2008 NPPL season
The 2008 NPPL season was the sixth season of the National Professional Paintball League's Super 7 World Series. Five United States events were scheduled, but the Houston Open was cancelled following Hurricane Ike, leaving four completed tournaments.[1][2][3]
San Diego Dynasty won its sixth consecutive professional Super 7 championship. Arsenal Evolution won Semi-Pro, Aftermath II won Division I, Miami Rage won Division II and CS Union won Division III.[3]
Following the season, the NPPL's parent company, Pacific Paintball LLC, announced plans to enter bankruptcy liquidation.[4]
Calendar
[edit]| Scheduled round | Event | Dates | Venue | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Beach Open | 28–30 March 2008 | Huntington Beach, California | Held |
| 2 | Jacksonville Open | 16–18 May 2008 | Jacksonville Municipal Stadium grounds, Jacksonville, Florida | Held |
| 3 | Buffalo Open | 18–20 July 2008 | Ralph Wilson Stadium grounds, Orchard Park, New York | Held |
| 4 | Houston Open | 19–21 September 2008 | Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas | Cancelled |
| 5 | San Diego finale | 14–16 November 2008 | Qualcomm Stadium grounds, San Diego, California | Held |
The dates and announced venues appeared in the league's original calendar. Contemporary tournament reports confirm the completed events.[1][3][5][6][7]
Houston cancellation
[edit]Houston was scheduled as the fourth event, at Reliant Stadium from 19 to 21 September.[1]
A contemporary report published on 16 September stated that cancellation had been announced the previous day because of Hurricane Ike. WARPIG's subsequent San Diego coverage confirmed that Houston had been cancelled, removing an opportunity for teams to earn championship points before the finale.[2][3]
Seven-player results
[edit]| Event | Professional | Semi-Pro | Division I | Division II | Division III |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Huntington Beach | San Antonio X-Factor | Arsenal Evolution | Aftermath II | LA Endurance | CS Union |
| Jacksonville | Escondido Aftermath | Dynasty Entourage | Hollywood HK | Final postponed | CS Union |
| Buffalo | Golden State Ironmen | Arsenal Evolution | Arsenal Kidz | Miami Rage | NV |
| San Diego | San Diego Dynasty | Arsenal Evolution | Hollywood HK | Go 4 Broke | SCP Epic & Friends |
Sources: WARPIG's contemporary event reports.[3][5][6][7]
Jacksonville's postponed final
[edit]Storms interrupted the concluding Jacksonville games. The Division II final between Go For Broke and Miami Rage was postponed, with make-up games included in Buffalo's programme. Tombstone finished third and Brooklyn Ratpack fourth at Jacksonville.[6][7]
The Buffalo Division II result in the table refers to the Buffalo tournament; it should not be substituted for the separately postponed Jacksonville final.[7]
Professional competition
[edit]San Antonio X-Factor won Huntington Beach on its NPPL professional debut. Aftermath won Jacksonville, defeating Golden State Ironmen in the final.[5][6]
Golden State Ironmen won Buffalo ahead of New England Hurricanes. Dynasty finished third and Sacramento XSV fourth.[7]
At San Diego, Dynasty defeated OC Bushwackers in the final and secured the professional season championship.[3]
Season champions
[edit]| Classification | Champion |
|---|---|
| Professional | San Diego Dynasty |
| Semi-Pro | Arsenal Evolution |
| Division I | Aftermath II |
| Division II | Miami Rage |
| Division III | CS Union |
Source: WARPIG's San Diego report.[3]
Other competition
[edit]Huntington Beach included a pump division. Five-player competition was subsequently added during the season.[3][5]
At San Diego, Rockstar Rebels won Division III five-player and Critical Wrecking Crew won Division IV five-player. Fierce won the separate Spyder Cup finale.[3]
Liquidation announcement
[edit]On 2 December 2008, WARPIG reported that Pacific Paintball and its subsidiaries had announced plans to file bankruptcy proceedings to liquidate their assets and business operations.[4]
The announcement covered Pacific Paintball LLC, NPPL LLC, XPSL LLC, PB2X LLC, Xtreme Paintball Fields LLC and Camp Pendleton Paintball LLC. The company cited an inability to make the business financially viable and unsuccessful efforts to obtain further investment during the economic downturn.[4]
The announcement concerned the intended liquidation process; WARPIG's report did not establish that liquidation proceedings had already been completed.[4]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- National Professional Paintball League, “NPPL 2008 Dates and Venues”. League announcement reproduced by Spyder Paintball Guns, 21 December 2007.
- SEBURO, “Bad Month for Paintball. NPPL Houston Cancelled”. 16 September 2008.
- “NPPL San Diego”. WARPIG, 14–16 November 2008. Tournament results, season champions and confirmation of Houston's cancellation.
- “NPPL to Be Liquidated”. WARPIG, 2 December 2008.
- “NPPL Huntington Beach”. WARPIG, 28–30 March 2008.
- “NPPL Jacksonville”. WARPIG, 16–18 May 2008.
- “NPPL Buffalo”. WARPIG, 18–20 July 2008.