Antonio Maria Rocks PJ's for Tri-State Win

By Todd Fleitman

Antonio Maria bounced back from a tough hot seat match to win the Tri State Tour event at PJ's in Linden, NJ, o­n October 17.  Maria battled through a field of 32 to take the rematch against Matt Duspin in the finals of the $500-added B-D tournament.

PJ's is not o­nly the home to many of the Tri State tournaments, but is often host of exhibition matches with the likes of Effren Reyes, Santos Sambajon, Jr., Francisco Bustamante, and Karen Corr. 

Maria and Daspin, both rising stars of the Tri State Tour, each won their first four matches to reach the hot seat.  In a back-and-forth match, Daspin won 7-5.

After Maria's loss to Daspin in the hot seat, he faced another tough opponent in the semifinals in Tony Robles (not the pro).  Robles had worked his way through the left side by knocking out Jose Lora 7-3.  However, Maria's momentum and determination carried him through a close match against Robles for a 7-5 win.

The final match pitted the rematch of Daspin and Maria, but it was Daspin who started out with a strong with a 3-1 lead.  Maria waited for the opportunity to start his comeback.  o­nce he tied it a 3-all, he seized the match for a 9-4 victory.

Results:
1st Antonio Maria
2nd Mathew Daspin
3rd Tony Robles
4th Jose Lora