By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Dreamwave Pro Wrestling “Anniversary IX”
Streamed on IndependentWrestling.TV
April 20, 2024 in La Salle, Illinois at the KOC Hall
This is the second night of a double-header; the first day was the all-women’s show. This is a sellout with perhaps 350 fans. Joe Dombrowski and Kyle Fields provided commentary.
1. “The Hype” Gaige Noonan and Hunter Holdcraft defeated “Wasted Youth” Marcus Mathers and Dyln McKay in a tables, ladders, chairs match to win the Dreamwave Tag Team Titles at 17:27. Both teams claim to be tag team champions, as The Hype had vacated them due to injury. The belts are attached to the roof in the aisle to the back, but not over the ring. All four fought at the bell. Holdcraft threw teammate Gaige from the ring onto WY on the floor. In the ring, they hit each other with chairshots. Marcus was bleeding from his forehead. Holdcraft powerslammed Marcus at 7:00. The Hype hit a team fisherman’s buster on Marcus onto a ladder in the corner. Holdcraft hit a wheelbarrow German Suplex on Marcus at 9:00.
Marcus powerslammed Gaige onto the guardrail. Marcus hit a top-rope Spanish Fly through a table at 11:00, earning a “holy shit!” chant. Gaige hit a Poison Rana, but McKay tossed Gaige into a ladder in the corner and we got a “This is awesome!” chant. Marcus slid a table that was covered in LEGOs into the ring. The Hype powerslammed Marcus onto the LEGO-covered table at 15:00. Dyln hit a Fosbury Flop to the floor. Gaige and Dyln fought on top of the ladder, but Gaige pushed Dyln off, and McKay crashed through a table down below. Gaige then pulled down the belts to win the belts. A very good brawl between these youngsters.
2. Connor Hopkins defeated Bobby Orlando at 6:51. Hopkins has a ‘money in the bank’ briefcase. He got on the mic and said he was going to teach a lesson. He told (East Coast-based) Bobby Orlando “I don’t take too kindly to outsiders in my area.” Orlando has his stupid stuffed goat, so Connor pulled out a stuffed coyote from his briefcase. Dumb. Bobby hit 10 punches in the corner as the crowd counted along. Hopkins hit a rebound lariat at 3:30. Hopkins hit an Exploder Suplex for a nearfall. Connor swung his briefcase at Orlando but missed, and the ref confiscated it. One of his Those Damn Coyotes teammates ran into the ring and attacked Bobby. Hopkins then hit Orlando with a package piledriver for the tainted pin.
3. Hyan defeated Black Swan at 8:18. Swan’s ballet dancer gimmick is pretty self-explanatory. She tied up Hyan early on and was in control. She hit a snap suplex at 6:00. She applied a Muta Lock, but Hyan reached the ropes. Hyan went for a spear, but Swan caught her and hit a DDT. Hyan nailed the Road To Valhalla face plant for the pin out of nowhere; she really didn’t have much offense before that. Decent action.
4. Hartenbower defeated 1 Called Manders at 10:20. Again, Hartenbower is bald with a goatee and always reminds me of Josh Alexander, and this should be hard-hitting. Manders immediately hit a Bulldog Powerslam for a nearfall. They brawled to the floor, where Hartenbower hit a headbutt and chops. He slammed Manders back-first on the apron at 3:30, then dropped him crotch-first on the guardrail and chopped him some more. In the ring, Hartenbower hit a leaping DDT for a neafall at 5:30. Manders hit a clothesline. He dove through the ropes onto Hartenbower, but he sold lower back pain. Back in the ring, they traded forearm strikes. Hartenbower hit some hard chops but it only fired up Manders. Manders hit a hard clothesline for a believable nearfall at 9:30. Hartenbower nailed a spear. He hit a second spear for the clean pin. Yep, every bit as hard-hitting as anticipated.
5. Stephen Wolf defeated Arez, Dante Leon and Victor Inestra in a four-way at 7:39. Wolf is the Texas-based star who is a regular here. I admittedly don’t know Inestra well; I’ve seen him just a few times. His hair is tied in two long braids and he generally has the looks and size of Rocky Romero. Dante’s gear still looks like he shops at Hot Topic. Arez dove through the ropes onto Victor, so Dante dove through the ropes onto both. Wolf hit a dropkick in the ring. Leon hit a superkick; he’s really giving me Mikey Whipweck vibes today.
Arez hit a snap suplex on Inestra; he ran up both Inestra and Leon’s backs at 3:00. Inestra and Arez began working together to beat down Wolf. Everyone hit kicks. Arez hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker move. Inestra hit a powerslam on Wolf, then a dive over the ropes on Leon and Arez at 6:00. Wolf then hit a flip dive onto all three. In the ring, Arez hit a sit-out powerbomb on Leon. Inestra hit a Blue Thunder Bomb on Arez. Wolf hit a flipping stunner move on Inestra for the pin. That was great stuff but I’m sad it ended so quickly.
6. Channing Thomas (w/Sidney Bakabella) defeated Jordan Kross at 4:47. Kross is the scrawny kid who has a mullet and reminds me of a very young Mike Bailey. Channing is the smarmy heel from the East Coast; he probably drove in with Wasted Youth and Bobby Orlando. An intense lockup to open, and Channing kept him grounded. Kross hit an enzuigiri. Thomas side-stepped a top-rope missile dropkick, and Channing nailed a piledriver for the pin. Fairly basic. While Channing is clearly the better wrestler, I am surprised whenever he wins clean.
7. Rebecca Scott defeated J-Rod, Tara Zep and Zamaya in a four-way to retain the Uprising Alternative Title at 5:37. Scott won the title a night earlier and she came out last. Zep and Zamaya jumped Rebecca at the bell. J-Rod hit a senton on several opponents; Rebecca hit a top-rope missile dropkick and running knees in the corner on Zep and Zamaya. Zamaya hit a Samoan Drop. She hit a clothesline in the corner on Rebecca at 2:30, then a snap suplex. Zep and Zamaya traded forearm strikes. J-Rod hit a Stinger Splash in the corner. Rebecca hit a tornado DDT on J-Rod for a nearfall at 4:30.
Rebecca hit a double DDT on Zamaya and Zep. Zamaya hit a chokeslam powerbomb on Rebecca, but J-Rod hit a spear on Zamaya before she could make a cover. Rebecca hit a Thesz Press on Zep, hit some punches to the face, and she applied a crossarm breaker. Zep almost immediately tapped out. The expected winner; Rebecca wasn’t going to win the title, only to lose it the next night. They went at such a frenetic pace, I suspected this wasn’t going to be a long match.
8. Vic Capri and Shelly Benson defeated J Fowler and Zeke Zshe at 12:44. Fowler’s overall look always makes me think of Pac. Zeke is a manager and he’s wearing an Andre-style single-arm singlet. He opened, slapped Shelly in the face, and celebrated. He turned back to her and she attacked him and sat down on him and paddled his butt. Shelly hit some forearms on Fowler that had no impact. Ring vet Vic tagged in at 2:00 and hit a back suplex on Fowler, as Dombrowski reminded viewers that Vic has worked with everyone who has come up in the Midwest from CM Punk to Alex Shelley. Fowler kicked Shelly and was booed. Zeke tagged in, hit a stomp, and tagged right back out.
Fowler hit a clothesline on Capri at 5:00, then a snap suplex, and he grounded Vic. He hit a Jackhammer for a nearfall at 7:00. Capri hit a snap Dragon Suplex and they were both down. Shelly got the hot tag and she leapt off the second rope and tackled Capri. She hit an (ugly) back suplex on Zeke, then a Vadeer Bomb on Fowler for a nearfall at 9:30. Fowler hit a Poison Rana on Capri. Fowler hit an Angle Slam on Shelly and went to make the cover, but the ref said that Zeke is the legal man. Capri hit a running knee to the back of Fowler’s head. Zeke accidentally threw powder in Fowler’s eyes. Blinded, Fowler was unaware who he grabbed and he spanked Zeke over his knee. Capri then hit a Cop Killah backslide driver on Zeke; Shelley covered Zeke for the pin. I just don’t think either Zeke or Shelly should be in the ring. Fowler is a top-notch talent.
9. Megan Bayne defeated Miyu Yamashita at 9:51. Bayne is the Amazon and has a significant height and size advantage. Megan knocked her down with a shoulder tackle and celebrated. Miyu hit a kick to the back. She hit some roundhouse kicks to the shoulder that had no effect. Miyu hit some kicks to the thighs; Megan grabbed her and suplexed her at 3:00. Megan backed her into the corner and hit a chop, and she took control, hitting a Samoan Drop. Megan hit a suplex to bring Miyu back into the ring from the apron at 5:30. Miyu hit a German Suplex. Miyu hit a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall at 8:30. She hit a stiff kick to the spine for a nearfall and a buzzsaw kick. Megan hit a sit-out powerbomb for a nearfall, then a spear and a Tombstone Piledriver for the clean pin. A really strong match by both women.
10. Christian Rose vs. Gringo Loco ended in a draw at 14:21; Rose retains the Dreamwave Title. I have always described blond, curly-haired Rose to Nic Nemeth or Zicky Dice, and he’s been champion here for a while. Rose attacked from behind, and they immediately brawled to the floor. In the ring, Rose walked the tightrope and hit a huracanrana at 2:30. Loco hit some overhand chops. Rose hit a side suplex. Loco and Rose tried a move on the ring apron; it didn’t come off smoothly and they crashed to the ground at 6:00. Loco had a bloody forehead. Loco hit his top-rope corkscrew senton for a nearfall. Loco accidentally clotheslined the referee at 8:00! Rose immediately got a chair and threw it at Loco’s head.
Rose bodyslammed Gringo Loco onto a chair. Rose climbed the ropes, but Loco hopped to his feet and threw a chair at Rose. They fought on the ropes in the corner, and Loco hit a top-rope Spanish Fly at 10:30, and they were both down, and we got a “holy shit!” chant. Loco made a cover for a visual pin; a new ref ran in and counted to two. Loco hit a top-rope moonsault, but Rose popped up and hit a Mafia Kick for a nearfall. Loco hit a second-rope superplex for a nearfall at 13:00. Rose applied a Koji Clutch and fell backward on the mat. The original ref rolled into the ring! The first ref counted down Rose’s shoulders. However, the second ref called for the bell at the ‘same time’ because Loco had passed out! We have confusion over who is the winner. Rose headed to the back, clutching his title belt. Loco got on the mic and demanded a rematch.
* Joe Dombrowski thought it was time for our main event, but Trevor Outlaw hit the ring, and he has a neckbrace on. He barked at the crowd and was loudly booed. He said he will keep coming back until there is justice for him. The fans didn’t recognize the music of Camaro Jackson!
11. Camaro Jackson defeated Trevor Outlaw at 00:48. Camaro is the short, Black powerhouse; Outlaw is short, too, but doesn’t have Camaro’s wide frame. Dombrowski said Camaro can squat 600 pounds. Camaro hit a Pounce. He popped Outlaw in the air, caught him on his shoulders, and hit a Bulldog Powerslam for the pin. I love a good squash.
12. Brittnie Brooks defeated Maggie Lee and Zayda Steel in a three-way to retain the Dreamwave Women’s Title at 15:23. Again, I believe all these women are ages 22 or younger. Zayda and Maggie, who were teammates 24 hours ago but ended in them fighting, immediately brawled to the floor. Brittnie dove off the top rope onto both of them. They all brawled on the floor. Dombrowski said it’s clear it’s every woman for herself; the heels aren’t working together. They all brawled to the back but came back out. In the ring, Brittnie hit a bulldog on one while hitting a dropkick on the other at 3:00. Maggie hit a snap suplex on Brittnie and a hard Helluva Kick at 5:30, another suplex and a clothesline.
Maggie Lee hit a doublestomp on Brooks’ collarbone for a nearfall at 8:00 and she tied up Brittnie on the mat. Zayda hit a bulldog and everyone was down. They traded chops while on their knees, then while standing. Brittnie hit a sunset flip powerbomb on Maggie, sending her into the turnbuckles at 11:00. Brittnie hit a running kick to the side of Zayda’s head. Brittnie hit a slingshot elbow drop on Zayda. Maggie hit a Blockbuster on Brittnie, then the I’m Prettier face plant on Maggie.
However, Brittnie hit her own I’m Prettier face plant on Zayda! The ref went to count but he was pulled from the ring by a manager. He went to count again, but Maggie stomped on the ref! Maggie gave Zayda an Alabama Slam onto Brittnie; she covered both women but we had no referee. Maggie hit a Northern Lights Suplex on Brittnie for another visual pin. We got a new ref. Maggie got caught upside down in the Tree of Woe and couldn’t free herself! Brittnie hit an inverted DDT on Zayda for the pin. Fun match with a bit of an overbooked finish with some craziness.
Final Thoughts: I loved the Arez four-way and even though it was short, that takes best match. The show-opener TLC was really good, too, for second, and I’ll go with Bayne-Yamashita for third, just ahead of the main event for honorable mention. The hard-hitting Hartenbower-Manders match deserves recognition, too. No new or unfamiliar names here. The Capri-Fowler match was good when they were both in it, but it really was not good when either or both of their partners were in, but that’s my only complaint on an otherwise top-notch indy event.
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