TV Recap: S01E17 – American Ninja Warrior Junior Kids 2019

American Ninja Warrior JR Kids Season 1 2019 Episode 17 (Age 9-10 Quarterfinals)

The field of 64 is down to 16 for the 9-10 year old division.

And this week, those 16 take center stage in what is now a single elimination tournament.

Here’s a breakdown of the format:

The round of 16 and the quarterfinal round races take place this week.

There are NO SEEDING ROUNDS!!! It’s either win or go home.

The four ninja’s left standing will go on to the 9-10 year old finals.

-The first place winner receives $15,000, 2nd place gets $7,500, 3rd place gets $5,000, 4th place gets $2,500.

And as always, Laurie Hernandez will be joining Matt and Akbar.

The course: Sonic Swing, Tic Toc, I-Beam, Floating Tiles, Spin Cycle, 13 Foot Warped Wall (with two hand holds)

Both Drew Dreschel and Barclay Stockett are on hand as ninja mentors today.

Round of 16:

Race 1: Taylor Greene vs Jason McNeil

Jason is a level 6 gymnast and works for a nonprofit called #projectreplay. Jason and his friends donate sports equipment to underprivileged youth.

Taylor has over 98 million views online from videos of her completing ninja obstacles. And Taylor’s best time was 10 seconds better than Jason’s from the qualifying rounds.

Both ninjas were undefeated going into this race.

Both ninjas were flying into I-Beam.

Taylor had a slight lead on the Floating Tiles.

And Taylor’s one arm dismounts on Spin Cycle put her in prime position to win.

Trying to catch up, Jason slipped and fell on the fifth obstacle.

Taylor hit the buzzer and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Race 2: Payton Myler vs Jack Cook

Payton made it here with great comebacks on her way to an undefeated record.

“Double Back Jack” is a critter collector who gets out to big leads early.

Payton’s best time was 13 seconds faster than Jack’s in qualifying.

Once again, Jack got out to the fast start, but Payton was not far behind.

Payton struggled with Tic Toc, and Jack’s lead grew.

But Payton made up a lot of ground on the I-Beam.

The two were almost even going into Spin Cycle.

It was on the fifth obstacle that Payton fell.

There were some nervous moments for Jack, who needed to complete Spin Cycle to advance.

He did and made it up the Warped Wall, advancing to face Taylor Greene in the quarterfinals.

Race 3: Nacssa Garemore vs David Futeran

Nacssa is the first Garemore to compete in the quarterfinals. The Garemores are the adoptive brothers from Guinea Bissau who were big stories in the fall portion of the season.

“The Flying Squirrel” is a level 7 gymnast whose fastest time was five seconds faster than Nacssa. Both ninjas are unbeaten.

Nacssa had the lead early.

Both ninjas pushed a very fast pace going into the Floating Tiles.

Nacssa had a slight lead going into Spin Cycle.

And that lead would grow as Nacssa made quick work of the fifth obstacle on his way to the quarterfinals.

Race 4: Reeder Smith vs Sean Arms

Reeder is the ninja trivia expert and another ninja who used the Spin Cycle to separate himself from the competition.

Sean trains with Drew Dreschel and is one of the fastest ninjas from the first round. And his runs through the Spin Cycle were even faster than Reeder’s.

Both of these ninjas were in the top five in fastest times for the age group.

So of course, they both came out fast.

Sean had a slight lead going into I-Beam.

That lead grew going into Spin Cycle, a good sign for Sean.

And Sean was his trademark best on the fifth obstacle, but Reeder was not far behind.

But Reeder slipped after the dismount, and Sean Arms set the new fastest time for the course on his way to the quarters.

Race 5: Collin Cella vs Zack Keenan

Zack was dominant on his way to an undefeated record.

Collin trains under Drew Dreschel and had the fastest time in the qualifying rounds.

Collin had a slight lead early.

But Zack caught up quickly, only to fall behind again on I-Beam.

And Collin looked to have things locked up after a great run through Spin Cycle.

But Zack nearly ran him down from behind on the Warped Wall.

Zack beat his best time by 8 seconds, but Collin would hit the buzzer first by a second more.

Race 6: James Scott vs Paxton Myler

James became friends with fellow competitor Daisy O’Brien from qualifying, and she is here to support him as he takes on the round of 16.

The last of the Mylers (there were four in spread out across age groups) to compete was unbeaten in the qualifiers.

Both ninjas are looking to improve on their best times of around a minute.

Paxton had a slight lead after Tic Toc.

James pulled ahead on I-Beam.

That lead grew going into Spin Cycle.

Trying to catch up, Paxton slipped fell on Spin Cycle.

James made it up the Warped Wall and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Race 7: Jacob Goldman vs Jason Behrends

Jacob translated the training from the ninja course in his backyard into one of the fastest in qualifying.

“Big E Smalls” Jason Behrends fell on his first race. But he fought back to earn his spot in the semifinals.

Jacob raced out to an early lead.

But Jason stayed close behind.

Jacob’s lead grew going into Spin Cycle and he would not look back.

Jacob hit the buzzer and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Race 8: Kaden Forsha vs Ollie Huss

Ollie’s family hosts the best ninjas in the world in their home. And that training showed in Ollie’s qualifying runs.

Kaden was a come from behind specialist in qualifying races.

Kaden had a slight lead early.

But Ollie pulled ahead going into I-Beam.

Kaden is an I-Beam specialist, and it showed as he retook the lead on the third obstacle.

It was neck and neck as the two duked it out on Spin Cycle.

And by a split second, Kaden made it up the Warped Wall and hit the buzzer first.

The Quarterfinals

Race 1: Taylor Greene vs Jack Cook

Taylor had a slight lead going into I-Beam.

That lead grew as she headed into Spin Cycle.

And Taylor would never look back on her way to the Finals!!!

Race 2: Nacssa Garemore vs Sean Arms

These two were flying, with Sean coming out with a slight lead on Tic Toc.

Sean kept that lead going into Floating Tiles, but Nassa was not far behind.

Now, if Sean has the lead going into Spin Cycle, it’s over.

And that was the case here as Sean made it up the Warped Wall on his way to the Finals.

Race 3: Collin Cella vs James Scott

Collin was stressed going into his quarterfinal race. Barclay Stockett gave him some encouraging words.

Collin didn’t look stressed as the race began, flying through the first half of the course.

James stayed near, raising his game to compete with the “Course Crusher.”

But he was no match for Collin as the “Course Crusher” qualified for the finals.

Race 4: Jacob Goldman vs Kaden Forsha

Jacob had the early lead.

Kaden struggled to pull up on the net on Tic Toc, and Jacob’s lead grew.

Kaden was keeping a steady pace until he fell on Floating Tiles.

Jacob would complete the course and advance to the Finals.

Your Finalists

Finalist 1: Taylor Greene

Finalist 2: Sean Arms

Finalist 3: Collin Cella

Finalist 4: Jacob Goldman

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