The End Is in Sight
Needless to say, we’re overjoyed at the amount of participation and excitement surrounding the 2019 NCCA Tournament so far. Everything started moving really fast once we reached the sweet 16, and even though the quarter and semifinals only took two days to complete, the excitement is as strong as ever. The finals are going on now through Friday at noon, so make sure to cast your vote in the final matchup of the tournament.
The quarter and semifinals were full of back and forth races, comeback victories and everything else that has made the 2019 NCCA Tournament so much fun to watch. We broke down the action of the last two days for anyone looking to catch up on what happened in Elite Eight and Final Four brackets.
The Quarterfinals
The Elite Eight matchups were close all across the board. After the first two hours of voting in the quarterfinals, Steven Schatten’s Red Mustang coin and John Mosqueda’s Power Rangers coin were locked in a tight race with 142 votes each. Schatten and Mosqueda continued to put up massive numbers, going back and forth every hour, but it was Mosqueda’s coin that would emerge victorious with a final tally of 573 votes to Schatten’s 455.
We have seen some incredible numbers from Aaron Lemay and his submarine coin, as well as Jaime Patino’s Colombian Air Force Coin. When counting all previous rounds, Lemay’s submarine coin had brought in 932 votes going into the quarterfinals, while Patino’s coin had only brought in 843 total votes. Everything was set for a tight race, and they didn't disappoint.
When voting closed, each coin had more than doubled the number of votes they had earned throughout the entire tournament, and the matchup had a total of 259 shares and 115 comments. Lemay took an early lead, but Patino’s coin chipped away until the very end and managed to secure a spot in the Final Four. The final tally of 1696 to 1440 is by far the biggest matchup we’ve seen so far.
We have seen incredible improvement from Deez Willis and his 501st Rancors coin since his round one appearance with only eight votes. His Elite Eight counterpart Bruno Varani has put up more than 100 votes in every round so far, so Willis needed to dig deep for a spot in the Final Four. Both Varani and Willis have managed to get more votes with each successive round, but it was Varani who took the victory with 143 votes to Willis’ 103.
Josh Porter is another contestant who we have seen tremendous improvement from throughout the NCCA Tournament. With every successive round of voting, his 501st coin brings in more and more votes. Scott Super has performed well in every round as well, however, unlike Porter, his glow in the dark Air Force coin received fewer votes in every subsequent round leading up to the quarterfinals. Overall, their numbers across the tournament were very close going into the Elite Eight. It was an extremely close race, but Porter’s 501st coin couldn't bring in quite enough votes to move onto the Final Four. Super and his Air Force coin stunned the competition with their best performance yet by bringing in a total of 506 votes against Porter’s 489.
The Semifinals
With absolutely no time to rest, the Final Four jumped into action as soon as the quarterfinals ended. John Mosqueda’s Power Ranger’s coin carried the momentum from the quarterfinals into the Final Four, bringing in over 100 votes within the first hour. Bruno Varani and his 601st Assault Battalion had a slower start but kicked things into gear to take the lead. With only 30 minutes left in the Final Four, Mosqueda was behind by a mere two votes. He clawed his way back to the lead and it came down to the last seconds to decide the winner. With two minutes left, Varani was leading by a few votes. With one minute left, Mosqueda stole the lead back by just one vote. In the last seconds, Varani’s coin took the victory by just one vote with a final score of 924 to 923.
Scott Super’s glow in the dark Air Force coin also had a strong start in the Final Four. Considering his coin was up against Jaime Patino’s mighty Colombian Air Force coin, getting ahead early was a great strategy. Super’s coin turned in a career-best performance, holding a narrow lead with only a few hours left in the Final Four. Patino, having brought in 1696 votes in the quarterfinals, was not going to give up that easily. With 287 shares, Super and Patino’s Final Four matchup is the most shared matchup we have seen so far, and Patino slowly pulled into the lead with an hour and a half left to vote. The score of 823 that Patino earned in the semifinals is not the biggest number we have seen from his Colombian Air Force coin, but it was enough to beat Super’s best performance yet of 773.
The two matchups of the semifinals brought in a total of 507 shares, 178 comments and 3,443 votes. It was a wild ride and we now have our finalists. Congratulations to Jaime Patino and Bruno Varani, and we’ll see you in the finals.
And Then There Were Two
Jaime Patino total votes throughout tournament — 3,362
Bruno Varani total votes throughout tournament — 1,420
Of the 64 contestants who entered the 2019 NCCA Tournament, only two are left. The championship matchup started at noon Eastern today, and the polls will close 48 hours from now on Friday afternoon. So far, every matchup has only lasted 24 hours, but we have seen some incredibly close races. With an extra day of voting for the championship, we expect the final tally to be the biggest and closest we have seen yet.
Jaime Patino’s Colombian Air Force coin usually plays to the competition, bringing in just enough votes to secure a victory. Bruno Varani may only have a third as many votes throughout the tournament, but his coin outscored Patino in the semifinals. Ultimately, the results of the final matchup in the NCCA Tournament are up to you. Keep an eye on our Facebook event page for updates and makes sure to keep voting. On Friday we will unveil the champion and recipient of 100 free challenge coins!
