
. . . who was busy. With three down, he picked up a forfeit win over Shane Soto and defeated Mac Jankov 5-2 to pick up Kislowski. Partlow drew Roberto Hung Ho, who’d eliminated Christian Long 6-1 and Qian Chen 6-3 to reach him.
Hung Ho defeated Partlow 6-3, while Romeo was sending Kislowski to the (figurative) showers 5-1. Romeo and Hung Ho locked up in a double hill, quarterfinal fight, eventually won by Romeo, who proceeded to deny Bossert a second chance at Sieczka by defeating him 6-4 in the semifinals.
Sieczka and Romeo had not met in the event this past March, when Romeo advanced to the hot seat and Sieczka advanced through the loss side only as far as the 5th/6th slot. Showing no signs of hot seat ‘rust,’ Sieczka took the final 6-2 to claim his first Tri-State title in three years.
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 stop on the Tri-State Tour, scheduled for Saturday, July 28, will be hosted by Shooter’s Family Billiards in Wayne, NJ.
DaBreo comes from the loss side to down Davladze in Amateur finals
Jeremy Sossei and Zion Zvi battled in the finals of the June 10-11 Pro event on the Predator Tour. Sossei was in the hot seat, when Zvi completed a five-match, loss-side run to face him. Sossei won to claim the $1,500-added Pro event that drew 12 entrants to Gotham City Billiards in Brooklyn, NY. In a concurrently-run, $1,500-added Amateur event that drew 51 entrants, Raphael Dabreo recovered from an early loss at the hands of Koka Davladze, and won seven on the loss side to eventually meet and defeat him in the finals.
Sossei advanced through the short Pro field to face Michael Wong in a winners' side semifinal. Wong had just sent Sossei's eventual finals' opponent, Zvi, to the loss side. Joey Korsiak, in the meantime, met up with Chris Derewonski in the other winners' side semifinal. Wong put up a double hill fight, but it was Sossei who advanced to the winners' side final against Korsiak, who'd sent Derewonski to the loss side 7-4. Sossei claimed the hot seat 7-3 and waited on Zvi.
Zvi opened his loss-side campaign with a 7-3 win over Frankie Hernandez (runner-up on Memorial Day weekend's Ginky Memorial), following it with a 7-3 win over Shawn "Alaska" Morgan, which set him up for a re-match versus Wong. Derewonski drew Greg Mitchell, who'd defeated tour director Tony Robles 7-5 and Jorge Texeira 7-2.
Zvi successfully negotiated the vengeance match 7-3 over Wong, as Derewonski eliminated Mitchell 7-2. Zvi took the quarterfinal match over Derewonski 7-1 and then, downed Korsiak 7-5 in the semifinals. In the finals, by the same score, Sossei stopped Zvi's run to claim the event title.
DaBreo comes back to 'haunt' and defeat Davladze in Amateur event
You'd have to think that downing an opponent 7-2 in a winners' side match would allow a competitor to think that he (or she) would have few worries about that individual coming back for a second challenge, especially when you've advanced beyond that match to the hot seat. Pool, though, is a funny kind of game and nobody knows that better than pool players, particularly Koka Davladze, who won that early match during the Predator Tour's Amateur event, and Raphael DaBreo, who lost in that matchup and eventually won seven on the loss side to meet and defeat Davladze in the finals.
With DaBreo at work on the loss side, Davladze advanced to a winners' side semifinal against Dan Faraguna. Daves Callaghan and Weinstein met in the other one. Davladze moved into the hot seat match 9-4 over Faraguna, and met up with Callaghan, who'd sent Weinstein over 7-4. In spite of a match that went one game shy of double hill, Davladze won his last match, claiming the hot seat over Callaghan 11-9.
On the loss side, DaBreo chalked up victories #3 & #4 against Roberto Hung (9-7) and Thomas Rice (8-5) to draw Faraguna. David Weinstein picked up Emit Yolcu, who'd eliminated Xavier Romero, double hill, and Ambi Estevez 7-1, to reach him. Yolcu and DaBreo advanced to the quarterfinals; Yolcu in another double hill win, over Weinstein, and DaBreo 9-4 over Faraguna.
Callaghan put up a double hill fight against DaBreo in the semifinals, but it wasn't enough, as DaBreo advanced to a long-awaited second shot against Davladze. He took full advantage, downing Davladze 9-5 to claim the title.
Tour director Tony Robles extended special thanks to Kevin and Isabel Buckley, along with their staff at Gotham City Billiards, as well as sponsors Predator Cues, Ozone Billiards, Poison Billiards, PlayNAPL.com, The Devito Team, PoolOnTheNet.com, Capelle (BilliardsPress.com), AZBilliards, Billiards Digest and Pool & Billiard Magazine. The next stop on the Predator Tour, scheduled for June 17-18, will be hosted by Raxx Billiards in West Hempstead, NY.
