2016 CRN Channel Madness: Round 2 Winners And Losers

Off To The Enterprise 8

Round 2 of the second annual CRN Channel Madness Tournament of Chiefs is officially in the books, with the Field of 32 now down to the Enterprise 8. There are no clear favorites in any of the final regional matchups, with nearly every Enterprise 8 representative coming off of a double-digit Round 2 win.

Last year's champion, Mike Valentine of Sophos, is still very much alive after a big come-from-behind win in the Solutions 16. Valentine is the only member of the 2015 Enterprise 8 to make it this far. In fact, of the eight remaining chiefs, five are making their first appearance in the tournament.

So how did we get here? Take a look back at how things shook out in the Solutions 16 and cast your Round 3 votes at CRN.com/madness .

Voting for the Enterprise 8 will remain open until Thursday, March 31, at noon ET.

Infrastructure -- Round 2

Scott Dunsire, Hewlett Packard Enterprise vs. Bob Gault, Extreme

Extreme's Bob Gault is in his second Channel Madness tournament and his supporters seemed determined to ensure he didn't suffer another early exit. Gault posted the highest margin of victory in Round 2 in his Infrastructure matchup with Hewlett Packard Enterprise's Scott Dunsire. Gault took down Dunsire in an 81 percent to 19 percent rout.

It was a big win for Gault, who failed to get out of the first round of last year's tournament after being knocked off by HP's Sue Barsamian.

After handling Dell's Cheryl Cook in Round 1, and now Dunsire in Round 2, Gault is ready to take the Infrastructure region crown in an Enterprise 8 matchup.

Infrastructure -- Round 2

Kerry Bailey, Hewlett Packard Enterprise vs. Chris Morgan, Nutanix

Hewlett Packard Enterprise's Kerry Bailey jumped out to an early lead over Nutanix's Chris Morgan and never looked back. Bailey came out strong, putting Morgan in a 79 percent to 21 percent hole heading into the Round 2 weekend. And while Morgan made up a little ground in the final two days of Round 2 voting, it wasn't nearly enough, as Bailey ultimately secured a 70 percent to 30 percent win.

The strong Solutions 16 showing proves that Bailey is not to be taken lightly in his first Channel Madness appearance. Bailey will get a chance to avenge his colleague Scott Dunsire's defeat as he gets a shot at Extreme's Bob Gault in the Infrastructure Enterprise 8 matchup.

Hardware -- Round 2

Sammy Kinlaw, Lenovo vs. Maurits Tichelman, Intel

Solutions 16 action in the Hardware region kicked off with Lenovo's Sammy Kinlaw pitted against Intel's Maurits Tichelman. Kinlaw jumped out to a commanding 60-point lead heading into the weekend and despite some last-minute support for Tichelman, Kinlaw ultimately locked down a 64 percent to 36 percent win.

It's the first Channel Madness Tournament for Kinlaw, who is making his presence felt with wins over Tichelman and HP Inc.'s Stephanie Dismore. Kinlaw logged the most overall votes in Round 2.

Kinlaw will look to keep riding the support wave in the Hardware portion of the Enterprise 8.

Hardware -- Round 2

Sandra Glaser Cheek, Ruckus vs. Frank Vitagliano, Dell

Sandra Glaser Cheek is feeling the madness in a big way, earning an Enterprise 8 berth in her first-ever tournament appearance. Ruckus' Glaser Cheek was able to hold Dell's Frank Vitagliano at length throughout their Round 2 matchup, ultimately securing a 73 percent to 27 percent win.

Glaser Cheek is getting a ton of support as she's now knocked off Eaton's Curtiz Gangi and channel veteran Vitagliano. Glaser Cheek will look to represent the Hardware region in the Field of Four as she matches up with Lenovo's Sammy Kinlaw.

Cloud -- Round 2

Jessica Couto, Carbonite vs. Rob Rae, Datto

The Cloud region saw the closet matchups of Round 2. Datto's Rob Rae jumped out to an early 63 percent to 37 percent lead over Carbonite's Jessica Couto, only to see it slip it away. Rae, however, proved to be resilient and charged back in the final day of voting to ultimately lock down a 53 percent to 47 percent victory. Rae is proving to be a tough draw in his first tournament appearance, taking down Amazon Web Services' Terry Wise before setting his sights on Cuoto.

Rae will get a chance to keep the momentum moving as he rides the Datto support wave into the Enterprise 8 Cloud region matchup.

Cloud -- Round 2

Brooks McCorcle, AT&T vs. Frank Rauch, VMware

Not to be outdone in the drama department, AT&T's Brooks McCorcle and VMware's Frank Rauch duked it out into the final day of voting. After numerous lead changes, McCorcle was able to take a lead into the last day of Round 2 and hold it for a 59 percent to 41 percent win.

It was a revenge victory for McCorcle, who lost in the first round of last year's tournament to none other than Rauch. The victory, after her Round 1 win over StorageCraft's Mike Kunz, has McCorcle primed for a Field of Four appearance. Only Datto's Rob Rae and an Enterprise 8 Cloud region battle stand in her way.

Software -- Round 2

Mark Enzweiler, Red Hat vs. Mike Valentine, Sophos

Despite trailing early, defending champ Mike Valentine continues to pave his own path to a repeat. Red Hat's Mark Enzweiler jumped out to an early 58 percent to 42 percent lead over Sophos' Valentine. But Valentine came roaring back after the weekend and ultimately put his stamp on a 67 percent to 33 percent victory.

Dating back to the start of last year's tournament, Valentine has rattled off seven straight Channel Madness Tournament wins. He'll look to keep the momentum going as he makes his second straight Enterprise 8 appearance.

Software -- Round 2

Rodolpho Cardenuto, SAP vs. Phil Sorgen, Microsoft

Rounding things out in the Software region is Phil Sorgen, who secured an Enterprise 8 birth with his 63 percent to 37 percent Round 2 win over SAP's Rodolpho Cardenuto.

After losing in the first round of last year's tournament, Sorgen is drumming up a lot more support in his second Channel Madness go-round as he's now knocked off Cardenuto and Palo Alto's Ron Myers. Sorgen will draw Sophos' Mike Valentine in the Cloud portion of the Enterprise 8.

Cast your Round 3 votes at CRN.com/madness. Voting for the Enterprise 8 will remain open until Thursday, March 31, at noon ET.