[cheers and applause]
- Welcome to Universal Studios,
where we built a two lane race course in the middle
of New York Street all for the semifinals
of "American Ninja Warrior."
Hello, everyone, and thanks for joining us.
I'm Matt Iseman.
- And I'm Akbar Gbajabiamila.
Matt, we saw it last week.
There's nothing like head-to-head racing.
These ninjas will be going all-out,
trying to punch their ticket to Vegas.
- Our seedings are based off how far
or how fast they went in qualifying,
and this crowd tonight is going to see some
of Ninja's all-time greats.
For a preview, let's go down to Zuri Hall.
- Guys, we have got some crazy matchups tonight,
including good friends going head-to-head
on our sixth obstacle course.
The Jersey Girlz, training partners
Abby Clark and Rachel Degutz, will have to race each other.
Plus, it could be the final run for the Phoenix,
Najee Richardson.
He'll have to beat young Mazeiah Andrade
just to keep his season alive,
and Ninja great Joe Moravsky will face off
against Noah Jones, who asked for his autograph
just a few years ago.
Buckle up, guys. This is going to be fun.
- Well, we're starting with one of our fastest,
Luke Dillon. He's a number two seed.
He'll be going against
New York's City's Ramcis Valdez,
a 23 seed who had to win
a runoff race just to get here.
But these two do have one thing in common.
- Sure, this could be cut.
All right, cool.
Ramcis and I, we have similar hairdos.
We both have the curly, puffy thing going on.
I don't know what products he's using.
It might be similar, maybe he's copying my game.
- Shampoo, conditioner, and then after that,
you've just got to pat it dry a little bit.
If we both had our back turned,
the only way you'd be able to tell us apart
is by my height.
- I don't know what Ramcis is doing for his hair,
but it'll be interesting to see
what it looks like wet tonight.
- I promise you, by the end of this race,
somebody with this hairstyle is going to Vegas.
- Well, their hair may be the same,
but their Ninja résumés are very different.
Luke's already racked up four buzzers
in his young career,
while this is Ramcis' first year
competing in "Ninja."
[cheers and applause]
- Luke will have girlfriend Avery Glantz on his sideline.
- Let's go, Ramcis!
- And Ramcis' girlfriend Giselle and his dad
will be cheering for him.
- Ramcis does his training on the streets of New York.
That's that concrete jungle, not a gym.
He's a big underdog in this race.
[countdown clock beeping]
- Ooh, look at that fast start by Ramcis.
- Bounding out.
Luke Dillon had one of the fastest times in qualifying,
but he's already playing catch up to Valdez.
- He is determined, Matt. - Wow.
- He feels like he's at home in New York.
- Luke Dillon had to be surprised.
Ramcis' exploding out on this course.
- Ramcis is not letting up.
He's like, "Uh-uh, I'm going to Vegas.
You're not stopping me from getting there my rookie year."
- Luke Dillon just seems discombobulated.
Ramcis Valdez continues
to make short work of this course.
[cheers and applause]
- He knows exactly what it takes.
- Well, the two fastest finishers
will race for a safety pass at the end of the night.
Ramcis Valdez running like he wants to be one of them.
- But Luke Dillon still has a chance.
It's going to come down to Slingshot.
This fifth obstacle is a beast.
It ended a lot of runs last week.
- And here comes Dillon.
It's not over.
No, Ramcis Valdez goes down!
Valdez was ahead the entire time.
Now, Luke Dillon can pull off the come from behind win,
but he has to finish this obstacle to do it.
His fate is in his hands.
- Now, that's the big drop. He's got to hold on.
Whoa!
- It's never over in these side-by-side races.
Has to transfer, has to make the transfer to the leg climb.
- Nice.
- And with that, Luke Dillon survives!
- You never know how it's going to shake out
here in the semifinals. - Whew!
- Let's go!
[cheers and applause]
- Ramcis Valdez ran a great race.
He put a scare into Luke Dillon.
- Hey, Luke, the entire race, Ramcis was out ahead.
How did you stay in the game?
- I was looking at his hair.
It kind of looked like mine. I don't know.
I was focused on that, but yeah,
we just finished it up. It was a great time.
- Hey, Luke, you did it.
You're going back to Vegas, buddy.
Congratulations. - Let's go!
Whoo!
- Up next, it's two women from Massachusetts.
From Holliston, it's 24-year-old Casey Rothschild
taking on 28-year-old Taylor Johnson,
better known as Teej, who's from Foxborough.
Both these women are "Ninja" veterans.
Casey is our tallest woman of the night
at 5'8,
while Teej is our shortest at just 4'11.
Teej is definitely the underdog in this race,
but she is a fighter just like her mom.
[tender music]
- I've been working as a financial analyst
for Massachusetts General Hospital
Cancer Center Protocol Office for about a year now.
OK, great. Thank you.
This job is super meaningful for me
because cancer has had a huge impact on my family,
especially my mom who has battled
multiple different types of cancer,
including thyroid cancer, breast cancer,
as well as multiple different types of skin cancer.
* *
- Every day, Taylor came with me.
* *
She really was just awesome to have with me
and be so supportive to me. I loved it.
Cheers.
- It means a lot to have my mom watch me tonight,
because I can show her that all the perseverance
and hard work that she's shown me
is going to pay off when I do great
on the course tonight.
* *
- And of course, Teej's mom
is watching this run along with her dad.
- Teej has got her work cut out for her.
If she can pull off an upset,
she'd be the shortest to ever make it to Vegas.
[countdown clock beeping]
- Let's go, Taylor! Straight through!
- Every obstacle is a little harder
when you're 4'11,
including these steps on Home Run.
- Casey Rothschild was a college track star
at Wesleyan University, and she was
very fast back in qualifying.
Whoa, Taylor Johnson takes a tumble on the landing,
but gets right back up.
She has a background in gymnastics,
started "Ninja" competition five years ago,
but has never qualified for Vegas.
- Come on, Taylor!
- Casey Rothschild, on the other hand,
has been to the national finals
the past two seasons,
and she is first off Beehive.
- Let's go! - Casey!
- Let's go! - Come on, Teej!
- Teej's sideline telling her to get going,
and she's staying within striking distance.
Both athletes on Hopscotch.
Teej giving Casey all she can handle.
- Oh, Casey is starting to grimace here.
It's the blind grab.
- No!
And Rothchild splashes down.
That means Taylor Johnson can win,
but she has to complete this obstacle.
- Get off of Hopscotch.
- Teej delivers!
And she's earned her first trip to Vegas.
- Wow.
[cheers and applause]
- Her friends know just how much this means to her.
She's going to keep going to try and get a buzzer.
Will have to survive Slingshot.
- Come on, Teej.
Oh!
- Bounces out on Slingshot, but it doesn't matter.
After five years, Taylor Johnson
is going to make her first trip to the national finals.
- Nice job, Teej!
- Let's look at this.
Casey was out in front, but watch her right hand.
It slid right off the ledge,
so that means Teej has to finish Hopscotch
to get the win, and she did.
At 4'11", she's the shortest
ever to qualify for the national final.
- Dude, I'm finally, going to Vegas.
It's taken me way too long to get here.
I'm so excited. This is great.
- Tonight, it's Ninja titans versus Ninja teens.
- I'm a foot taller, 60 pounds heavier,
20 years older.
- We'll see new mom Michelle Warnky Burma
going against a 16-year-old.
- She could be a great age to babysit Grace.
[laughter]
- And a young superfan will race
his hero Joe Moravsky.
- Noah Jones is just a kid.
- Who's going to survive and make it to Vegas
on the semifinals of "American Ninja Warrior"?
- It's the second night of semifinals,
and minutes ago, the Papal Ninja Sean Bryan,
who's the night's number one seed,
took on Massachusetts police officer John Uga.
Bryan had the fastest time of the night back in qualifying,
and he jumped out in front tonight.
- We've got the po-po chasing the Papal Ninja.
- Uga remained in hot pursuit, until he reached Beehive.
- No!
That gave Bryan the win, but after finishing Hopscotch,
he felt some tightness in his arms
and bowed out to avoid injury.
But no matter, he'll be making his sixth trip to Vegas.
Then New Jersey wedding photographer Ibrahim Hayek
took on Massachusetts gym owner
Matt D'Amico, whose motto is
every course is a speed course.
- Come on, Matt! Let's go!
- And while D'Amico came out fast,
Hayek stayed close behind,
until he reached the third obstacle.
- Oh, my goodness, he spun out.
- D'Amico got the easy win.
The speedster took his foot off the gas
and coasted to a buzzer.
He's going to Vegas for the second year in a row.
[buzzer blares]
- Back to back appearances, that's got to feel great
for Matt D'Amico.
- Well, talk about a stark contrast.
Take a look at our next match up.
It's the Beast, 36-year-old James McGrath,
taking on the Red Bomb,
baby faced 16-year-old Evan Bomengen.
- When I hear that I'm going against
James 'The Beast' McGrath, it is a little nerve-racking.
[upbeat music]
* *
- I'm a foot taller, 60 pounds heavier,
20 years older.
* *
- I do track and cross country.
- Come on, Evan, finish it off!
- So what I lack in height, I make up for
in good body control and quickness.
- Even though this is his rookie year
and I wish him the best, I'm going to have
to send this kid packing.
I want to make it back to Vegas.
- I'm not well known in the Ninja world right now,
but after tonight, I hope to be known
as the one who slayed the Beast.
* *
[cheers and applause]
- Of course, James McGrath, he's got
all the experience on his side.
He started competing 14 years ago.
- Yes, let's go, James. Come on.
- Well, that was fiancée, "Ninja" great Allyssa Beird,
cheering for him back at home,
- Come on, Evan!
and the Red Bomb's got his family
and mentor Joe Moravsky on the sideline.
This is a test of old guard versus new guard.
It's the Beast versus the Red Bomb.
James, a track star, bounds out.
- Oh, he's showing.
He's showing the kid he got it.
- He's going to put the pressure on the Red Bomb.
McGrath's going to try to link moves on Spring Forward.
Now, here comes Evan.
- Evan is throwing himself into it.
He's got to link them a little quicker.
- Come on, you've got it. Go, go, go, come on.
- McGrath starts Beehive first,
almost a foot taller,
but 60 pounds more mass, this is where
Red Bomb could have the edge.
- I'd tell the Red Bomb here, Evan,
you've got to run your race, and you've got to move
as fast as you can run.
- The Beast, looking strong, trying to get
to Vegas for the seventh time.
- Go, go, go!
- Evan's family telling him to turn it on.
And here he comes, but you've got to be careful
here on Hopscotch.
None of these obstacles are easy,
and this is where you really start to feel that fatigue.
But Red Bomb is keeping it close,
and believe me, McGrath is a rower.
That kid is closing.
- Yeah, you put a kid on Hopscotch,
he might just go tip, tip, tap.
- And McGrath, one move away, completing another obstacle.
- It ain't over til it's over.
When you've got ninja versus ninja here,
it ain't ever over.
- The Red Bomb a little twisted.
- All right, here we go. Now, they're tied up.
They're evened up. He's got to go.
- There you go.
Come on, you can do it, come on.
- Now, Evan has got to lean into his youth.
In your youth, you never get tired.
You've got to go! - A little uneven for McGrath.
He's got to watch it. - Evan is only 100 pounds.
Come on, Red Bomb!
This is where you've got to blow up the spot.
- The veteran trying to outlast the teenager.
McGrath staying alive slightly ahead...
- Oh, my goodness, come on.
- It looks like the Beast is responding.
- Dig in deep, Evan, dig in deep!
- It's going to be close.
Can McGrath launch himself to the bar?
Yes, he's got it.
Red Bomb, refusing to quit.
- Wow.
- Now McGrath just needs to climb up the rope.
The 36-year-old turns back the clock
just as Bomengen goes down,
but he pushed McGrath to the limit.
- Whoo!
- You're good, man.
- And Bomengen could still move on
if he's one of our two fasted non-finishers.
- Hey, get over here, man.
Get over here.
- This is my first time back at Vegas Finals.
This is insane.
all: Beast is back! Beast is back!
- You can hear the cheer.
They're saying the beast is back.
You're back, baby. - Heck yeah, let's go.
- Whoo!
* *
- Whoo!
- Speaking of Vegas, we're now just
two weeks away from the start of our national finals.
- All right, here we go.
- And for the first time ever, we're adding
side by side racing on stage two.
- Oh! - Whoa!
And this year, someone's climbing stage four
and taking home $1 million.
- It's going to be an epic event.
- But up next, two very different
workout warriors.
One puts in the miles.
The other's got the muscles.
- I'm really hoping that I beat you,
but if I do, please don't hurt me.
I'm small. - Plus, one's got a baby.
The other's barely old enough to babysit.
"Ninja" great Michelle Warnky Buurma
and teenager Emily Gardiner square off
when "American Ninja Warrior" returns.
- Minutes ago, the first half of Ninja's new power couple
hit the course
as Massachusetts 17-year-old Noah Meunier stepped up
with his girlfriend Addy Herman
cheering from the sideline
along with his dad.
He was racing against 35-year-old Nate Tackett,
who had his family watching back in Ohio.
Tackett, a former football star,
kept it close early.
- All right, now he's got to Spring Forward.
- But Meunier pulled away on Beehive.
- Ooh, ooh, ooh!
- Tackett's fall gave the win to Meunier,
but the impressive teenager kept pushing.
- Ooh, look at the way he's just flying across.
- He made it to the buzzer
with the fastest finish so far.
He's now in line to run for the safety pass
at the end of the night.
- Let's go, buddy!
- Now his girlfriend Addy Herman
will take her shot at the course.
The Massachusetts high-schooler
will be racing California clothing designer
Brittney Durant.
Addy is our number one women's seed.
She went further than any woman in Vegas last year,
but she's never hit a buzzer, while Brittney Durant
got her first buzzer last season,
Though she comes in as a number eight seed,
she could still be dangerous.
Britney's going to have some of her Northern California
training partners cheering her on
while Addy's family, friends, and boyfriend Noah
are on her sideline.
- Let's go, Addy. - Come on, Addy.
- Addy hoping to join Noah in Vegas
and maybe get that first buzzer.
[countdown clock beeping]
- Both these women are capable of finishing.
It's going to come down to who wants it the most.
- They're showing out.
Oh, both survived.
Looked like a dead heat through the first one.
- All right, Spring Forward is where
you can really get ahead here if you
can link the laches together. Nice.
- Addy did it.
Brittney taking an extra swing.
- Ooh.
- You don't want to be chasing Addy Herman.
- Once you get into Chase mode,
it's very easy to make a mistake.
And you can see Addy has got great position.
- She's just keeping the pressure on her,
really building up power with the hips.
- Yeah, let's go. - Come on, Addy, you got this.
- Come on!
- Addy pauses for a moment.
And here comes Durant
as they both get ready for Hopscotch.
- Nice.
- Addy Herman keeping the pressure
on Brittney Durant.
But Durant hanging tough, big man.
- Brittney Durant is not giving up.
She knows exactly what she wants to do,
and that's get to Vegas.
But if you want to get to Vegas,
you got to get through this one here.
Oh! - Durant goes down!
And Addy Herman gets the win.
The 17-year-old going to Vegas.
And now Addy can focus on getting
that coveted first buzzer.
- You got this, come on. - Finish that course.
Be efficient. - Get that buzzer, girl.
- She'll need to get through Slingshot,
which has taken down a lot of top ninjas tonight.
Yeah, upper body test here, 5'4", 125.
- Matt, remember, she's coming off a second place finish
in our women's championship earlier this year.
We know how good she is,
but a buzzer would mean a lot.
- Just a little more on the ascent here.
- Oh.
- On Slingshot.
- Watch that right arm, starting to give a little bit.
But that's all right.
- A big drop here. - Come on, Addy.
Get that buzzer.
You're already going to the national finals.
Get that buzzer, baby. - Get to the bar.
Incredible!
- I see you, Addy!
- Can she get to the rope climb?
Oh, does the grip have anything left?
- Go for it, Addy, everything you got.
- Fighting. - She's fighting for it.
- Fingers giving out.
- Oh, Matt, that buzzer is so close.
She is not giving up.
- But her fingers are slipping!
Oh! - [laughs]
- Her first buzzer eludes her,
but she is going back to Vegas.
- Great job, Addy!
- Brittney Durant kept it close early,
but when she went down, it became a battle
for Addy to get that buzzer.
She came so close,
but her grip just gave out.
- And she and her boyfriend are going to Vegas together.
Our next two come from very different backgrounds.
We've got California's Verdale Benson,
an Army veteran and physician assistant,
who's 42, going against Jonathan Godbout,
who's 18 and a heavy metal drummer.
But both these guys are fitness fanatics.
Verdale is a bodybuilder
who can deadlift over 500 pounds.
[energetic rock music]
Godbout is an endurance athlete who recently
did a three-day stair climb equivalent to the height
of Mount Everest.
- Jonathan is absolutely a fitness freak.
He created his own triathlon. Like, who does that?
- Go get it. 112 starts now.
Almost there, you got it.
- He is such an incredible athlete.
When I stand next to him, I am definitely
a little bit intimidated by his size.
* *
- When he was born, I was a 24-year-old lieutenant
leading soldiers in Afghanistan.
So there's a little bit of an age gap there,
but I'm looking forward to the challenge.
* *
- Verdale, I'm really hoping that I beat you,
but if I do, please don't hurt me.
I'm small.
- Matt, this is an interesting match-up.
I'm looking forward to this one.
- Come on, Jonathan. Let's go!
- Jonathan's got his family on his sideline.
- Yay. Verdale Benson.
- And Verdale's mom is watching from her home
in South Carolina.
Which of these fitness fanatics will prevail?
- Verdale is over 200 pounds.
That's going to be tough on these upper body obstacles.
- Oh, excuse me, he's got more than muscles.
He's got speed.
Godbout's got to be a little surprised here.
- Wow.
- And look at those bars dip.
- I did not see this one coming out of the big fella.
What? Oh, my goodness.
- Verdale in the lead.
- Do not judge a book by its cover.
The big fella, 205 pounds of muscle
is keeping up with Godbout. - What a race!
- He's in front of Godbout. - Come on.
- Oh, this is about to get real.
- This is why we love it. - Oh, my goodness.
- Neck and neck.
Too close to call.
- I apologize to Verdale Benson.
- He's our second oldest athlete tonight,
24 years older than Godbout.
- Oh, man.
- Godbout picking up the pace here.
- With a semifinal race, you never know.
It ain't over till it's over.
- And Godbout first off on hopscotch.
No! - Oh!
- Rats.
- Verdale Benson's out on Hopscotch,
so Godbout can celebrate.
He's going to Vegas.
Now he's gonna try and get a buzzer.
But as we just saw with Addy Herman,
Slingshot is a tough obstacle with tired arms.
- Let's go, Jonathan.
- Verdale Benson pushed Godbout,
but it's tough to land
on those small ledges on Hopscotch,
and he just missed with his right hand.
- Credit to Godbout though. He delivers.
Now just needs to get the rope,
and he'll pick up his second buzzer of the season.
- Come on, get up there, young fella.
- Godbout rocking out,
gets that buzzer. [laughs]
- Yes! Whoo!
Yeah!
[cheers and applause]
- You're going back to Vegas. - Yeah!
Let's go!
- We've got "Ninja" veterans trying to keep
their season alive when we come back.
- One half of another one of our ninja power couples
hit the course minutes ago.
It was Rhode Island's 16-year-old
Kevin Rodriguez, who is cheered on
by his girlfriend ninja Emily Gardiner.
- Let's go, Kev!
- He was facing a 17-year-old from Virginia,
Austin Baron, who had his family on the sidelines.
- Come on, Austin!
- Rodriguez got the jump at the start
and was first onto Spring Forward,
putting the pressure on Baron.
- Ooh!
- Baron's early fall meant an easy win for Rodriguez.
- If you get out strong, it puts
so much pressure on the person behind.
[cheers and applause]
- He was able to cruise the rest of the way,
and the rookie got his second buzzer of the season.
- Nice.
Get that buzzer.
- Let's go!
- And now his girlfriend, Emily Gardiner,
gets her chance.
The high school student will be going against one
of the all-time "Ninja" greats Michelle Warnky Buurma,
who's returned to compete at 38 after the birth
of her daughter Grace.
- 16 years old, Emily Gardiner in the driver's seat.
- It's been really exciting to see
all the youth that are coming up.
And there's a lot of young women powerhouses,
and Emily's one of those.
- Turn the key to the ignition.
- There it is! Yes, She's done it!
- What?
- Michelle's Ninja career has just showed me
how far women can go in this sport.
- The queen, the queen, the second woman ever
to hit a buzzer in semifinals.
- I grew up watching her,
and she was such an inspiration to me.
- Going up against Emily, I'm excited.
She's 16 years old.
It works out perfectly.
She could be a great age to babysit Grace.
- [laughs]
[cheers and applause]
- Baby Grace of course will be watching
along with the rest of Michelle's family.
And Emily's parents are over there, too,
her boyfriend Kevin just behind them.
Michelle Warnky Buurma's been to Vegas six times.
Can she get there again?
[countdown clock beeping]
- Michelle Warnky Buurma, more than twice the age.
- And Buurma, an aggressive start.
Look at that.
Michelle came to play, big man.
Buurma doesn't get to train as much since becoming a mom.
She's relying on years of ninja knowledge,
and it's working so far.
- Now Emily's gotta catch up.
- Look at Michelle.
- All right, here we go.
You gotta get on that Beehive real quick.
- Remember, it's not who starts the obstacle first,
it's who finishes the previous one.
- Nice.
- And Gardiner moves slightly ahead
for the first time.
Gardiner's first season on "Ninja Warrior,"
and she's handling the pressure.
Warnky Buurma started competing 10 years ago.
These two are neck and neck.
And Gardiner gets off first.
That is big.
She is putting the pressure back on Warnky Buurma.
Gardner up onto Hopscotch.
- Gotta hustle. Let's go.
- And Gardner continues to keep the pressure
on the legend Warnky Buurma. - Oh!
- And Michelle goes down, and Emily has done it.
- She was first off beehive.
So she gets the win even if she doesn't finish.
- Oh.
- Well, she also falls on Hopscotch,
but it doesn't matter.
She's moving on.
[cheers and applause]
- They came out fast
and may have been gassed at Hopscotch.
Michelle missed,
and Emily was right behind her.
But the rookie wins this battle.
- We will see you at the national finals
in Las Vegas.
Congratulations, girl, you did it.
Let's get your family in here. Bring them in.
There we go.
Matt, Akbar, back to you.
- Well, this crowd's fired up for our next race.
Headed to the start line is the Phoenix,
Philadelphia's Najee Richardson.
He'll be going against New Jersey high school student
Mazeiah Andrade.
These two have become friends this season.
- Oh, playing a little rock paper scissors.
- And look at the smile on Mazeiah's face.
So happy to be a part of this after his journey to get here.
Mazeiah was born over four months premature
and weighed only one pound at birth.
After struggling for years with physical
and verbal challenges, he found Ninja
and has developed into one of the sport's rising stars.
- Having to come from being one pound
to constantly having to build myself up.
I faced a few obstacles, but nothing's
going to take me down.
- Mazeiah has been a fighter literally from the moment
he entered this world.
He has that story that just inspires.
- Oh! - Oh!
The Phoenix can fly!
- Mazeiah, you're an amazing kid,
but the Phoenix still knows how to fly.
- Najee's contemplating retiring from Ninja,
so if he doesn't advance, this could be his last run.
His wife McKenzie is watching back in Philly
along with his parents.
And Mazeiah's family is here on the sidelines.
[cheers and applause]
- Dude, have some fun, man. - All right.
- Have a good time, dude.
You got this. - That's pretty cool.
This could be his final run,
and he takes time to give advice to the young kid.
- Najee's been one of the greats for so long.
Hopefully this won't be it for him.
- Ooh.
- A little stumble there, Najee.
- Oh, and that might just be what Mazeiah needs to get in.
And now they're tied up.
- How about this?
Mazeiah matching the Phoenix.
- Well, the Phoenix is flying,
and we know that's exactly what he likes to do.
Well, Mazeiah's not intimidated.
- He's just incredible.
Mazeiah born prematurely, had problems
with his motor skills,
but he's hanging close with the Phoenix.
The Phoenix starting to spread his wings here on Hopscotch,
but here comes Mazeiah.
- Matt, you never can count the young fellow out.
Anything could happen,
but this is where Najee Richardson thrives.
He loves the aerial moves.
- He can show five world records to prove it.
- No!
- And with Mazeiah's fall, Najee gets the win.
He's going back to Vegas.
Now the Phoenix can relax
and go for the 13th buzzer of his career.
- And at least we know we'll see more of Najee.
He's not ready to say goodbye. Whoa!
- Najee goes down, but the Phoenix
will rise again in Las Vegas.
- Good job, baby. Good job.
[cheers and applause]
- Going back to Vegas. It's been a while.
Huh. Should be fun.
- Up next, they're good friends,
but one of them is going home.
It's the battle of the Jersey Girlz
when "American Ninja Warrior" returns.
- Our semi-final races roll on
here at Universal Studios.
Moments ago, college student Jay 'Lache' Lewis,
who made it to stage four last season,
faced off against animal rescue worker
Alex Goodwin, who got off to a wild start.
- Ooh!
Damn, he sprinted out like a tiger.
- But Jay 'Lache' lived up to his nickname
and came roaring back in the air.
- He is the lache king.
- Goodwin stayed within striking distance
through the Beehive, but he fell behind
on Hopscotch and then...
- Ooh.
- Just fell,
and Jay 'Lache' was able to keep flying.
He posted the second fastest time of the night,
putting him in line to run for the safety pass.
- It was an aerial assault by Jay 'Lache' Louis.
- Then it was another athlete
who climbed stage four last year,
New Jersey's Josiah Pippel.
He squared off against "Ninja" great
Jamie Rahn, Captain NBC,
who had his green haired fans going crazy.
The superhero came out flying
against the much younger Pippel.
They were neck and neck
going into the third obstacle...
- Oh, my goodness. Hold on to your seat.
- Until Rahn splashed down. - Oh!
That gave the win to Pippel
who kept his foot on the accelerator.
- Get up high on that rope. Ooh.
- He came through with the fastest time of the night,
pushing Jay 'Lache' out of the top two.
So right now it would be Pippel
racing Noah Meunier at the end of the night
for the safety pass,
which gives them a second chance
if they fall at the national finals.
- And that's huge.
A safety pass can be
a million dollar difference in Vegas.
- Guys, they're known as the Jersey Girlz,
but tonight good friends Abby Clark and Rachel Degutz
will have to put friendship aside
and race each other to the buzzer.
Rachel is a middle school teacher,
and Abby is a gym owner.
These two have been training together for years,
but only one is going to keep their season alive
and move on to the national finals.
- Let's go. - Whoo!
- Time to work out.
- It's great to represent New Jersey.
Jersey girls are super gritty.
We work hard and play hard.
We like to have fun.
[both cheering]
- I'm expecting it be a really close race.
- Tell them what you want. Nice.
- We train together,
so we know each other really well,
but only one of us is going to be moving on to Vegas
no matter how badly we both want to be there.
It's going to be a bittersweet night for both of us.
- We'll just hit the buzzer at the same time
so you have to take both of us.
[upbeat music]
[cheers and applause]
- Matt, I have no idea who's going to win this one.
This is too close to call.
Abby was in the final four for the women's championship,
and Rachel has been in Vegas the past two years.
[cheers and applause]
- Many of the northeast ninjas watching this one,
including Abby's boyfriend Joe.
- Come on! - Let's go!
- Whoo!
- And that's Degutz's signature scream.
Does it before every run.
- Ooh, they about to go full send.
Two good friends, one's about to send the other home.
[countdown clock beeping]
Whew! - Wow.
- Nice. - Bounding out.
- OK, we're going to have us a good race.
This one's going to be so close.
Both these athletes 5'3", but they're coming up big.
- Ooh. - Look at Degutz.
- Rachel Degutz just throwing her body into the air.
- Well, she is selling out.
- With no regards for personal safety.
- You saw Abby Clark almost stumbled on the launch
to the Beehive.
- Rachel Degutz is holding nothing back.
She wants it.
- Powering through.
- Beyoncé doesn't even have control
over the Beehive like that.
- Abby Clark is hanging in there,
but she's going to have to make up some ground.
- Well, now it's going to be up to Rachel Degutz
to maintain because it's very easy to get gassed out
as you go longer and longer on this course.
- And here comes Abby Clark.
Uh-oh, that speed catches up to you.
- Oh.
- Abby Clark is down, and Degutz delivers.
She gets the win.
[cheers and applause]
Got to be a little bittersweet.
She eliminated her friend Abby Clark.
Degutz has never hit a buzzer though.
She's going to keep going and try to get one tonight.
But Slingshot is a big ask.
- Matt, she wants her first buzzer.
She's already won the race,
but there's nothing more gratifying to know
you hit that buzzer and you got your sparks.
- Ooh. - Come on.
- Let's go!
- Her friends screaming for her.
They know just how much this would mean to her.
- Oh, she is fighting for it. - Yes!
She can see it. - Degutz senses it.
- She can see it. She's looking at it.
She wants it.
She's not even looking at the pole
that she's grabbing onto. - Her third season.
Can she get there?
Yes, Rachel Degutz climbing
to her first ever buzzer.
What a moment for this Jersey girl.
[buzzer blares]
- She's got tears in her eyes.
We've got tears on the sidelines.
- Abby Clark cheering, too,
even though her season is over.
- There you go! - Whoo!
- Let it out. Let it out.
[cheers and applause]
It's your first buzzer. - Yeah.
- I love it! You enjoy it!
You're going back to Vegas!
- Whoo!
- And we've got another fun matchup coming up.
Joe Moravsky is going to race the kid
who asked for his autograph just a few years ago.
We'll see them next on "American Ninja Warrior."
- Minutes ago, the 45-year-old godfather
David Campbell took on the 18-year-old
from Montana Evan Andrews.
- Evan Andrews grew up
watching David Campbell for so many years.
- Campbell competed on the first season
of "Ninja Warrior" when Andrews
was four years old,
and he kept it close early.
- Evan Andrews pulling away now.
- But the recent high school grad
hit the buzzer first,
earning his second consecutive trip to Vegas.
The godfather also finished,
and as the top non-winner,
he too earned a spot in the national finals.
Well, up next it's one of the greatest ninjas of all time,
the Weatherman Joe Moravsky.
He's got more buzzers than anyone.
He'll be going against high school student
Noah Jones, who's hoping to beat a legend
in his first ever race.
[upbeat music]
Joe has been competing since season five
when Noah was only seven years old.
- Noah Jones is just a kid.
The last time I saw him,
I think was in Vegas years ago.
- I still have Joe's autograph
on a "Ninja Warrior" bag.
* *
- I mean, this was season 11. He was 13 years old.
It blows me away.
And now I have to race this guy on the course.
* *
- Pretty crazy to me to think that I'm going to be competing
side by side with him.
- Anybody can be that dark horse.
He can be that guy that comes out of nowhere.
So I'm not holding back on this kid.
I'm giving it my all right from the start.
- Hopefully tonight I do so well
that he wants my autograph.
* *
[cheers and applause]
- Noah will have family and friends on the sideline.
And Joe's wife, Stephanie and other family watching
from back in Connecticut.
- You know Joe doesn't want to just get to Vegas,
He's going to be going fast
so he can race for the safety pass.
[countdown clock beeping]
Oh, let's see, Joe. They watching.
- Oh, boy.
Moravsky firmly foot on the accelerator.
- OK, Joe Moravsky! - Linking.
Joe is flying.
Noah Jones, a high schooler trying
to keep up with the legend.
- And he goes down, which means Joe has won.
He can sell out, Akbar.
The only point he has right now
is going for that safety pass.
- Ooh! - What a save.
- That is a hell of a save there on Hopscotch.
- He's smiling. He knows that was a close one.
- He's handling the high pressure front here.
- Oh, you see his shirt. It says, "Do it."
He's doing it.
- Blowing through this course
like a category five hurricane.
- Josiah Pippel's got the fastest time so far.
Joe's got a shot at it.
Oh, no!
- Oh.
- The Slingshot slays the giant.
- Let's see this again.
Noah Jones jumped to the wrong side of the Beehive.
Ain't no handles over there.
That gave Joe the win, and he made a great
one-handed save on Hopscotch,
but he was going for speed,
and he just lost the handle on Slingshot.
[dramatic music]
- Doesn't get the safety pass,
but we'll see Joe in Vegas.
- So much fun, so much fun.
I love it. Great format.
Whew!
- So Josiah Pippel and Noah Meunier
end up with the fastest times.
They're going to race for the safety pass.
All of tonight's winners now advance
to the national finals,
which start in Vegas in two weeks.
Our two fastest non-winners will be joining them.
That's David Campbell and Ramcis Valdez.
The four women moving on are led
by Jersey girl Rachel Degutz.
So now it's one final race.
The winner gets a safety pass,
a second chance if they fall in Vegas.
We've switched up the course to challenge
the two who went the fastest.
Last's week safety pass race was an epic battle
between teenagers as Kaden Lebsack outsprinted
Kai Beckstrand to the buzzer.
And now we've got another teenage battle.
17-year-old Josiah Pippel squaring off
against 17-year-old Noah Meunier.
These guys finished only seconds apart
in their races tonight,
but Josiah was the quicker one.
He made it all the way to stage four
last year while Noah has hit two buzzers
so far in his rookie season.
Noah's dad and girlfriend are on the sideline.
And Josiah's dad leading the cheers for him.
- A safety pass can help you
win a million dollars in Vegas.
Both these guys want it.
- Let's go, boys!
- Ooh, great start by Noah right there.
He wasn't messing around.
- But Pippel closes the gap.
- He's got more Ninja experience.
He won't get rattled.
- We already knew Josiah was an elite ninja,
but Noah Meunier has been one of this season's surprises.
Well, Meunier seems to have a little quicker rhythm
here on the Wingnuts.
- Nice, boy, they're all over the place.
They're rushing. - Oh.
- Nice.
- Pippel's skipping that first handle.
- Ooh, look at the force that Josiah Pippel--
- Oh! - Oh, oh!
A double oh!
- They both fell at almost the same time.
Neither made it to the buzzer,
and no one is really sure who won.
We're going to have to check the tape on this one.
- Who won?
- Well, let's take a closer look
at their dismount on the previous obstacle.
Noah lands just barely before Josiah.
You could see it right there.
And then neither was able to finish Sideways.
It didn't matter where they fell,
so Noah gets the win.
- And Zuri's going to let him know.
- Do either of you even know who earned the safety pass?
- No. - It was so quick.
- We were trying to think about it,
but I don't know.
- OK, well, we know.
I've got some news for you.
Noah, you just finished Wingnuts before Josiah,
so you got that safety pass
heading into the national finals.
Congratulations.
Great work out there, both of you.
Come on in, Addy.
Guys, back to you.
- A crazy ending,
but Noah Meunier's going to have
a safety pass to use in Vegas.
That wraps up another thrilling night
of semi-finals.
For Akbar Gbajabiamila and Zuri Hall,
I'm Matt Iseman.
We'll see you next time on "American Ninja Warrior."