March 6, 2018 – Green Bay, Wisconsin
Drew Gulak def. Mark Andrews {Quarterfinal Match}
Gulak won this in 12:10 with the GuLock. There was a ton to like about this match. Andrews controlled a lot here, mostly through his high-flying maneuvers but only going for them when there was a good reason to. For example, he hit a hurricanrana from the apron when Gulak was vulnerable, and he did a backflip to get out of a pin so that Gulak would have a hard time tracking where he was. But down the stretch, he started getting too confident, pointing to the wrestlemania sign before hitting a moonsault. That cost him, as Gulak blocked a shooting star press before locking in his finisher. For his part, Gulak retroactively made good on his aggression in his first round match by being a dick throughout this one, slamming Andrews against the ropes, press slamming him to show off his strength, and keeping the GuLock on after the bell. ***¾
Mustafa Ali def. Buddy Murphy {Quarterfinal Match}
Murphy here with his amazing arm selling almost made up for Ali’s lack of the same in his last match. These guys had amazing chemistry, and told a wonderful story with Ali hitting a shooting star press to Murphy’s arm and then desperately stringing together high-impact moves to keep the bigger man from regaining control. Buddy Murphy is an excellent professional wrestler. The finish was brilliant too, as Murphy couldn’t hit Murphy’s Law because his arm gave out, and then the same happened when he went for a backslide and Ali caught him with a crucifix pin at 11:05. Absolutely terrific stuff. ****¼