Nelson Olivera
Nelson Olivera held off a strong bid from the one-loss side by Ivo Petrov to take first place in the annual Robert Dionne Memorial tournament of the New England 9-Ball Series on Sunday, March 7. The $1,000-added event, with proceeds going to St. Jude's Research Hospital in Memphis, TN, in the name of Robert Dionne (father to tour director, Mark Dionne), drew 52 competitors to Buster's Billiards in Somersworth, NH.
From among the winners' side final four, Olivera defeated Ted Krampitz 7-2 to get into the hot seat match versus Joey Dupuis. Dupuis had sent Mike Nicaloro to the one-loss side 5-2, and followed him over to the semifinals, when Olivera gained the hot seat with a 5-4 win.
Meanwhile, on the one-loss side, Petrov, who'd received an opening round bye and moved west in the second round, was in the midst of a nine-match winning streak that would propel him into the finals. With four down and five to go, Petrov moved past Mike Minichello 5-3 and Cleiton Rocha 5-2 to face Nicaloro. Krampitz faced Nick Kafalas, who'd defeated Dave Fernandez 4-2 and Dave Hambley 5-3.
Petrov and Kafalas made Krampitz' and Nicaloro's visit to the one-loss side brief. Petrov advanced to the quarterfinals with a 5-1 win over Nicaloro, as Kafalas was busy ending Krampitz' day 5-3. Petrov moved into the semifinals with a 6-3 victory over Kafalas, and completed his string of nine straight with a 5-3 win over Dupuis.
Though momentum was clearly on Petrov's side, Olivera ignored it. He allowed Petrov only a single rack in the six-game final, completing an undefeated day with a 5-1 win that earned him the first place prize.
