Paintball Media Magazine December 2023 | Page 107

And Cleveland Chaos took a similar trajectory , handling the Canadian Massacre Elite , the PR Jesters , BS Mafia , and eeking out a tie against X-Factor ’ s Dragoons . In the Ochos , they spanked SK Elite 4-0 for a Semi-Final berth . But there , they would take a heartbreak 4-3 loss to none other than the other Ocho surprise , Air Capital Threat .
After giving a pounding to the Europeans in September , the L . A . Wildcards continued their roll into the World Cup , and into the Division 4 Sunday Club . They too came out swinging in the prelims , handing out three losses to New Jersey Bombsquad , TCP Wrecking Machine , and Jackpot respectively . But that ’ s where their run would end . In the Quarters , they took a hard loss to SBS . SBS would go on to defeat Cleveland Choas to take third place overall .
But perhaps the story of the weekend played out with the number one seed in D4 , Jackpot . Living every baller ’ s dream , Matthew Blanco rode out the season alongside his team and his son , Cameron . At age 12 , Cameron Blanco is already ranked as a D4 and is a beast in the Doritos . Coming into the Cup off of a victory in Windy City , Jackpot struggled in the prelims with two losses to L . A . Wildcards and New Jersey Bombsquad . But they pulled it together in the Quarter- Finals , handily defeating Shine 4-0 . In the Semis they would come from behind to best SBS with a shaky 3-2 win .
All eyes were on this father-son duo going into the finals to face off against the underdogs out of the Ochos , Air Capital Threat .
Air Capital fought hard against Jackpot , but they ultimately fell in a heartbreak loss . In the end , it was Jackpot who would reign supreme with a 3-2 win that would lift Cameron over his dad ’ s shoulders in celebration , the team to the top of the podium for a gold , and a series title .
Does it get any better than that ?

Division 5

Shenigans reigned supreme in Division 5 as an Asian invasion showed up . Ryukyu Kings , a squad of Americans who played with an unranked Mitsuo Tei , flew in under a Japanese flag , and took everyone by surprise . After shredding their prelim bracket , they Ryukyu Kings slapped the heavily-favored Hawaiians around , defeating Hawaiian Homegrown for a berth into the Semis where they destroyed All Mixed Up Gold to win the number one seed .
Showing up confident in the finals , the pseudo-Japanese Kings faced off against Dynamic , who had knuckled their way up the ladder in gritty battles in the prelims , eeking their way into the Ochos . Then , in a series of messy 3-2 wins , they gutted one out over the Wastelanders , earning their spot in the Quarters , faced off against the notorious Suicide Squad to slide into the Semis , and edged out Houston Zone for a number 2 seed in the Finals .
In the end , staying with their running theme , it was Dynamic who would eliminate the not-so-Japanese squad 3-2 .
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