by Adrian Sullivan
Mellisa Detora had the distinction of being the only female competitor in this year's U.S. Nationals. The 18-year-old resident of Rhode Island qualified for Nationals at the New England Regionals playing a Beatdown Enchantress deck. She seemed pretty excited to be attending her first major event.
On Day 1, Mellisa started with a 2-4 record in the draft, beating Dan Clegg twice in the Swiss, one of which in a feature match. "I'm not very experienced in drafting. I've only been played for about two-and-a-half years. After I qualified I started drafting a lot. I learned a lot today. Just the experience drafting here was good."
For Day 2, Mellisa plans on playing the same Enchantress Beatdown deck that took her to Nationals.
"I really like the deck. It's different and it beats Replenish and other popular decks."
How did she feel about being the only female competitor this year, and all of the attention she got as a result?
"I think it's pretty cool. I'm the only girl in the here, and I feel pretty good about the attention."
Mellisa is looking forward to a good day tomorrow.
"I'm just happy to be playing here."