essive, taking risks early on that never seemed to pay off. During the mid game, that seemed to change as he took advantage of an opportunity where Astral A

NSW Swifts will take confidence from their dazzling semi-final performance ahead the formidable assignment of trying to beat the Queensland Firebirds in next Sundays trans-Tasman competition netball final in Brisbane. Michael Wacha .The Swifts speedy passing and relentless defence were highlights of their crushing 64-45 win over the Magic in Hamilton on Monday.It represented a lift in form after they lost 63-52 to the Firebirds in the Australian conference final the previous week.The challenge for the Swifts will be trying to get their first win over the Firebirds in Brisbane after 11 losses.Coming off the back off todays performance I think we can take confidence from that going into next week, Swifts shooter Caitlin Thwaites told AAP after the game.Well look at the way that we played this week and try and put some of those things into practice again for next week.Diamonds representative Thwaites was a big contributor to the semi-final win, nailing 43 of her 46 shots.Her cause was helped by silver platter service from captain and midcourt ace Kim Green, who racked up 20 goal assists.Green played out a full game for the first time since round five, after which fitness issues forced her to miss some games and play limited minutes in others.Its a great sign for her to be putting out four quarters again, so its great timing for us, Thwaites said.Another key Swifts player displaying great form at the business end of the season was Diamonds defender Sharni Layton.The irrepressible goalkeeper made a stack of big plays in her 100th competition appearance and was named game MVP.Shes just an absolute solid rock back there for us, Thwaites said.Its awesome just to be able to be up the other end of the court and see her do her work, because shes an absolute legend.Thwaites ensured many of the turnovers the Swifts forced were converted into goals, something she said they had focused on and done better than the previous week.Wing defence Abbey McCulloch came off late in the game with an ankle issue, though team officials were not immediately worried about her missing the grand final.Swifts coach Rob Wright pulled a minor surprise by starting McCulloch and putting Laura Langman at centre and leaving Diamonds midcourter Paige Hadley out of his run on side. Jordan Hicks .com) - The Calgary Flames aim to bounce back from their first regulation home loss of the campaign on Friday night when they host a Detroit Red Wings club that they swept in three meetings a season ago. Miles Mikolas . Louis Rams wide receiver Stedman Bailey last Sunday. The fine is the fourth this season for Goldson. He was fined $30,000 for a hit on the New York Jets Jeff Cumberland in Week 1. http://www.custommlbcardinalsjersey.com/...large-671q.html . Perez, 35, posted a 1-2 record with a 3.69 earned-run average in 19 relief appearances last season. His season ended Aug. 9 due to a torn ligament in his left elbow. Perez joins infielder Andy LaRoche and catcher Mike Nickeas with minor-league agreements for 2014 that include invitations to attend spring training. Day 2Finals: Ballistix vs. Fnatic (3-1)Ballistix took apart Fnatic in the finals of the Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship, winning 3-1 to claim the world championship.The South Korean team started off the series with superb teamfighting centered around Jeong Jeongha Ha Lee. Using Tyrael, Jeongha was able to save the day on countless occasions, using the powerful Sanctification ability for devastating results. In addition to the excellent use of Sanctification, Ballistix was on point with their macro play, ensuring that late in the game Fnatic was unable to secure any objectives and make a move towards even footing.Game 2 saw Fnatic take a lead early on, but after a nearly three minute-long teamfight that saw multiple deaths on both sides, Ballistix was able to pull ahead. The defining moment of the match came when Ballistixs Jeong Jeongha Ha Lee, using Zeratul, respawned to come in for the finishing kill on Fnatics Tychus. The kill on Tychus was monumental as both teams had just begun to respawn, leaving Fnatic in a 4-on-5 situation for a full minute, allowing Ballistix to grab even more key structures to gain a bigger lead, resulting in a Game 2 win.Facing elimination, Fnatic managed to turn it around on Warhead Junction in Game 3 with some dominant global hero abuse as well as a pocket pick for Simon ScHwimpi Svensson with Tracer. The game was truly neck-and-neck, but Fnatic took it to Ballistix when the stakes were highest late in the game, snowballing off a double kill to gain an advantage. Thanks to the timely double kill, Fnatic was able to gain access to powerful nukes which allowed them to take down the core, bringing the series to 2-1.Fnatics Game 3 win appeared to perk up Ballistix, as the South Korean team pulled out all the stops during the Game 4 draft. That resulted in picking up Tracer for Seung-Chul sCsC Kim, which paid dividends for Ballistix throughout the match. With the game on the line Fnatic managed to take control of the objective, silencing the majority of Ballistix in the process. The late rally failed however, as sCsC was able to stall long enough for his team to come back into the fray, taking a game-winning teamfight by scoring kills on both Dob Quackniix Engstrom and Pontus Breez Sjogren to become the Heroes of the Storm World Champions.With the second ever Blizzcon World Championship title under their belt along with a handsome $300,000 first prize, Ballistix have thrust themselves into the conversation for the best team in the world. Given the Fall Championship marks just the second major tournament win for the team, it seems Ballistix could be on the verge of a dominant run in the competitive scene.SemifinalsBallistix vs. Team DignitasBallistix destroyed Team Dignitas in the second semifinal series of the Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship, winning 3-1 to claim their spot in the finals.Ballistix came out with a solid strategy in Game 1, opting to deploy their top assassin player, Seung-Chul sCsC Kim, with Sgt. Hammer while drafting three heroes with global presence to surround him. While Sgt. Hammer did heavy damage to structures, the rest of Ballistix capitalized by isolating heroes with their global abilities and picking them off, gaining a substantial lead that Dignitas was unable to match.In Game 2, Ballistix started off rocky, as Dignitas Jerome JayPL Trinh dominated on his comfort pick, Stitches. After securing a few kills, Dignitas made a small blunder, getting caught off guard by Ballistixs Do Joon Noblesse Chae at their shaman camp. This turned into an all-out teamfight where the majority of Dignitas were killed off and the camp was stolen by Ballistix. The Korean team quickly snowballed from there, earning a decisive victory.During Game 3, Ballistix built a full Illidan team comp, but their overconfidence during the draft may have been their undoing as Dignitas Joshua Snitch Bennett was able to counter with a LiLi pick. Thanks to her very powerful Blinding Wind talent, Dignitas was able to win every single teamfight.With their tournament lives on the line, Dignitas made a valiant effort in Game 4, but was unable to secure kills early on. An Auriel/Valla combo by Ballistix became far too dominant, as they skyrocketed to a 10-1 kill advantage. Following the two-level lead, Ballistix played a safe, mechanical game, pushing the lead further. A last-ditch effort by Dignitas to defend the base was undone by Seung-Chul sCsC Kims Valla as he terrorized the entire Dignitas backline to secure the win. Ballistix will play the European team Fnatic in the finals of the Blizzcon Fall Championship for the lions share of the $1,000,000 prize pool.Fnatic vs. MVP BlackTeam Fnatic dismantled MVP Black in the first semifinal series of the Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship, winning 3-1 to claim their spot in the finals.Late in the first match, Fnatics team captain Dob Quackniix Engstr?m made the call to sneak the boss camp while his teammates tried to lead MVP Black off of the trail. At the last second, MVP Black figured out the ruse and composed a five-man dive onto the boss point right as it was about to be taken down. Fnatic still managed to lock down the boss, but not without a hefty price, losing three of their five members in the process. MVP Black knew they had only one chance to win, so they ignored the boss trampling towards their core and decided to go all-in on Fnatic. Getting the core to under 50 percent, MVP Blacks team was finally taken out by the freshly revived Fnatic members, allowing them to march down the map and end the game.Game 2 showcased Fnatics Jonathan Wubby Gunnarsson, as he was able to unlock the power that is Dehaka on Sky Temple. All throughout the match, Wubby was seen split-pushing for his team, gaining valuable experience and knocking down towers while also maintaining a global presence as he used his Brush Stalker ability to instantaneously travel to his team in the thick of a teamfight. As a result, Fnatic was able to earn the win and jump out to a 2-0 series advaantage. Tim McCarver. Game 3 took a turn for the worse as Fnatic jumped out to a huge lead on Towers of Doom, with 27 core health to MVP Blacks 12. Despite the odds being stacked against them, Jae Rich Won Lee pulled out an amazing Ley Line Seal on Medivh that set MVP Black up for a huge team wipe against Fnatic. This put Fnatic on their heels and they were not able to regroup, as MVP Blacks crisp rotations destroyed enough bell towers to eventually secure the win.The final match of the series saw Fnatic make an interesting call, as they drafted Medivh for Simon ScHwimpi Svensson in an effort to showcase his own variation of the Ley Line Seal. That move paid off, as Fnatic was able to grab a relatively easy win to advance the finals.Day 1Group B decidersFnatic won a hard-fought match against Zero Panda during the Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship Group B decider match, taking the series, 2-1.Zero Panda started out behind after Fnatics Jonathan Wubby Gunnarsson intelligently drafting Rexxar, a solo lane warrior that Zero Panda was not equipped to deal with. After some very close teamfights Zero Panda was able to edge out an objective win and a huge Zerg wave that trampled Fnatics remaining structures. Noticing the huge swarm, Zero Panda quickly started a teamfight that dragged out just long enough for Fnatics core to be destroyed, as the European team was unable to get back in time to defend their base from the Zerg swarm.Game 2 was perhaps the most even game of the night as Zero Panda started off with an early lead but had no answer for Fnatics Valla being played by Dob Quacknixx Engstr?m. Deep into the second contest, Quackniix saved the day after his teammate, Pontus Breez Sjogren, had his well-placed E.T.C. Mosh Pit heroic ability instantly canceled. Quacknixx was able to jump into the thick of it, whittling down Muradin to very low health, ensuring Fnatic would get a multi-kill that led to a Dragon Knight capture, and a Game 2 win.The deciding match of the series came down to an amazing Mosh Pit near the end of the game by Fnatics Breez, allowing his team to kill Guo GM Jiayi on Brightwing and start to wipe out the rest of Zero Pandas squad, securing the series win. With the win, Fnatic will face MVP Black during Saturdays semifinal contest for the right to advance to the Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship final.Group A decidersTeam Dignitas took down Please Buff Arthas in the Group A decider series of the Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship, winning 2-0 to claim their spot in the semifinals.The blowout started during the draft phase, where Team Dignitas captain James Bakery Baker denied PBA Jaina, a hero theyve relied on throughout the tournament. This forced PBA to draft a second specialist hero in Zagara, which made Dignitas members nearly unkillable, as PBA did not have the burst to deal with the double warrior frontline. They went on to defeat PBA in a terribly one-sided match that ended in 14 kills to 1.In Game 2, PBA tried to target ban Thomas Ménè Cailleuxs Valla after he tore them apart in the first match. Ménès response was to simply draft Li-Ming and proceeded to systematically delete each and every one of PBAs players in multiple teamfights. While Dignitas certainly had a dominant 2-0 showing, they were not without mistakes as Lawrence Athero Harper made a handful on Alarak, one of the newly released melee assassins. That might be a problem against some of the better teams remaining in the tournament, such as Ballistix or MVP Black.Group BZero Panda will join Team Dignitas, advancing through the Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship Elimination round, defeating Denial 2-0.Zheng C Xiangzhi was an absolute madman with Dehaka in Game 1. His MVP moment happened just two minutes into the match, where he used his Brush Stalker ability to flank the majority of the Denial team and secure a quick quartet of kills, setting his team up for a huge lead they would nurse through the remainder of the game.Game 2 became a painful war of attrition as Zero Panda attacked Denial with smart calculated plays, exacting small penalties each time. The first example of this was early Level 3, where Denial was attempting to pressure Zero Pandas mid fort. Zheng C Xiangzhi -- once again on Dehaka -- Brush Stalked in and nabbed two easy kills on the enemy Malfurion and Jaina. Once in the lead, Zero Panda tightly held the reigns of the second match and did not let go until their Garden Terror knocked out Denials core for a 2-0 victory and a trip to the winners bracket.Group ATeam Dignitas became the first team to advance through Group A of the Heroes of the Storm Fall Championship, defeating Astral Authority 2-0.Joshua Snitch Bennett of Team Dignitas was on fire in Game 1. Using Falstad, Snitch was hyper aggressive, taking risks early on that never seemed to pay off. During the mid game, that seemed to change as he took advantage of an opportunity where Astral Authority was clumped together in the mid lane, diving in and using his Mighty Gust heroic ability to literally blow Astral Authority away into teammate Thomas Ménè Cailleux, who was using GulDan. From there Ménè took over with his Horrify heroic, splitting the team up, which allowed him to secure two kills for Team Dignitas. That eventually spelled doom for Astral Authority in Game 1 as Dignitas was able to hold onto their substantial lead.Game 2 saw Ménè demonstrate his mastery of GulDan, as he singlehandedly turned the match in his teams favor with his excellent Horrify ultimate. His first great heroic use was around the 11 minute-mark where he used Horrify to score a kill on Ben Cattlepillar Bunks Dehaka in the top lane, giving his team a much needed experience boost. Later in the match, he executed another incredible Horrify that pushed Astral Authoritys support player, Jun Jun Jang, far out of position, securing Dignitas a hard fought 2-0 victory. ' ' '