Ranola Wins Arizona Women’s Billiard Tour Event
Arizona Women’s Billiard Tour / Tempe, AZ
by Skip Maloney
Iris Ranola snapped off her second straight Arizona Women's Billiard Tour event at Corner Pocket Billiards in Tempe, AZ.
Iris Ranola fought off a strong challenge by Susan Mello from the one-loss side and captured her second straight win on the Arizona Women’s Billiards Tour the weekend of September 27-28. Ranola, who’d won the stop in Tucson late in August, joined a field of 23 women for the $500-added event, hosted by Kolby’s Korner Pocket Billiards in Tempe, AZ.
Among the winners’ side final four, Ranola shut out Nina Tagley to face Nicole Keeney in the hot seat match. Keeney, who’d sent Kathleen Wallace west with a 7-3 victory, followed her over with a 7-4 defeat at the hands of Ranola.
On the one-loss side, Mello and Susan Williams emerged from among the final 12, dropping Sara Miller and Angel Paglia, respectively, into a tie for seventh and then facing Wallace and Tagley over from the winners’ side. The two Susans dropped Wallace and Tagley into a tie for fifth and then battled through a double-hill match in the quarterfinals that sent Mello to meet Keeney in the semifinals. Mello followed her hill-hill victory over Williams with a solid 7-1 defeat of Keeney that moved her into the finals against Ranola.
Mello’s momentum in the semifinals helped to define a give and take struggle in the finals. Ranola, however, was not to be denied and closed it out at 7-5 to secure her second straight win on the tour.
Results:
1st Iris Ranola
2nd Susan Mello
3rd Nicole Keeney
4th Susan Williams
5/6th Nina Tagley
5/6th Kathleen Wallace
7/8th Sara Miller
7/8th Angelina Paglia
9/12th Ashea Erdahl
9/12th Liz Bernreuter
9/12th Krystal Edmondson
9/12th Trinh Lu
photo courtesy of Rixx Images