June 2017 -
13
FIRST-YEAR BOWLER TAKES LEAD
AT 2017 USBC WOMEN'S
CHAMPIONSHIPS
By
and Aaron Smith
USBC Communications
BATON ROUGE, La. -
Fresh off her first full season as
a member of the United States Bowling Congress, De-
nise Guthrie of Kinsey, Alabama, decided to take a
chance and compete in the 2017
The 39-year-old left-hander didn't know what to ex-
pect as she headed to the Raising Cane's River Cen-
ter, but she left the 44-lane venue as the Topaz All-
Events leader after posting a 1,367 total for her nine
games this week
.
After hitting her average during team competition Fri-
day, Guthrie's scores soared during doubles and sin-
gles, recording sets of 505 and 499, respectively, to go
along with a 363 team effort. Sandra Orchard of Kays-
ville, Utah, previously held the lead in Topaz All-Events
with 1,312.
Her 499 singles effort was enough to also move Guth-
rie into second place in Topaz Singles, and she teamed
with Jaymie Coggins of Slocomb, Alabama, to move
into a tie for third place in Amethyst Doubles with a 941
combined total.
Alissa Ebneter of Belle Plaine, Minnesota, leads To-
paz Singles at the 2017 Women's Championships with
518, and Mary Quintana of Price, Utah, and Lorraine
Berryhill of Helper, Utah, lead Amethyst Doubles with
1,009.
Guthrie's decision to start bowling this season was
motivated by looking for an activity she and her hus-
band could do together.
"I wanted to find a positive hobby with my husband,"
Guthrie said. "We just said, 'let's try bowling,' and we
liked it."
That same gusto led her to making her Women's
Championships debut, and now Guthrie will look to
continue to improve her game.
Upon heading back to Kinsey, she will be on the look-
out for a USBC-certified coach, while also waiting to
see if her score is enough to hold onto the top spot.
Topaz All-Events and Singles includes bowlers with
entering averages of 129 and below, and Amethyst
Doubles features pairs with combined entering aver-
ages of 260-289.
BIG CHANGES IN TEAM, ALL-
EVENTS AT 2017 USBC WOMEN'S
CHAMPIONSHIPS
By
nd Aaron Smith
BATON ROUGE, La. -
An excit-
ing 24-hour run at the
aw
new team leaders emerge in
three divisions and the bar raised
in Diamond All-Events at the
Raising Cane's River Center.
World Cup Bowling Academy
(above) of Tampa, Florida, edged
into the Diamond Team lead,
while a pair of teams from Mon-
tana moved into the top spot in
Ruby and Sapphire Team.
Tampa's Katie Robinson fin-
ished off the excitement at the 44
-lane venue by posting a 1,867
total to take the lead in Diamond
All-Events.
Led by Megan Kelly's 646 se-
ries, World Cup Bowling Acad-
emy fought through the transition
of the oil pattern in Game 2 and
bounced back in the final game to
sneak into the lead Sunday by
seven pins over 2 Kidz & 2 Goats
of Brandon, Florida, which posted
2,397 on Saturday.
World Cup Bowling Academy posted games of 833,
735 and 836, and Kelly was joined at the River Center
by Aumi Guerra (630), Hayley Veitch (620) and USBC
Hall of Famer Lucy Sandelin (508).
"The oil really started to push down, so we had to try
and figure out what moves and ball choices we needed
to make," said Kelly, who made her 14th USBC
Women's Championships appearance. "We all tried to
collaborate and get in the right spot with the right ball,
which we were able to do."
Although 2017 marked the first time the members of
World Cup Bowling Academy bowled together on the
championship lanes, the chemistry was strong from the
early going. With many of the top bowlers from around
the world heading to Baton Rouge for the upcoming
USBC Queens and Senior Queens, they're happy they
were able to set the number to chase.
"You can't win unless you're leading," Kelly said. "I
think it's awesome that a group that just came together
like this was able to develop such a solid team chemis-
try from the start. We had a lot of fun out there."
Diamond Team includes four-player teams with com-
bined entering averages of 725 and above.
A four-team group from Helena, Montana, saw two of
its teams ascend to the top of the leaderboards Satur-
day as Chevrolet of Helena and Mixed Up Nuts took
the lead in the Ruby and Sapphire Divisions.
Chevrolet of Helena posted games of 671, 747 and
687 for a 2,105 total, passing the 2,077 total of Cash-
mere Bowling Queens 1 of Charlotte, North Carolina,
while Mixed Up Nuts used games of 682, 642 and 530
for a 1,854 total, surpassing Jadene's Team of North
Adams, Massachusetts, which previously held the lead
with 1,785.
Chevrolet of Helena was led by first-time participant
Kimberly Bolan's 546 series, and she was joined by her
mother, Danielle Bolan (545), Jenny Chambers (521)
and Peggy Cloninger (493).
Danielle Bolan helped to organize the four teams from
Helena, and the trip already was special before her
team's performance on the lanes due to her daughter
joining the team for the Mother's Day weekend.
"It was Kim's first year at the national tournament and
also her first year as an adult bowler," said Danielle,
who made her 10th Women's Championships appear-
ance. "The rest of us on the team have bowled together
at Nationals for about five years, and this team was
formed just so Kim and I could bowl together."
Ruby Team features teams with combined entering
averages of 650-724.
Mixed Up Nuts also was led by a first-timer, as Sa-
brina Ravndal led the way with a 497 series. She was
joined by her mother, Christine Ravndal (492), Shelley
Nolan (455) and Laura Baker (410).
"This is so unexpected," Sabrina Ravndal said. "I don't
think anybody realized we were bowling well enough to
move into first place."
(From page 12)
2017 USBC Women’s Championships
Division 3 – Emerald
(For bowlers with averages from 160-174)
1, Rhonda Acitelli, Villa Park, Ill., 1,737. 2, Mari Gallegos, Chicago, 1,689. 3,
Elaine Fielding, Katy, Texas, 1,683. 4, Lisa Perreault, Grand Forks, N.D.,
1,667. 5, Melinda Keeney, Pueblo, Colo., 1,660.
Division 4 – Sapphire
(For bowlers with averages from 145-159)
1, Alice Burris, Pana, Ill., 1,618. 2, Tara Long, Kenton, Ohio, 1,616. 3, Pam
Neil, Virginia Beach, Va., 1,574. 4, Tracey Avery, Dameron, Md., 1,550. 5,
Donna Penty, Canada, 1,545.
Division 5 – Amethyst
(For bowlers with averages from 130-144)
1, Michele Menges, New Oxford, Pa., 1,482. 2, Robin Miles, Alberta, Minn.,
1,481. 3(tie), Karen Schmehl, Shiremans Town, Wash., and Randi Buseman,
Wellsburg, Iowa, 1,458. 5, Vickie Hensley, Mineral Wells, Texas, 1,454.
Division 6 – Topaz
(For bowlers with averages of 129 and below)
1, Sandra Orchard, Kaysville, Utah, 1,312. 2, Tracey Reed, Sherman, Texas,
1,302. 3, Bonnie Ryan, Price, Utah, 1,301. 4, Amanda Kefalas, Casa Grande,
Ariz., 1,295. 5, Katie Mills, Jacksonville, Fla., 1,291.
