Pro player Billy Bernacchia

A long time staple of the Northeast Paintball Scene is relocating to Texas for the 2012 season. Last week we reported that Billy Bernacchia was in Texas and hanging out with the X-Factor pro team while they were hosting tryouts. New information has surfaced indicating a permanent move is being made.

ProPaintball insiders report that Billy has joined the team and an “official” announcement on his move to San Antonio X-FACTOR is forthcoming. Prior to joining X-Factor, Billy was a core player of the recently dissolved New England Hurricanes and St. Louis Avalanche pro teams. During the 2011/12 off season, the Hurricanes and Avalanche teams merged to form a new pro team know officially as New England Avalanche. ProPaintball insiders suggest that initially the Hurri-lanche team was considering play in both the PSP and NPPL pro series. However, as time went on it became clear that the new team would be competing exclusively in the NPPL. Bernacchia has been competing in both pro leagues for as long as we can remember and ProPaintball insiders suggest this could have been a reason for him seeking a new home.

Pro paintball team X-Factor at PSP World Cup 2012

San Antonio X-Factor is wearing Sly Profit Goggles and paintball gear. In addition, the team will be shooting Planet Eclipse paintball guns.

ProPaintball.com insiders are awaiting an official announcement to be made concerning the future of Bernacchia with X-FACTOR. Billy Bernacchia is well known on the national circuits – his ability and experience on the field will no doubt help to boost the defensive power of the X-FACTOR pro team.

San Antonio X-Factor and New England Avalanche are rumored to be making moves. Read on for the latest Pro Paintball news and rumors.

X-Factor puts the beat down on Impact

San Antonio X-Factor is playing both the NPPL and PSP paintball leagues this year. According to ProPaintball insiders, the team has signed with Valken for new paintball gear and will be wearing SLY Equipment (including sly profits, pads and other soft goods). X-Factor will be hosting tryouts this weekend and Billy Bernacchia of New England Avalanche is said to be mixing it up. Is he trying out, playing with friends for the weekend, or both?

Pro player Billy Bernacchia

For those of you scratching your heads about this New England Avalanche bit, here goes. Jeff Stein retired the New England Hurricanes and shortly after it was announced that St. Louis Avalanche and the Hurricanes were merged together. The combined team will be called New England Avalanche, and has relocated to the North East. If rumors hold true, Bernacchia, a long time Hurricane and Avalanche player, will be a big loss for the pro squad.

New paintball team by Vanguard?

New England Avalanche is in the midst of building a pro and divisional franchise program. According to ProPaintball insiders, Avalanche’s gun sponsor Vanguard is stepping it up for 2012 and merging in their teams. The Vanguard Division 2 team is said to be joining NPPL division 1, while the Vanguard D3 team will be joining NPPL Division 2. According to sources, no home field has been established for Avalanche as of yet. ProPaintball insiders note the team is setting up to maintain both a West and East Coast programs in order to create better brand recognition and increase the talent pool.

What are your thoughts on a cross country professional paintball program? Will it succeed, or encounter difficulty? Share your thoughts in the comments.

The Chicago pickem and the Pro Paintball poll (right hand side of the page) have opened up for you to place your bets on the winners and losers of the PSP 2011 Chicago Open. Cade Coleman, the PSP score keeper and ProPaintball are proud to share several data points for your consideration and general paintball knowledge. Hopefully these data points will help you increase your odds of winning the PB Pickem grand prize. Study up and place your picks!

Data is based on PSP Pro Paintball matches between 2007 to 2011

PSP 2011 Chicago Open Stats:

• 2007 – Largest Margin of Victory: Legion (23) vs. Ultimate (1)
• 2007 – Finals: X-Factor (7) vs. Ironmen (6)
• 2008 – Finals: Damage (5) vs. Aftermath (3)
• 2009 – Finals: Legion (7) vs. Aftermath (1)
• 2010 – Finals: Infamous (7) vs. Damage (5)

PSP Pro Paintball Team Facts and Win / Loss Records:

Chicago Aftershock:

• 31 Wins (36%) / 56 Losses (64%)
• Looking for their first Pro win of the 2011 season, shut out 0-4 at the 2011 Texas Open.

Chattanooga CEP (PSP Pro since 2011):

• 0 Wins (0%) / 4 Losses (100%)
• Looking for their first Pro win ever, also shut out 0-4 at the 2011 Texas Open.

Tampa Bay Damage (PSP Pro since 2008):

• 51 Wins (61%) / 32 Losses (39%)
• Wins and 1 OT Loss during the Texas Open, they were knocked out by Legion (2-4) in the Semis.

San Diego Dynasty:

• 59 Wins (58%) / 43 Losses (42%)
• 3 Wins (7-0, 7-1, 7-1) and 1 Loss (Legion) during the Texas Prelims, beat Infamous in the Semis, and Legion (7-2) in the Finals.

Edmonton Impact (PSP Pro since 2008):

• 38 Wins (52%) / 35 Losses (48%)
• 2 Wins (both 5-4) and 2 Losses (both 1-7), looking to advance out of the Prelims in 2011.

LA Infamous:

• 49 Wins (51%) / 47 Losses (49%)
• 3 Wins (2OT) and 1 Loss during the Texas Prelims, they were knocked out by Dynasty (2-5) in the Semis.

Los Angeles Ironmen:

• 70 Wins (65%) / 38 Losses (35%)
• 2 Wins (1OT) and 2 Losses in Texas, looking to advance out of the Prelims in 2011.

Boston Red Legion:

• 82 Wins (75%) / 28 Losses (25%)
• 3 Wins and 1 Loss (OT Loss, Ironmen), beat Damage in the Semis and Lost to Dynasty (2-7) in the Finals.

Omaha Vicious (PSP Pro since 2010):

• 7 Wins (37%) / 12 Losses (63%)
• 2 Wins (1OT, both 6-5) and 2 Losses (1OT) in Texas, looking to advance out of the Prelims in 2011.

San Antonio X-Factor:

• 44 Wins (49%) / 46 Losses (51%)
• 2 Wins (7-3, 7-2) and 2 Losses in Texas, looking to advance out of the Prelims in 2011.

Does the Win and Loss record effect your loyalty to your favorite pro paintball team? Or, is there more to a pro team than winning? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

GI Sports is rapidly solidifying their position as a leader in the paintball market place. Last weeks announcement that Tampa Bay Damage was switching over to GI Sports Imperial paintballs was a shock to the paintball community. This week, GI Sports is continuing to turn the heat up by signing yet another pro paintball team for the 2011 season, San Antonio X-Factor. This announcement brings the number of pro paintball teams shooting GI Sports to 4; X-Factor, Damage, Aftershock and Russian Legion.

As rumored in last weeks pro paintball rumor report, San Antonio X-Factor is in the process of rebuilding their Texas based pro paintball team. The team has pulled all of their star players back into the fold and the team is preparing to be a formidable force in the 2011 paintball season.

This weeks pro paintball rumor report features the latest paintball news and gossip from San Antonio X Factor, San Diego Dynasty, Edmonton Impact, Newport Entourage and Sacramento XSV.

• Dynasty tells their players they won’t be flying people in. Archie Montemayor, Billy Bernacchia, Chad George, and Devin Odell are rumored to no longer be playing with the team.

• Archie Montemayor and Devin Odell are rumored to be reuniting with their friends and former teammates on San Antonio X-Factor. Between Dixon Yang, Grayson Goff, Dusty Odell, Devin Odell, Archie Montemayor, Ryan Cohen and Cody Bayless, X-Factor will once again be a top contender in 2011.

• Chad George will be joining former teammates Ryan Moorhead and Tim Montressor from the Philadelphia All Americans.

• Johnny Thompson is rumored to be retiring from professional paintball. Johnny competed with pro paintball team Edmonton Impact. Sources indicate his departure opened the door for Chad to join the team.

• Pro Paintball insiders indicate that pro team Newport Entourage will not be competing in the 2011 pro paintball season. Several of the players are said to be looking for a team.

• Ryan Martin of Newport Entourage is rumored to have signed with Sacramento XSV.

• Sacramento XSV is rumored to be signing with Empire Paintball to shoot the new Empire AXE . Sources indicate a Sacramento XSV private label AXE is in the works. In case you missed it, be sure to check ProPaintball’s review of the Empire AXE.

Planet Eclipse is back with a new pro paintball episode from their Artifact video series.

Click here to view the embedded video.

This episode of Artifact showcases the pro paintball players from Omaha Vicious and San Antonio X-Factor and match footage from the Chicago Open.

We are proud to present scores from Day 1 at the Mid Atlantic Open pro paintball event. Today is going to be a hot one so we recommend that everyone playing or heading to the event stays hydrated.

Reports from the event indicate that Danny “Derv” Dervin from L.I.F.T. separated his shoulder on a run to the snake. Paramedics are said to have treated him and possibly taken him off location. We wish you a speedy recovery Derv!

08:00am – Entourage (7) vs. Vicious (2)
08:45am – Aftershock (3) vs. Legion (7)
09:30am – Impact (7) vs. X-Factor (4)
10:15am – Legion (7) vs. Vicious (2)
11:00am – Aftershock (7) vs. X-Factor (1)
11:45am – Impact (4) vs. Entourage (7)
01:00pm – Ironmen (4) vs. XSV (7)
01:45pm – Infamous (3) vs. Aftermath (7)
02:30pm – Damage (7) vs. Dynasty (3)
03:15pm – Aftermath (7) vs. XSV (1)
04:00pm – Infamous (3) vs. Dynasty (7)
04:45pm – Damage (5) vs. Ironmen (6)

Score Credit: Robs45

Our friend Cade over at PBPickem has officially unvieled the 2010 Chicago Open PB Pickem. The PBPickem is a fun game (an free!) in which you get to test your skills and smarts by picking the winners of the pro games being held this week at the Chicago event. Its really simple, all you have to do is enter your selections and you will get points for every correct pick you make.

Now go ahead, give it a try and put your knowledge to the test. Lets see what you got! Enter in your picks at PBPickem.com! It will remain open until midnight July 24th and is updated at the end of each day with the user submissions.If you’re looking to compete against a group of friends or just want to test your Pro team knowledge, fill out a Pick’Em. It’s a completely FREE way to be more involved in the upcoming event for individuals that might not be able to attend. Previous season field layouts and Previous event match by match scores are also maintained. Also, the Pick’Em form has been updated to be more iPhone friendly, so you can do something fun while stuck in traffic. Good luck!

PSP Field: Professional Preliminary Games

Friday, June 25, 2010

8:00 am            Los Angeles Ironmen vs. San Diego Aftermath

8:45 am            LA Infamous vs. Dynasty

9:30 am            Edmonton Impact vs. Sacramento XSV

10:15 am            Dynasty vs. San Diego Aftermath

11:00 am            LA Infamous vs. Sacramento XSV

11:45 am            Edmonton Impact vs. Los Angeles Ironmen

1:00 pm            Vicious vs. Entourage

1:45 pm            Chicago Aftershock vs. Boston Red Legion

2:30 pm            Tampa Bay Damage vs. X-Factor

3:15 pm            Boston Red Legion vs. Entourage

4:00 pm            Chicago Aftershock vs. X-Factor

4:45 pm            Tampa Bay Damage vs. Vicious

Saturday, June 26, 2010

8:00 am            LA Infamous vs. San Diego Aftermath

8:45 am            Sacramento XSV vs. Los Angeles Ironmen

9:30 am            Edmonton Impact vs. Dynasty

10:15 am            Sacramento XSV vs. San Diego Aftermath

11:00 am            Dynasty vs. Los Angeles Ironmen

11:45 am            Edmonton Impact vs. LA Infamous

1:00 pm            Chicago Aftershock vs. Entourage

1:45 pm            X-Factor vs. Vicious

2:30 pm            Tampa Bay Damage vs. Boston Red Legion

3:15 pm            X-Factor vs. Entourage

4:00 pm            Boston Red Legion vs. Vicious

4:45 pm            Tampa Bay Damage vs. Chicago Aftershock

The last few weeks have been hectic in the paintball world. Teams are adjusting themselves for NPPL and PSP Chicago Open events. According to Pro Paintball Insiders, several teams are changing divisions and in other cases they are folding. Read on for the memorial weekend rumor report.

PSP: Semi Pro

Rumors are circulating that the PSP may be doing away with the semi-pro division. If this were to take place, we anticipate that a few semi pro teams would be invited into the pro paintball division.

• Rumors indicate that FIERCE Semi-pro is taking Chicago and quite possibly the remainder of the season off due to members refocusing their attention on their families.

• Raiden has also been in the rumor mill recently and sources suggest the team is dealing with personality clashes and player departures.

• The Palm Beach Vipers are currently restructuring (reported here) and focusing on their divisional teams. The semi-pro team has been disbanded.

• SK Moscow played PSP Phoenix and according to Gary Baum of Paintball Photography are planning on returning at PSP World Cup.

• X-Factor‘s semi pro squad has been rumored to be repositioning themselves in division 1 though no official confirmation has been received.
• Scottsdale Elevation competed in PSP Phoenix and we

• RNT-Allstarz recently combined forces for the Chicago Open and potentially the remainder of the season with Indianapolis Mutiny.

• Entourage has several players with PRO experience including Mark Lack, James “Kekoa” Ferguson, Dalton Vanderbyl and Ronnie Filippone. Ryan Martin played with RNT in Phoenix because Entourage had too many pro players. We can expect to see Ryan Martin play with Entourage in PSP when the team goes PRO.

• San Diego Aftermath has been spotted in the APPA registration database as registered for PRO at the Chicago Open. At the Phoenix Open, SDA’s pro players were Steven Pitts & Alex Goldman and staffing was Patrick Hughes. Patrick has been playing with Oakland BLAST but is rumored to be returning to SDA when the team goes pro.

Potentially, we could see RNT-Allstarz/Mutiny, Aftermath and Entourage moving into the PSP Pro Paintball Division. The only problem with three teams moving up is that it would create an odd number of total teams and create a need for by-games.

NPPL: Division 1

Arsenal Predators and Hollywood HK are pulling out after the Huntington Beach event, leaving only 3 teams to fight for the series title.

• Arsenal Predators will be switching over to the PSP format. The team had a solid run in 2009, leading the division 2 series and winning both Huntington Beach and DC Challenge events. They are a solid group of guys and we are eager to watch the team transition into the race-ball format. Division 1 PSP is going to get real interesting!

• Hollywood HK was rumored to have been banned from the NPPL. While we are not exactly sure what transpired, we do know that the PBFashion/HK booth was shut down at HB due to alcohol.  on the other hand will be running their Crash at the Coast clinic and considering their options.

The lack of division 1 teams could be attributed to the prizes based on teams attending in the division (and with three the prizes are very slim). With that being said, the league now has only 3 division 1 teams and sources suggest they are incorporating them into the pro schedule, creating a Pro/Am series of games.

This week, Baca Loco over at View From The Deadbox brings us his Pro*file of pro paintball player Colt Robers of San Antonio X-Factor.

Name: Colt Roberts
Age: 28
Hometown: San Antonio, TX
Occupation: HVAC Lead Installer
Family: Don and Deborah Roberts (parents), Desiree Mauldin (my love), Foxy (Pomeranian), JC (Bengal Cat), and Moses (Flame Point Siamese).
General interests other than paintball: Big time gamer nerd, any sport you name it, ancient civilizations.