FINALLY figured it out. The FAQ I was using had mid-range listed, when this site had mid-range listed as sweep. Thanks for all the assistance anyhow.
When I was having trouble with some of the longer style branch combos circa Deadly Alliance, I know it helped me to just look down at the controller instead of watching what's happening on screen. May not work for you, but my problem at the time was the delay in the character's reaction time after you hit a button.