Tessa Morton entered the Pinball Gallery Pokemon Launch Party Women’s Tournament on June 28, 2026, as the clear ratings favorite, and she delivered a performance to match that expectation. Ranked 2,808 globally by the IFPA, the Malvern local has been steadily improving her rating this season, striving to return to her 2024 career peak of 1,120. Over a 6-year competitive career spanning 147 tournaments, she has collected 12 wins and 28 top-3 finishes in the past 3 years alone. On Sunday evening, in a 16-player Max Match Play format designed to keep competitors constantly engaged without fixed rounds, Morton secured 1st place by putting up the top score on 9 of her 10 assigned machines.
The event drew a mix of 10 ranked competitors and 6 unranked players to the Pinball Gallery. Located on Lancaster Avenue in Malvern, Pennsylvania, the establishment holds a 4.9 rating from 292 reviews and operates Wednesday through Sunday. The arcade gives patrons the convenience of paying by the hour rather than feeding quarters into the slots to enjoy their extensive lineup. The tournament required 80 total games to be played across 130 minutes of continuous action.
Stern’s Pokémon Premium Takes Center Stage
The tournament was built around the debut of Stern’s Pokémon Premium, which was released in February 2026. For competitors stepping up to the new machine, the primary objective during multiball is specific: aim for the center standup targets to break the Team Rocket mech and start the multiball modes.
Tessa Morton navigated the 84-machine lineup with remarkable consistency, only dropping points on one table all night. She ultimately strung together a 9-game win streak on her way to the top of the podium. The Pennsylvania NACS standings added regional context to the evening, with Kim Smith entering as the highest state-ranked player in the room at 53. Smith, a veteran of 11 years with 187 tournaments to her name, finished the night in 9th place.
Embryon Hits 45 While Thallmayer Breaks a Tie
While the new Pokémon release drew eyes, the event also highlighted a piece of pinball history. Bally’s Embryon marked its 45-year anniversary this month, having originally rolled off the production line in June 1981. Designed by Claude Fernandez with art by Tony Ramunni, the widebody machine features 4 flippers and a production run of 2,250 units. The table averaged 5-minute matches during the tournament. A reliable strategic approach on Embryon is to backhand the right saucer from a trap, utilizing either flipper to safely secure points.
Elsewhere in the room, long-standing local contests continued to develop. Anita Thallmayer and Terri Morton came into the evening with a 17-tournament shared history. Thallmayer, currently sitting at IFPA 3,868 and holding 22 top-3 finishes over her last 3 years of play across 325 career tournaments, finished ahead of Morton this time around to take a step forward in their ongoing rivalry. Terri Morton, ranked 3,609 globally and sitting at 84 in the state standings, also found herself paired with Kaylee Fauth twice during the event. Morton finished ahead of Fauth in both of their shared games.
Bollman and Adams Test the Top Seeds
The Max Match Play format ensured rapid pairings, but some games demanded patience. On the 1981 Bally classic Eight Ball Deluxe, featuring a billiards theme and a design by George Christian, Krista Bollman secured a solid 1st-place finish. She came out ahead of Terri Morton in a match that wrapped up in a brisk 4 minutes. For players approaching Eight Ball Deluxe, if the return from the pop bumpers feels comfortable, repeatedly shooting the left orbit is a proven way to build a strong score.
The longest reported showdown of the night unfolded on Gottlieb’s 1990 Deadly Weapon. Designed by John Trudeau and Jon Norris, the machine saw a limited production run of 803 units and features a kicking target. Tessa Morton faced off against Jhenny Adams on the table in a 2-player game that stretched to 11 minutes. Adams has seen her rating trend upward over the past year to reach IFPA 52,127, but Morton ultimately took the full point in that head-to-head encounter.
9 Wins and a Crowded Second Place
The defining detail of the evening remained Tessa Morton’s commanding run of 9 consecutive game wins, placing her well above her career average finish of 13. That uninterrupted streak created a significant gap at the top of the standings, leaving the rest of the top seeds to battle for the runner-up spot. Elizabeth Hollinger, currently ranked 29,311 in the world with just 6 total tournaments on her resume, managed to fight her way into the logjam at the top of the standings.
She was joined by Imogen Berecz, an unranked competitor in the global standings who sits at 635 in the Pennsylvania NACS, yet drew on her 7 years of active play to match the leaders. After 80 total games were recorded, 4 players found themselves deadlocked directly behind the leader to round out the podium.
Top of the Top:
- 1st: Tessa Morton
- 2nd: Anita Thallmayer (tied)
- 2nd: Imogen Berecz (tied)
- 2nd: Jhenny Adams (tied)
- 2nd: Elizabeth Hollinger (tied)
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