Wrestling Open RI “Episode 66 – Hard Work” results (9/7): Vetter’s review of Jermaine Marbury vs. Nick Battee in a Timeout match, Kylie Alexa vs. Shannon Levangie for the Wrestling Open Women’s Title

By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)

Wrestling Open RI “Episode 66 – Hard Work”
Streamed on IndependentWrestling.TV
September 7, 2026, in Cranston, Rhode Island, at Rhodes On The Pawtuxet

The venue is an attractive two-story, white ballroom, and the lighting is really good. The crowd was perhaps 125; not bad for a holiday. Paul Crockett, “Handyman” Jake Gray, referee Scott Robinson, and Devin Reno provided commentary.

1. DJ Powers vs. Jay Lyon in a spotlight match. Robinson and Reno provided commentary on this one. This is actually Lyon’s Wrestling Open RI debut! (I like both of these guys, but this doesn’t fit with my idea of what a “spotlight match” should be. Lyon has been wrestling for years!) They traded shoulder blocks. DJ tugged at the mask, then hit a DDT out of the ropes for a nearfall at 3:00.

Powers hit a standing neckbreaker for a nearfall, and he yelled at Ref Gina. He hit a running neckbreaker for a nearfall at 4:30, then some knee drops to the chin for a nearfall. Lyon fired back with an enzuigiri, and they were both down. Lyon hit some clotheslines.DJ twisted the mask and hit a Claymore Kick to the back of the head! The IWTV freezing issue continued, so I missed whatever Powers used as a finisher to win the match. We’ve been on a bad stretch of that happening.

DJ Powers defeated Jay Lyon at 6:57.

* Paul Crockett and “Handyman” Jake Gray took over on commentary for the main show.

2. Dustin Waller vs. Joseph “A-Game” Alexander. A-Game is coming off a great match Sunday against Lee Moriarty, while Waller lost Sunday to Alec Price. Waller charged at the bell and stomped on A-Game. They traded chops. A-Game hit a suplex for a nearfall at 2:00. Waller threw him throat-first across the ropes and took control. They traded more chops, and Waller stomped on him. A-Game caught Waller and hit a back suplex at 4:30.

Waller hit a springboard clothesline and his running Shooting Star Press for a nearfall. Waller hit some superkicks but couldn’t hit the Lethal Injection. A-Game hit a clothesline and a Go To Sleep for a nearfall at 6:30. Dustin hit the Lethal Injection, then a 1916 swinging neckbreaker for the pin! Good match but surprisingly short; I could have easily seen these guys pushing the time limit!

Dustin Waller defeated Joseph “A-Game” Alexander at 7:15. 

* Waller got on the mic and addressed his feud with Ryan O’Neill. He told Ryan to come meet him next week!

* “The Verdict” Bryce Donovan and Vinny “VSK” Scalice came to the ring, and they were holding their Von Erich Classic trophy. Kool N’ The Gang’s “Celebration” played. They made fun of the crowd for not believing in them. Bryce pointed out one kid in the crowd who is always taunting Bryce every week.  “Starstruck” Anthony Greene and Channing Thomas came to the ring and challenged them to a match. Even though The Verdict weren’t in wrestling gear, they accepted!

3. “The Verdict” Bryce Donovan and Vinny ‘VSK’ Scalice vs. “Starstruck” Anthony Greene and Channing Thomas. Vinny and Greene traded basic offense early on. Bryce bodyslammed Channing at 2:00 and posed. Starstruck hit some team offense on Bryce. Vinny got back in and hit a back suplex on Greene at 4:00. Bryce’s shoes came off because he wasn’t dressed to wrestle. VSK had someone from the back bring him his knee pads, which he slid on top of his denim jeans. Channing hit a leg lariat. He put Bryce in a Boston Crab! Scalice made the save. Starstruck backed Bryce into a corner … so Donovan turned and ‘pie-faced’ Ref Gina! She called for the bell! Bryce clearly didn’t mind losing that way.

“Starstruck” Anthony Greene and Channing Thomas defeated “The Verdict” Bryce Donovan and Vinny ‘VSK’ Scalice via DQ at 5:56.

4. Kylie Alexa vs. Shannon LeVangie for the Wrestling Open Women’s Title. The crowd was split, and they each hit an armdrag early on. Kylie leaned her against the ropes and hit a chop. Shannon hit a shotgun dropkick. Shannon hit an Electric Chair drop and got a nearfall at 3:00. They fought to the floor and traded blows at ringside. They got back into the ring with Alexa in charge. She hit a backbreaker over her knee and a senton at 5:30. They traded some kicks. Shannon hit a springboard fadeaway stunner, and they were both down.

LeVangie hit a German Suplex, then a Helluva Kick and an Air Raid Crash for a nearfall at 7:00. Kylie again rolled to the floor to regroup. Shannon hit a Thesz Press off the apron onto Kylie. In the ring, LeVangie missed a Twisted Bliss frog splash. She hit a hard back elbow and got a Code Red at 8:30. However, Kylie hit her own Code Red and a neckbreaker over her knee for a believable nearfall. They fought on the ropes in the corner; Shannon dropped underneath and hit a standing powerbomb, then some forearm strikes. Kylie got a rollup out of the corner, put her feet on the ropes for added leverage, and scored the tainted pin.

Kylie Alexa defeated Shannon LeVangie to retain the Wrestling Open Women’s Title at 10:06.

5. Devin Reno vs. All Go Nelli. AGN got the “in the ring” treatment! That’s not a good sign! Crockett noted that Reno has earned a title shot against Bear Bronson. The big, bald, muscular Reno easily knocked Nelli to the mat. Reno hit a back suplex at 1:00, and he kept the youngster grounded. He hit a hard bodyslam. Nelli hit a shotgun dropkick, sending Devin into the turnbuckles. Reno put Nelli across his shoulders and turned it into a spinning Samoan Drop move for the pin. Cool finisher.

Devin Reno defeated All Go Nelli at 3:54.

* Reno grabbed the mic, but the crowd chanted, “Bear’s gonna kill you!” He called out Bear Bronson! (That never seems like a good idea!) Bronson came to the ring, not dressed to wrestle, and he was holding his Wrestling Open Title belt. Gray said it was a “hellacious weekend” for Bronson. (He competed in the CZW death match tournament, losing in the finals of something called an “Exploding Time Bomb Countdown to Hell deathmatch.” His wife, Gabby Forza, tweeted that she found many new cuts on him.)

Bear said, “Mr. Clean has a title shot,” and the crowd chanted “Mr. Clean!” at Reno. Devin told Bear he respects him. He taunted some fans in the crowd who were jeering him. The fans chanted, “Bald!” at him. Bear told Reno that Devin will be facing Ichiban next week, before he gets his match against Bear in two weeks!

* A reminder that the Shooter Boys recently lost a match and, due to a stipulation, can never team together again in Wrestling Open. So, Anthony Vecchio is here on Mondays, and it appears Aaron Ortiz will move forward on the Thursday shows.

6. Bobby Casale and Anthony Vecchio vs. “Simply the Best” Oxx Adams and Brett Ryan Gosselin. As per usual, the heels came out first so BRG could cut a heel promo. The heels attacked from behind and knocked the babyface duo to the floor. Vecchio may have been legitimately injured upon landing. He was helped to the back. The heels stomped on Casale in the ring. Crockett was talking in a manner that indicated this was a serious and legit ankle injury. Casale hit a back suplex. Crockett said he got “word in his headset” that Vecchio was headed to the hospital.

Oxx and BRG continued to work over Casale. Brett hit an elbow drop for a nearfall at 3:30. Brett taunted the crowd. Casale hit a running Penalty Kick, but he missed a senton. Vecchio limped back to the ring, jumped in, but he superkicked Casale! “What just happened? Why would he do that?” Crockett said. Vecchio hit a TKO Stunner on Casale. He looked at Oxx and shouted, “Finish it!” Oxx looked perplexed, but he hit a Choke Bomb to pin Casale. The crowd loudly booed Vecchio for this heel turn.

“Simply the Best” Oxx Adams and Brett Ryan Gosselin defeated Bobby Casale and Anthony Vecchio at 7:08. 

7. Jermaine Marbury vs. Nick Battee (w/DJ Powers) in a ‘timeout’ match. Basketball player Marbury had a ‘timeout’ match a year ago in Worcester. They each get three timeouts. That match was fun enough, but I don’t know if there were additional ideas they could pull out of the concept. Marbury stood over Battee as Nick was lying on the mat and he ‘dribbled’ Nick’s head. Battee called a timeout at 1:00. Gray thought it was awfully early to use a timeout. After a 30-second break, Marbury chased Battee on the floor.

The crowd chanted, “We want Benny!” because the basketball mascot has noticeably been absent in recent weeks. In the ring, Battee hit a snap suplex. Marbury hit a Pump Kick at 4:00. He went to the top rope, but DJ knocked him off. Jermaine called a timeout so he could chase off Powers! In the ring, Battee suplexed Marbury into the turnbuckles for a nearfall at 5:30. Marbury got a backslide for a nearfall. Battee missed an elbow drop at 7:30 and hurt his elbow.

Jermaine went to the top rope, but Battee called his second timeout. Powers has returned to ringside. Battee raked the eyes, hit a jumping knee, then a Lungblower to the back for a nearfall. Nick flipped Marbury to the floor at 9:30, then he hit a snap suplex onto the thin mat at ringside! Jermaine got back into the ring before the 10-count, but Battee disagreed with the call, and he used his lone “challenge.” The ref left the ring and reviewed the replay on a screen. The ref got back in and said Marbury was in before the 10-count. Furthermore, Battee was charged his third and final timeout at 12:30!

Battee applied a headlock on the mat and kept Marbury grounded. Crockett pointed out that Marbury could call a timeout if he wanted to. Marbury used another timeout to again chase Powers to the back at 15:30. Marbury knocked Powers down. Marbury hit some clotheslines on Battee and dropped him snake-eyes. He hit the Eurostep Neckbreaker and slammed Battee for a nearfall. DJ struck Marbury! Battee hit a Jarrett-style Stroke, then an Axe Kick to the back of the head for the pin at 17:40. A surprise that Marbury lost his own match!

BUT WAIT! Benny the Basketball returned! He used Marbury’s lone “challenge!” The ref reviewed the video replay and saw DJ interfering! He ejected DJ and ordered the match to continue! Marbury almost immediately slammed Battee and got the pin.

Jermaine Marbury defeated Nick Battee in a “Timeout Match” at about 19:00. 

Final Thoughts: First and foremost, I applaud trying new matches. While I don’t love the timeout match, I like that they put a lot of thought into it. We had silly music during the timeouts, making this feel like attending a basketball game. The crowd loved seeing the return of Benny, and Marbury wound up getting the win in his own themed match.

I really should have seen that Vecchio heel turn coming entering this show. Last week, Vecchio cut a good, fiery promo about the need to go on his own as a solo act… then 20 minutes later agreed to be in a tag match on this week’s show. I thought about that a few times this week, how that made no sense to me.

No surprise that Waller vs. A-Game was the best match of the show, and the women’s match earned second. Really, my biggest complaint of the show is that I wanted more minutes from both the Starstruck-Verdict match and the Dustin-Alexander match. I watched this live; it should be posted on IWTV at some point on Tuesday.