Like he has done throughout the entire tournament, though, Pierce battled back after a key miss by Archer at 5-1. "Sometimes you get too relaxed with a big lead," said Archer, "and when you miss a shot, it kind of scares you."

Archer's mistakes brought Pierce back within one game at 5-4, but Pierce couldn't capitalize. "I couldn't ever get going," Pierce admitted. "I was hoping to get Johnny in some bad spots, but that never happened."

After Archer won the 12th game to go 7-4, the scoreboard operator changed the board to read 5-4. Surprisingly, it took a stop in play and some spectator input to correct the error, much to the enjoyment of Archer, who commented, "It might even be eight!" Archer meets Kun Fang Lee in the final match later this afternoon.

In the second women's semifinals, Jennifer Chen admitted to struggling against Japan's Akimi Kajitani, despite the 9-4 score. "I never played this bad at any time during this tournament," Chen admitted. "I was not happy with my break."

While Chen may have been struggling with her breaks, Kajitani struggled with her mental game. "The pressure really affected me," said the 28-year-old Osaka resident. Neither player was able to run racks, yet Chen minimized her mistakes and never gave Kajitani a shot at the table late in any games. Chen meets defending WPA champion Allison Fisher in the finals.