Mother Nature, that skank, forced us indoors this week to The Brook for WCCC Wednesday Night presented by Route 1 Vapors.
It was an all-North Shore Cup III champions final, with Dominic Lander & Brian Johnson facing off against Chris Cole & Phil Jackson.
Game 1 was a wild, short affair with several swings of momentum, reminiscent of the Hagler-Hearns fight from 1985. Cole & Jackson opened hot, with a 6 and a 4 seeing them race out to a 10-0 lead after two rounds and making it look like a blowout was in order. However, an immediate 5 from Johnson followed by a deuce by Lander made it 10-7 and game on again. Cole responded with a deuce of his own to extend their lead to 12-7. but Lander then brandished his sickle, posting rounds of 6 and 5 sandwiched around Johnson beating off his opponent for a 3 of his own, and when the dust settled after the onslaught Game 1 went to Lander & Johnson by a score of 21-12 after eight rock ’em sock ’em rounds.
Another wild slugfest ensued in Game 2, but a little tamer than Game 1. This time, Jackson’s opening 4 was matched by Lander in the second round, and after that trading 1s and 2s to make it 8-6 Cole & Jackson after seven rounds. The eighth round was noteworthy in that it was the first wash of the finals sixteen rounds in. It also happened to be the high water mark for Cole & Jackson, as Johnson hit lucky 7 the next round, Lander followed with 5, and Johnson poured it on with a deuce to put his team on the brink with a 20-8 lead. Cole dug deep in the face of adversity, however, and posted a last gasp 5 before Johnson finally finished with a 4 to give them a 24-13 victory and a straight sets sweep.
The third place game saw experienced campaigners Ryan Goding & Keegan Langlois against a surprise package in the form of Heidi Harrington & Chris Paquette. This one was more of a slow grind compared to the finals, as the favorites built a 7-1 lead after five rounds before Langlois posted a 4 to turn it into a seeming runaway at 11-1. Harrington & Paquette clawed back, though, with 5 points over the next four rounds to get back to within striking distance at 11-6 after ten rounds. Goding & Langlois turned it on at this point to end things, a deuce by Goding and a three by Langlois leading to a 10 spot by Goding against his lady to ensure not only a podium spot but likely a chilly ride home.
Wayne McCarthy fired his way to the #1 playoff seed with a 9.08 PPR to lead the way on this night, while Brian Johnson was just behind at 9.05. Ryan Goding took the third spot with an 8.64. Johnson’s PPR was fed by 14 fourbaggers, which paced the field.
Airmail climbed to $1544, and Tom O’Hara got the call for the 2nd time in three weeks. Unlike his rushed effort from two weeks ago, he found the hole with one bag for $386. $1158 will roll over to next week.
We would like to thank our sponsors that make it all happen!
Jasmine’s Famous Roast Beef & Seafood
Rich Electric
We’ll see you next week!
