Wrestle Angel and Rookie: Suzumi Ishikawa vs. AJ Shay!

While Suzumi was glad to be out of the ATF, A.J once again shined, improvising and taking it to Suzumi with another hold! Suzumi cried out again, but knew the ankle lock wasn't held in an ideal spot. Suzumi was still in a good deal of pain however, and still in the dead center of the ring. She had a free leg that she needed to try to use effectively.

Suzumi saw where A.J was and tried to roll or rock a bit trying to get the best angle she could. She let out a cry as she coiled her free leg back, trying to repeatedly kick at A.J's arm or shoulder! IF she could weaken the grip she knew she could pull herself away. However, if these kicks weren't doing enough Suzumi would again be in deep trouble as A.J had already managed to take control of the match, seizing momentum with the STF and ankle lock in succession against a hapless Suzumi!

Alexa rolled with every movement of Suzumi, she might as well have been an extension of the woman's leg by how tightly she was clamped on. She held her at the ankle from behind and a hand gripping the bottom of Suzumi's boot. From there she was able to keep the woman's leg steady to twist her foot to the side, working her ankle over hard.

She hunked down as the first kick intended for her grazed her side. The next kick however hit her squarely... And another one. She yelped with each blow, a sure sign that the Wrestle Angels kicks we're laying into her. She grit her teeth trying to weather the kicks, but by the fourth one she couldn't hold on any longer. If Suzumi was going to keep beating on her like that, this hold wasn't going to be worth the damage she would accrue. Before she ate a yet another kick, she had released the hold and rolled aside.

Alexa clutched her shoulder as she sat herself up, wincing as she watched Suzumi. She wasn't in a hurry to get back up, hoping the Wrestle Angel was in the same boat so they could take a moment to recover. She shifted to a kneel, just preparing herself for if and when she needed to rise in a hurry. Something told her the other woman was going to be looking for swift retribution for what Alexa had just done.

She had been so close, she could almost taste it. If only she had been a little better or slightly stronger she might have been the victor right now. It was hard not to beat up on herself just a little for that. Still, she had managed to do so well against a veteran, a well known one as well. That counted for something. "I almost had you."

Suzumi's leg was in shambles. She hobbled up and it almost gave out as she hobbled forward, hopping as she turned and managed to stead herself. She hears a.Js claim and wanted to refute it. "You think I am that easy to break?" Suzumi asked with a raised eye row, gritting her teeth a bit.

Suzumi crouched, trying her best to move with speed and agility... instead she had a bit of a labored movement favoring one side. She was in a hole and a bit humbled to say the least.

Suzumi moved in, trying again to reach in and grab onto one arm with both hands! Her movements weren't up to par but she wasn't going to let that stop her from being the aggressor. If she could get hold ahe would swing both legs up and wrap them arpu d the arm, her weight hopefully dragging A.J down to the mat as she tried to secure an armbar!

"Eheheh... well, no, but I sorta hoped you would be." She rubbed the back of her neck as she grinned sheepishly. It was a bit intimidating being called out like that, especially when she couldn't tell if she had actually offended Suzumi. While she wasn't sure how close she actually got, she felt as though if she had just a little bit more time she really could have put the veteran down.

She had gotten herself back up also synced with Suzumi, following her movements closely. She could tell from a glance that her holds had taken a real toll on her. While Alexa wasn't exactly doing fantastic, the Wrestle Angel looked a bit worse, she was even limping a bit. She bit her lip lightly knowing she really should focus all her efforts on the woman's leg. She lacked that killer instinct though, it drove her away from going all in like she really should. Here and now, they were enemies at battle, she shouldn't be hesitating.

As Suzumi came for her, she stepped in to meet her. This time she tried to initiate a grapple. It wasn't to be as one one of her arms was able to reach out and touch her opponent before she had swung into action. The Wrestle angel wrapped her legs up around her arm, pulling at her aided by gravity. She tried to resist but the added weight to her arm dragged her down to the mat with another thud.

She had the wherewithal to reach over, franticly grabbing for her own wrist. After a few blind swiped she grabbed hold, tugging her own arm opposite Suzumi's efforts to keep the woman from hyperextending her limb effectly deadlocking them for now. It was a struggle, Suzumi was most certainly stronger than her and was able to pull and wrench at her arm with both of her own. All she could do in defense was to hang on tight, buckling and kicking as she slowly moved them towards the ropes.

Suzumi groaned as A.J alleviated some of the pressure. Suzumi tried to counter that and apply as much power as she could. She straightened her legs, pulled back with her arms and twisted with her torso all to extend that arm as much as she could!

A small voice in the back of her head said that A.J was better than her. Smarter, more driven, more technique. Despite doing well after her injury originally sidelined her Suzumi still felt doubt on occasion and this match brought on a wave of doubt in herself stronger than she had felt in recent memory. Suzumi pulled back, knowing she had to be better if she was going to Inflict a good deal of pain before A.J made it to the ropes!

Alexa was doing a rather impressive job of holding the veteran at bay, all things considered. The hold was still taking quite a toll on her to make up for the lack of physical pain though. Every kick, every buck, the constant battle to steady her arm were sapping her stamina in place of her health. It was hard to gauge which one was more vital at this point.

She had reached almost two thirds of the way to the ropes when Suzumi's superior strength and technique found her wrestling Alexa's arm free, leaving the younger wrestling at the mercy of her armbar. Arm wrenched back she tried to twist her own body to lessen the pressure but it hadn't helped for more than a moment. Unlike the figure four, she was far more familiar with this hold, and had a clear escape within reach. She remained clear headed and driven as her tense arm fought back against the Wrestle Angels best efforts to crank her limb preventing her from doing the most damage she could if she wasn't resisting.

With an arm free now, she had an easier time dragging and pushing herself. The pain had begun to build to the point she was breathing heavily. She gave a shout of pain every time Suzumi managed to twist her arm just right. Eventually she reached the ropes, extending her leg out to them. Her boot was placed over on the top of the bottom rope, the referee calling for a break.

Suzumi kept wrenching on the hold doing all she could to earn a submission but she was well aware of where they were in the ring. As soon as she saw A.J grab the bottom rope she was releasing the hold, already rolling away when the referee was verbally calling for the break. Suzumi got up, her leg still in pain but her movements more graceful. She was able to recover a good bit while inflicting what she hoped to be substantial pain on A.J's arm.

Suzumi set herself up, her arms up and in a crouch. She didn't have anything to say or add right now as she stared forward intently at A.J. Suzumi was waiting for her to fully reset and wasn't going to move in until she saw that A.J was ready and acknowledged that she was all set to continue. Still, Suzumi's intense glare was the total opposite of what she looked like during her entrance and even at the onset of the match when she was controlling the tempo. She was ready, and her pride demanded that she come out on top against the rookie submission wrestler.

Alexa hissed through her teeth as Suzumi slipped away from her. She tucked her arm in, clutching it tightly. She had already been sore from having taken several kicks to her shoulder, the armbar did nothing to help that. She thunked the back of her head to the mat softly. Turning her head, she peered down along the mat to Suzumi, looking incredibly intense. She hadn't been nearly as chatting as when the match started. She had seemed so cheerful at first, it had been such a genuine feature of the woman it out her at ease. Now? It felt like she was staring down a firing squad.

She pulled herself up with her good arm, using the ropes for support. Had she offended her in some way? Was this another Japanese culture thing she flubbed up? She would have to ask Ryoko after the match, most of that stuff was beyond her.

The Wrestle Angel hadn't made a move. Like a coiled spring just waiting for release. Alexa chuckled nervously, slowly lowering herself down into her grappling stance again. While she was most skilled when it came to her groundwork, it was fast approaching the point in which she couldn't afford to take Suzumi to the mat much anymore. She was a professional, and Alexa was already feeling the weight of the match on her. All it would take in one good submission in the middle of the ring and she was done.

Her standing grappling game was decent. She couldn't say she was confident that Suzumi wasn't outright better at that too. At least it was less likely the woman could submit her if they were upright... As long as she didn't let her slip behind her. She gave a small nod to her opponent as she inched away from the ropes. Though both of her arms were raised, one sagged at the shoulder, hanging a bit lower.

Suzumi moved in and knew A.J would be going for a submission. Should Suzumi do the same? Should she try something else? Suzumi opted to try something else. She moved in for a color and elbow grapple and tried to jockey for position as opposed to simply pushing back on A.J She tried to turn and get A.J facing one way and then would suddenly bend down, trying to wrap one arm around A.Js shoulder. Her other went between her legs as Suzumi gambled a bit. If she was able the scoop slam would inflict a bit of pain and distract A.J, hopefully taking her off her game.

However, Suzumi was full aware that A.J could counter into a hold... and that would be highly detrimental to Suzumi's chances of winning given how well she had applied submissions to her already! It was a gamble but one worth taking. If Suzumi could get A.J down and out of sorts it would help her set up something of her own that was sure to cause a lot of pain to the rookie!

Alexa struggled to tie up with Suzumi as the woman came at her. Taking a bracing step back as he tried to keep the woman at bay. The Wrestle Angel made the first move, slipping Alexa's grip had been made that much easier thanks to her bum arm.

"I don't thing so! " She wasn't going to just let herself be picked up though. Rather than do a move of her own, she leaned into Suzumi, hugging her arms tightly around her in a clinch. One of her legs hooked around the back of the veteran's to lock her up against the woman to prevent herself from being lifted.

She would weather Suzumi's attempts to lift her, waiting for the opportune time to act. When the other woman would eventually stop trying, hopefully, Alexa would take a step away. Twisting her upper body, she leaned herself away with a raised arm before bringing it back down to strike Suzumi across the chest with a knife edge chop old school style.