Beyond Wrestling presented “Treasure Hunt Tournament,” the one night tournament that place on Sunday February 24, at the Varnum Memorial Armory in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. Your commentary team are Paul Crockett and “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams. Your ring announcer is Rich Palladino
The opening match is the first of four first round tournament matches. Chris Dickinson squares off against Willow Nightingale. Nightingale is aggressive from the start, scoring multiple take downs on Dickinson. She keeps bringing the fight until Dickinson hits a disgusting half and half suplex and drops Nightingale on her neck. She somehow kicks out at two. Dickinson takes control of the match until Nightingale hits a DVD to even the odds. Dickinson is unable to put Nightingale away with a superplex. She tries to come back but misses a moonsault from the top, which Dickinson takes advantage and hits a german suplex and lariat for the win. I wasn’t expecting this match to be as good as it was, but it was. Excellent match to open the show.
Jordynne Grace vs. Wheeler YUTA is up next. Commentary mentions the contrast in styles, as YUTA is a technical wrestler, while Grace is known for her power. Grace uses some lariats early which forces YUTA to work her left arm. Grace comes back with a running powerbomb that folds YUTA in half but only gets a two count out of it. YUTA locks in the STF in the middle of the ring but Grace reaches for the ropes. Grace picks up the victory by hitting a Made In Japan (not sure what Grace calls it). Grace advances to the semi finals.
Next up is Josh Briggs vs. Solo Darling in a David vs. Goliath match. Darling right away goes for the legs on the larger opponent, but Briggs pushes her off. Briggs controls the match and stops Darling every time she tries to fight back. The leg kicks start to take effect and Darling counters a chokeslam into a DDT. After a second attempt Darling locks in the Sharp Stinger. Briggs reaches for the ropes. Darling goes for the submission again but Briggs grabs her throat and hits her with the M5. Good showing from Solo Darling but she couldn’t put the big man away.
David Starr addresses the crowd saying he is afforded the opportunity to write a wrong in Beyond Wrestling. That wrong is the “fluke win” from Chris Dickinson at Heavy Lies the Crown. His opponent in the final first round match in the tournament is rising star Kris Statlander. Ring announcer Rich Palladino makes the introductions. As he goes through Starr’s nicknames, he sneaks in “the former ace of Beyond Wrestling.” Starr goes after Palladino but he’s able to exit the ring.
Statlander shows some great athleticism in the beginning, until Starr controls the match by working her lower back. Statlander comes back with a series of kicks but fails to hit the axe kick and eats a superkick to the face in the process. Starr follows up with the Blackheart Buster. When he’s only able to get a two count he takes a swing at referee Steven Dumeng. Chris Dickinson appears on the balcony, distracting Starr for a moment. When Starr goes for the Han Stanson, Statlander ducks and Starr hits his throat on the ropes. Statlander hits the axe kick and advances to the next round. Excellent showing from Statlander, taking out the former “Ace of Beyond Wrestling.”
On to the first semi final match, Chris Dickinson vs. Josh Briggs. Briggs hits Dickinson with a big boot during the ring introductions. Briggs is still showing the effects of the hurt leg from his match with Solo Darling. At one point Briggs hurts the M5 but hurts himself in the process. This leads to only a 2 count. Briggs makes the mistake of going for a moonsault and Dickinson counters with an avalanche German suplex from the top. Dickinson goes for the Pazuzu Bomb but David Starr enters the ring and attacks Dickinson. He continues the attack with chair shots to the back. When it is announced that Dickinson is the winner of the match, Briggs goes after Starr but he’s able to escape.
Next up is Jordynne Grace against Kris Statlander. Statlander’s uses her athleticism to confuse Grace in the beginning of the match. Grace comes back with a huge pounce and a jackhammer. Grace then drops elbows to the back of Statlander to set up for a bear hug, which Statlander breaks out of. Statlander eventually survives and picks up the victory after an electric chair face plant, followed by an axe kick.
In non tournament action, the “Retrosexual” Anthony Greene takes on the 18 year veteran Lisa Marie Varon, formally known as Victoria and Tara. At one point in the match Varon locks both of the Platnum Hunnies in a double Indian deathlock while putting Greene in a Japanese stranglehold. Greene tries to put her away with his version of the spinning unprettier but Varon hits the Widowspeak for the victory. Anthony Greene falls short in his first stop on the RETRObution Tour.
Drew Cordeiro enters the ring while “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams is already inside the ring. Cordeiro calls Williams one of the unsung heroes of Beyond Wrestling. He hands him a gift as Williams says goodbye to Beyond Wrestling.
Time for the main event and the finals of the Treasure Hunt Tournament. Both Chris Dickinson and Kris Statlander appear to be exhausted. Dickinson’s lower back is hurt from the attack on David Starr. Kris Statlander takes advantage of the hurt back. Dickinson then takes control of the match until Statlander hits a huge sitdown powerbomb. The contest is now back and forth and neither wrestler can put their opponent away. Dickinson hits a piledriver for only a two count, while Statlander hits a Finlay Roll and moonsault combo for also a near fall. The end seems near for Statlander when Dickinson hits a Death Valley Bomb from the top, and follows up with a German Suplex and Lariat. Statlander happens to come back with a codebreaker and axe kick for the victory.
Overall:
The Treasure Hunt Tournament was a great prelude to Beyond Wrestling’s weekly series Uncharted Territory. The show is an easy 2 hour watch with only one disappointing match. Every tournament match ranged from good to great. The opening match between Chris Dickinson and Willow Nightingale was fantastic, especially knowing that Nightingale needed neck surgery going into the match.
- You can watch the Treasure Hunt Tournament for FREE on YouTube. Uncharted Territory is live every Wednesday at 8pm Eastern on IWTV. You can binge watch the first four episodes as well as have access to Beyond Wrestling’s past events dating back to 2013. With an IWTV subscription you’re also able to watch other promotions such as Black Label Pro, Freelance Wrestling, Women’s Wrestling Revolution, and plenty others. Sign up to IWTV using promo code UNCHARTED for a 20 day free trial.
Quick Results/Star Ratings:
Opening Round Tournament Match: Chris Dickinson def. Willow Nightingale ****
Opening Round Tournament Match: Jordynne Grace def. Wheeler YUTA ***
Opening Round Tournament Match: Josh Briggs def. Solo Darling ***¼
Opening Round Tournament Match: Kris Statlander def. David Starr ***½
Semi-Final Tournament Match: Chris Dickinson def. Josh Briggs via DQ ***¼
Semi-Final Tournament Match: Kris Statlander def. Jordynne Grace ***½
Lisa Marie Varon fka Victoria def. Anthony Greene **½
Tournament Final Match: Kris Statlander def. Chris Dickinson ***¾