Week 11 of League 27 – Winter 2022:

We are a little more than half way through the league and it has been very competitive and fun this entire session. Kelley has been the leader of the pack since the first round play. That all changed last week, as Walter took enough points to move one point ahead of him into 1st place. With 6-weeks remaining, the race is on to see who will reign champion for the winter session of League 27. Good luck to all. Remember, have fun!!

Table 1: Scott Kroll & Todd Cook  vs & Ray Ressler & Janet Nihls: 

 Ray and Janet got off to a very quick start in the 8 Ball Set, as they took advantage of several missed shots by the opponents. Janet was on her game early and made several key shots that led to wins for her and Ray. Before you knew it, Ray and Janet had a 3-0 lead in the set. Scott and Todd put a win on the score sheet in game 4 as they seemed to lessen the mistakes and kept the opponents off the table with some key safeties and nice shot making. That would all they would get in the set as Janet and Ray continued to shoot well and finished off the set with wins in games 5 & 6. This gave them a 5-1 lead in the match. The lead wasn’t going to last long though as Todd and Scott got off to a very good start. Todd banged in the 9 ball with the one ball to open the 9 Ball Set. It wasn’t a conventional combination shot so to speak, but the 9 ball still found the bottom of the pocket for the win just the same. He made a thin cut on the one ball, and the opponents watched the cue ball come down table and make the 9 ball. Things continued to go well for them from that point on. Todd and Scott were getting into a nice shooting groove as they put together wins in the 2nd and 3rd game as well. Scott then broke in game 4 and the opponents watched the 9 ball go in for their opponents fourth win in a row. Janet and Ray were able to salvage a win in game 5 to keep from being shut out in the set. Scott and Todd finished off the set winning game 6 and the match was now all square 6-6. The 10 Ball Set would be a back-and-forth set. Janet and Ray  got off to a great start with some very nice shooting and safety play. They nailed back-to-back wins in games 1 and 2. Todd and Scott weren’t going away easily as they too got into a nice shooting rhythm. They put together wins with some very nice shooting by both players to take games 3 and 4. The set finished the way it was started with Ray and Janet nailing the final two games. With some nice shooting and decent safeties by both Janet and Ray, they were able to hold off their opponents and take the final two games. This gave them a 2 point margin to win the match. It was a very good and competitive match. Great shooting by all.

Ray Ressler & Janet Nihls (10)  – Scott Kroll & Todd Cook (8).   

Table 2: Tony Parpart &  George Sharbo vs  & Eddie McKinley & Linda Kujat:

This match was going to be a tough test for Eddie and Linda as they were playing against two very good pool shooters.  Linda is showing noticeable improvements in her game. It was the Tony and George show most of this match. They definitely got of to a quick start in the match. George and Tony played welled an took advantage of every opportunity that they were given. With very nice shot making by both Tony and George, they seemed to breeze through the 8 Ball Set with ease. Both George and Tony were making some four and five ball runs to get out of most of the games. At the same time, they limited their opponents from getting into any kind of momentum. It was a sweep by them in the set to take a 6-0 lead in the match over Eddie and Linda. The six-game lead dwindled quickly as Linda and Eddie found several openings in the 9 Ball Set. Missed shots or cue ball scratches set up Eddie and Linda throughout the first three games of the set. They took advantage and pounded out wins in games 1, 2 and 3 to cut the lead in the match to 3. Unfortunately, too many mistakes by them opened the door for Tony and George in the next three games. They came storming back, with some great shot making and safety play to take the final three games of the set and regain a 6 point lead in the match. Linda and Eddie stopped their opponents run to open up the 10 Ball Set with some great shooting by both players and take the first game. George and Tony continued to shoot well and posted wins in games 2 and 3. Eddie and Linda put a win in the column in game 4, but that would be all that the opponents would surrender in the set. Tony and George finished off the set with back-to-back wins in games 5 and 6 and take the set 4-2. Too many mistakes cost Linda and Eddie a chance to make this a closer match. You can’t take anything away from George and Tony who played very well throughout the match. Great effort by Eddie and Linda and very nice shooting by Tony and George.

Tony Parpart & George Sharbo  (13)  –Eddie McKinley & Linda Kujat (5).   

Table 3: Keith Nickel & Kathy Wnuk vs Alvin Kelley & John Killett:

I will list this as the match of the night with Kathy and Keith playing against two good very shooting opponents. Keith and Kathy struck first in the 8 Ball Set. They played well and kept the opponents from getting into any kind of shooting rhythm. It’s tough to keep good shooters down for long, and Kelley and John rebounded well with some nifty shooting of their own. They nailed down wins in games 3, 4  and 5 to get ahead of the opponents by a game. This set would end with Kathy and Keith finishing off the set winning game 6. John and Kelley nailed down the first game in the 9 Ball Set, as both players shot well and left the opponents tough when they didn’t make a ball. Keith and Kathy put together some nice ball runs and capped off game 2 with a win to even things up. That was about all for them as John and Kelley kept them off the table most of the next four games. When Kelley and John weren’t making balls, they were hooking the opponents well enough to get the benefits for ball in hand starting shots. They made good with the shots and posted wins in games 3 to 6, taking a 4-game lead in the match. As lopsided as the score was in the previous set, the 10 Ball Set, turned out to be all in favor of Keith and Kathy. They notched game 1 and game 2 with some key shot making and safety play. They were cutting into that 4 game lead the opponents had built up on them. John and Kelley made good on some nice shot making to take game 3 and still they still remained 3 games ahead in the match. That lead was short lived though as Kathy and Keith found several mistakes made by the opponents and capitalized on them to take games 4 and 5. Still trailing by one game, Keith broke and bam, in goes the 10 ball to take game 6 and this match ended in a tie. Great comeback by Keith and Kathy. Great shooting by John and Kelley. This was a very good match. Good job by all.

Keith Nickel & Kathy Wnuk (9) – Alvin Kelley  & John Killett (9). 

Table 4: Walter Wnuk & Jake Ressler vs Matt Ressler & Tracey Krol:  

Matt and Tracey had their hands full playing against Walter and Jake. Walter & Jake played well together. Walter did mention that the cue ball on several of his shots found the pocket too many times that continued to help their opponents. Jake and Walter got off to a very good start in the match. They seemed to be in total control the 8 Ball Set. With every miss by the opponents, they took advantage and closed out games. When Walter wasn’t running the balls, Jake was playing some very creative safeties that kept the opponents from getting good starting shots. When the dust settled, Walter and Jake pounded out 6 straight wins in the set, taking a commanding lead in the match. Jake and Walter made it 7 straight as they opened the 9 Ball Set with the opening game win. Matt and Tracey seemed to get back on track as they put together some nice runs and  took advantage on the mistakes their opponents made. They notched back-to-back wins in games 2 & 3 to cut into the deficit a bit. Jake nailed a 2-9 combo in game and Walter followed up with a 5-9 in game 5. Tracey and Matt notched game 6 to split the set at  3-3. Matt and Tracey opened the 10 Ball Set to make it two in a row. Tracey and Matt continued to shoot well and took advantage of the mistakes the opponents made. This set would go back-and-forth as Jake and Walter notched game 2, with some very nice shooting by both players. Matt and Tracey nailed game 3 and Walter and Jake followed suit by taking game 4. Matt nailed a 1-10 combination to close out the 5th game quickly. The final game of the set went to Jake and Walter. This set was also split at 3-3. Matt admitted that he just wasn’t shooting well in the match. It was a very nice try by them. Good shooting by Walter and Jake.

Walter Wnuk & Jake Ressler (12) – Matt Ressler & Tracey Krol (6)