A Search for Home: Moone vs. Bengston
by Ami Milian | Twitter: @ahmeehan
Tyson Ngo, better known to the gaming community as TenZ, is a content creator/professional gamer well known for his meteoric success in first-person tactical shooter games like Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) and more recently Valorant.
TenZ first rose to fame in his success as a 17 year old streamer with insane aim and accuracy in CS:GO. Although his play style is that of a cold-killing machine, TenZ himself was the exact opposite. Fans of the streamer loved the infectious personality that showed during his streams. Dominating the scene at such a young age and along with that winning personality, it was a no-brainer that E-Sports organization Cloud 9 signed him to their professional CS:GO team. Unfortunately, when it came to his performance in actual competitions, TenZ wasn’t performing at the level that everyone was expecting. This eventually led to him being benched in October of 2019.
But it wasn’t all bad news for the young prodigy, he found a new home in a new game and a new team: Sentinels. Beating every single team in a qualifier tournament that led to a historic run in Iceland (never dropping a single match). And it was like the stars aligned, the heavy-hitting but loveable virtuoso was unstoppable in this new team. A team that held the first-ever global champion title in Valorant, on top of that TenZ earned the title of Grand Finals MVP.
Credit: Riot Games
TenZ is not just relatable to those that are fans of Valorant, but his story is akin to both Sandra Moone and Darian Bengston. Both competitors, like TenZ, felt overlooked by those in their early starts and came to Indianapolis to make a name for themselves. Although starting from different scenes, both have started to call NAP their second home, coming to Indy to hone their craft and find something special, and that’s exactly what happened.
In the words of NAP Owner J-Rose, “Sandra and Darian truly made Indiana and by proxy Indianapolis their stomping grounds”. Just like TenZ, they’re extremely proficient in their craft while still being among some of the most loveable people in the industry and Saturday, May 20th, Bengston and Moone bring their skills and passion for the Circle City to the squared circle at NAP Blackout 2 to see who’s currently Indianapolis’s greatest wrestling import,
Saturday, fresh off her iconic dream tag team partnership with the legendary Chigusa Nagayo, Sandra Moone comes back to what she calls “one of her favorite places” to challenge UK’s very own Darian Bengston. Moone now has a longtime standing in Indy, starting her meteoric rise right in our backyard, with Paradigm Pro Wrestling’s No Hook. Winning against fierce competitors like NAP favorite Billie Starkz. Making her mark she was invited back to show off her skills again in July 2021 at Paradigm’s Midnight Marauders scramble, where she emerged victorious.
Bengston has roots even further entrenched in Indiana as a member of the Hoosier Shakes Theater Program but he has truly come into his own here at NAP gaining victories against the likes of NAP co-founders Chase Holliday and Calvin Tankman. Although this is their first singles bout, these two heavy hitters have shared a ring before. Just recently, Bengston and Moone found themselves in a scramble for GrapHouse (Moone’s home promotion in Las Vegas) battling it out for a chance to make a match happen at any time. In the early days of NAP both found themselves in a heated scramble at the first Blackout (April 2022). Moone found herself victorious in yet another scramble. And this Saturday it becomes a full circle moment one might say and one you should definitely look out for.
Credit: Jayson Martinez (IG: @gloomlnldoom)
Moone and Bengston have shared how much this match means to them. When asked about Moone, Bengston called it a privilege and one his biggest challenges to date. He lauds her hard work and dedication to the craft, deeming her “one of the best-unsigned wrestlers in the world” and thanks NAP for giving the two of them the chance to battle it out this Saturday, May 20th at World Famous Hotboys in Fountain Square. Moone tweeted out that she’s wanted this match since they first met and now she’s got the chance to. She also thanks NAP for being such an incredible promotion that is in the business of “fueling bigger dreams”. Asking her about why Bengston is a dream match for her, she responded with, “It’s dreamy, hard-hitting, oozes charisma, and [is] just plain great wrestling”. Both competitors praise each other not only for their talent but for the energy and personality they give each other. Bengston calling Moone “infectious and full of fire”, Moone doing the same by comparing Darian to a ray of light, commending him for his passion.
Even J-Rose is excited for this match with him commending the two competitors as being “incredibly important to the continued development and evolution of the Indiana independent wrestling scene”.
Both unstoppable in their new home, the stars are aligning for this match to be an absolute banger. You won’t want to miss it when it all goes down on Saturday, May 20th at Blackout 2.
