"They're just crazy!"
The first match pitted Sacramento Excessive against Las Vegas LTZ. LTZ lost one player off the break and another was picked off a few seconds later. Excessive lost their first man as he tried to move up the snake and a second player his quickly also hit. Excessive is able to make it up the snake and gets some angles on LTZ and picks off a few players, making it 5 on 2. Excessive quickly overwhelms LTZ and wins 5-0.
Las Vegas LTZ next gets a chance to redeem themselves against the Los Angeles Infamous. Just like their first game, LTZ lost one player off the break and one a few seconds later. To make matters worse they lose a third player within another few seconds. After a few minutes playing for position, LTZ lose a fourth and Infamous finally lose their first. Leading 6-3, an Infamous player makes a run and eliminates another LTZ player before getting out himself. With a solid lead in numbers, Infamous advances on the remaining LTZ players and win with four players remaining.
The final match gives us our first glimpse of the Stockholm Joy Division as they take on Rich Telford's Excessive. Telford is hit on the break and Excessive lose two more players in the next minute. Joy begins its advance up the field and picks off another Excessive player before they lose their first player. After a few minutes Joy makes a run and picks off an Excessive player but on his way to take out a second Excessive player he's hit and is called for a 1 for 1 for playing on. All of a sudden Joy's commanding lead is lost and they only are up 3-2. Unfortunately for Excessive they get no more breaks and lose 3-0.
Rich Telford describes himself as a very competitive person and explains what it takes to go pro. "If you want to be a professional paintball player you have to sacrifice relationships, you have to sacrifice jobs, sometimes your health." His wife Gina agrees that he and his family have sacrificed a lot to make it in paintball, but she's convinced it's been worth it.
Telford is known as one of the old men of paintball - he's been around forever but he's still playing and loves to win. With age, though, his role has shifted more towards being a mentor and coach and admits that within a few years he won't be playing professionally anymore. With a blown out knee and back problems, his body can't put up with the punishment so he's prepared to return to the "normal life".
Next week will feature Travis Lemanski.
