Mixed Limited Cup
By Scott Kringle
A new year brings new challenge cup teams. 2010 was good, but 2011 will be even better for more than just one team of four shooters.
Cloud 9’s Amit Jouhal, Kristin Jaruis, Andrew Serrano, and Cindi Anderson defended their Mixed Limited Cup on Saturday, January 22nd against a tough Cactus Moon team down from Everett.
The Mixed Limited Cup carries a 20-point cap, and both teams took full advantage of every point offered. The Cactus Moon team, also a 20-point team, came ambling into the Cloud 9 led by Corby Sloan, followed by Shannon Livingston, Mark Hinton, and Stephanie Stotesbery. The 3-game rule is NOT in effect for the Mixed Limited Cup, and the board is slowly removing the 3-game rule from all cups. Who was going to use that to their benefit today?
Cactus Moon started off by taking the first game of the afternoon, and after six games, was leading 4-2.
Dart players all have their one little habit, and sometimes is so subtle you won’t even recognize it. Take Stephanie for instance. I bet you didn’t know that on Shannon’s third dart she always takes a short but very distinctive step backwards. Not sure why, but it seems to work nine out of ten times. By the 21st game, Cactus Moon was holding on to a 12-9 lead. Both teams were very determined to win at any cost.
Cindy took out games 28 and 29 to keep Cloud 9 in the match, Trailing sixteen to thirteen Cindy held up good to the pressure. But it was Cactus moon who came out on top. Mark and Corby playing in there first cup ever held up to the pressure taking it seventeen to thirteen and putting the cup on the move.
Nearly one month later, on Saturday, February 19, Cactus Moon put up their newly-acquired Mixed Limited Cup to the next team on the list. That team was Dawson’s Bar out of Tacoma, and they are no strangers to cup play. Just within the last year, they’ve held the Players Cup, 4×7 Cup, Limited Cup, and the Women’s Cup.
Today, Dawson’s team was made up of four great shooters, including Chuck Soto, Jenny Wood, Ben Fricke, and Karen Crain. The defending cup holders for Cactus Moon were also great shooters; Corby Sloan, Mark Minton, Shannon Livingston, and Stephanie Stotesbery.
This cup is a race to seventeen games, and with such great shooters, it takes between three to four hours to fit this cup into an afternoon.
Cactus Moon won the cork and took the first two games of team play, and after thirteen games was holding onto a very commanding lead, 10-3.
Dawson’s team was having a not-so-good day as Cactus Moon started to pull away fifteen to five before Dawson’s Bar could even pick up their sixth win making it 15-6. Cactus Moon players were firing at will and by game 24, it was finally declared a Cactus Moon victory, as they held off Dawson’s to maintain The Mixed Limited Cup.
Cactus Moon will now take a short break and wait for the next team on the challenger’s list to walk through their doors with a smirk on their face.
