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Two of 2Hot4Ice’s Annual National Games produced Friday’s 12
division finalists, the first of the tournament, and saw the puck dropped for the first time in 18U division play in Apex, N.C. Despite the fact that there were no Reebok Skills Competitions Thursday (They will resume on Saturday.), the level of activity at the Dreamsports Center accelerated, with 39 games played. By Sunday night, when the Masters Division crowns 2009’s last champion, just shy of 200 games will have been completed. Two of the division finalists qualified for Friday’s championship games by virtue of their won-lost-tied records in preliminary round games Wednesday and Thursday. The other 10 qualified via the semifinal route. 14U Platinum division Favorites upon their arrival at the Dreamsports Center, Team Carolina 94 and Valken 94 both marched undefeated through their three preliminary games and semifinal matches. Team Carolina reached Friday’s 1:40 p.m. division championship contest by rolling past the Carolina Comets 6-0 in one semifinal, while the Valken 94 survived the Richmond Rattlers Black 2-1 in the other. 14U Gold division The Tour Bandits and Peachtree City (Ga.) skaters surprised everyone by advancing to Thursday’s noon division finale. The Bandits upset the favored Carolina Cobras 5-3 in a semifinal for its third triumph in four games. Peachtree City (2-2-0 through Thursday) earned its berth by downing the Richmond Rattlers Orange 7-2 in the other semi. 14U Silver division The Sports Zone Wave shrugged off the Greensboro Spyders 4-2 in their semifinal matchup to run its Nationals record to 3-1-0 and secure a spot in the division finale at 2:20 p.m. Thursday. The Wave will face the DSD White, which finished preliminary play with a 2-1-1 record. 14U Bronze division It’ll be the Carolina Tsunami White and DSD Blue for the division hardware Friday afternoon at 1:20. The White eased its way into the title showdown with a 5-4 semifinal win over the Speed. The Blue finished preliminary round play undefeated with three ties and a win. 16U Gold division In tennis parlance, you would have to say that 16U favorites Team Carolina White and the Richmond Rattlers Black held serve in the semis to set up their division title faceoff Friday at 4 p.m. Team Carolina stretched its record to 4-0-1 by stopping the Mission Breakout 8-3 in their semifinal Thursday. The Rattlers Black had a tougher go of it, edging the Carolina Tsunami Blue 4-3 in the other semi for its third win against a loss and a tie. 16U Bronze division The 3-2-0 Speed won two of its three games Thursday, including a 4-3 nail biter over the Carolina Cobras in the semifinals to reach Friday’s 4:40 p.m. final. In the other division semifinal, the Richmond Rattlers Orange notched its fourth win without a loss, dominating Team Carolina Green 3-0. Interspersed among the intense 14U and 16U action Thursday were the first 18U division games of the week, launched by an 8-1 trouncing of the Speed by the Richmond Rattlers White right after lunch. Later, the heavily favored D Young Gunz, playing in memory of 2Hot4Ice standout Deebs Young, fended off the Carolina Black Jacks 5-1 and the Tour Bandits 2-1 and played the Richmond Rattlers White to a 3-3 stalemate. Friday’s schedule, the heaviest of the tournament at 46 games, will see the first appearance by teams competing in the 8 Grass Roots, 8U, 10U, 12U, Adult and Masters divisions. |