RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA - It was a busy month of January for A&V Tournaments, as they started 2006 off with a series of Kick-Off Tournament Qualifiers in several Southern California locales. Prior to the start of the 2006 season Al Acosta, owner and tournament director for A&V Tournaments, announced the schedule of regular events and four major tournaments. In addition to the schedule, Acosta laid out rules for roster adjustments based on performance and the number of higher-level players each team can carry or adjust based on the division of play.
Teams will be able to adjust rosters, but in addition A&V will also designate teams to the right division should teams be too strong or too weak for the level they play at. Teams will be able to change three roster spots prior to any of the four major A&V tournaments so the new roster can be evaluated for proper division placement.
The end result of these changes is that just because a team "qualifies" in one division, that team could be moved up or down based on their results and the roster they carry.
The four ‘major’ A&V tournaments that carry these new directives are the A&V/Worth Bash 4 Cash, A&V Rings, A&V State and the A&V Worlds.
In addition, A&V tournament point accumulation will result in bonus prizes for teams that get the most points during the course of the entire season. Teams should contact A&V for information and questions relating to the new changes.
The weekend of January 28th at Quakes Stadium saw many top-flight ‘Rec’; ‘D’ and ‘E’ division teams vie for early season success.
In the men’s ‘REC’ division, W.T.C. out of Highland, CA outdistanced the field to claim the title with a 5-1 tournament mark. W.T.C. avenged an early round 9-8 loss to eventual runner-up DWI by taking the championship final and the ’if’ games to secure their first A&V title of 2006. W.T.C. pounded out 22-11 and 15-10 victories against a tough DWI squad to finish off the title run. DWI ended with a tournament mark of 4-2. Third place went to Whittier, CA’s Fed Up and Team Stupid from San Bernardino, CA landed in the fourth place slot.
The ‘Rec’ division Most Valuable Player was awarded to Paul Bone of W.T.C., while teammates Chris Murillo, Matt Noble and Chad Crane earned all tourney selection. Isaish Kerkhoff, Carlos Lomel and Joseph Toledo from DWI received all tourney nods, Fed Up saw Jose Sandoval, Ralph Dominquez and Jay Rayes selected and rounding out the all tournament team were Tom Moore and Billy Ward from Team Stupid.
The men’s ‘D’ division was won by local favorite Team Fatty who made the short drive over from Grand Terrace, CA to claim the ‘D’ championship trophy. Turn 2 out of Anaheim Hills, CA finished second and the always formidable Hitters, Inc from San Diego, CA earned a third place finish. The all tournament team was a tough spot to earn as players from five teams received spots in the ‘D’ division. Ronnie Vasques was named MVP with Rob Martin and Paul Arredondo of Team Fatty getting spots. Turn 2’s Jeff Ruth, Jerry Langner and Bret Cowan garnered selection. The rest of the all tourney saw Chris Idip and Jerry Alfaro from Hitters, Inc; Tony Vivirito of Work Deez and James Trexel of Formula 420 complete the all tourney selections.
The men’s ‘Lower-E’ bracket was won by Ya Stuvo, who hails from the Palmdale, CA desert area. Ya Stuvo outlasted Lancaster, CA’s Team Juice who finished second and Moreno & Sons from Cathedral City, CA ended up with a solid third place finish. Five teams placed individuals on the all tourney team with Ya Stuvo’s Donald Strauss being selected as MVP. Fernando Cabrales and Mike Vivirito of Ya Stuvo were also placed on the all tourney squad. Trevor Zinner and Brian Burke from Team Juice; Francisco Alarcon and Rena Rosete from Moreno & Sons; Chris Arriola of Coast 2 Coast; and Jason Tobin of DéJà Vu rounded out the all tournament team.
The weekend of January 14th had A&V host men’s ‘REC’ and ‘E’ divisions at Quakes Stadium. The ‘Rec" division was won by DéJà Vu out of Temecula, CA. Team Famous from Riverside earned a second place finish and third went to W.T.C. out of Highland, CA. Most Valuable Player Richard Castillo, Jason Tobin and George Ramsey of DéJà Vu earned all tourney nods. Gabe Ponce and Dave Nelson of Famous; ‘DeRob’ Robinson and Chris Murilloform of W.T.C.; Bo Torres from Big Azz and Randy Bispo form Betcha $$$ all made the all tournament team.
The ‘E’ division championship went to Hot Shots who came up from Banning, CA. The Dirt Bags from Glendale, CA came in second place and Redlands, CA’s Team DDC finished up in third place.
Duane Wireman from Hot Shots received the MVP award. Hot Shots teammates Eddie Riviera and Barnie Toro joined Wireman on the all tournament team. Dirt Bags placed Jason Gullage and Brad Coukos on the all tourney list, while DDC’s Charlie Welchel and John Bennett; Kim Wood from Team Acme and Alfonso Diaz of All Jacked Up rounded out the all tournament picks.
The January 7th weekend at Quakes saw men’s ‘E" and ‘Upper Rec’ division squads do battle. Dysfunctional from Victorville, CA took top honors, while perennial powerhouses Cold Onez and Bluecrew finished in second and third respectively. The ‘Upper Rec’ title was won by Valley Box out of Camarillo, CA. Second place went to Manacos out of East Los Angeles, CA and Rancho Cucamonga’s own Who’s Buying finished up in the third place spot.