Julia Bond Wins 2021 PWBA Hall Of Fame Classic

ARLINGTON, Texas - Julia Bond of Aurora, Illinois, has enjoyed success at every level of her bowling career, and she raised the bar again Tuesday as she claimed her first Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour title at the 2021 PWBA Hall of Fame Classic.

Just two days shy of her 25th birthday, Bond rebounded from a ninth-frame split with a title-clinching double, defeating top seed Lindsay Boomershine of Perry, Utah, 222-210.

The Hall of Fame Classic was the final event of the PWBA Kickoff Classic Series, which included three national tour stops and one regional event during its seven-day run at the International Training and Research Center, the home of Team USA.

The victory, broadcast live on BowlTV, earned Bond a $10,000 top prize.

The right-hander already was a three-time PWBA regional winner, in addition to a victory at the made-for-TV Go Bowling! PWBA Regional Showdown in 2019, but the cancellation of the 2020 season due to the pandemic delayed her opportunity to build on the things she learned during her rookie campaign in 2019.

"I'm extremely proud of myself and how far I've come," said Bond, who had sixth-place finishes at the 2019 PWBA Lincoln Open and 2017 U.S. Women's Open. "There's naturally going to be some doubt when you go to the next level, but being able to push through in such a pressure situation and come away with my first title feels amazing."

The five-time Team USA member and former standout at the University of Nebraska entered Tuesday's championship round at the ITRC as the No. 4 seed and rolled through the stepladder with 28 strikes in her four matches.

As she did throughout the four games, Bond was able to strike early in the title match and put pressure on Boomershine, who was looking for the first championship-round win of her PWBA career.

Consecutive strikes from Boomershine in the sixth, seventh and eighth frames allowed her to cut into a deficit of more than 40 pins, and a 4-6-7-10 split from Bond in the ninth frame gave Boomershine the chance to lock up her first title with two more strikes and a nine-count.

Boomershine, a 35-year-old right-hander, struck in the ninth frame but left a 4 pin on the first offering of her final frame. After the conversion, she left the 3-6-9-10 combination to let some of the pressure off Bond. Had Boomershine gotten nine on the fill ball, she would've forced Bond to throw a double. Instead, Bond only needed to fill 19 pins.

In five previous stepladder appearances, Boomershine averaged just 165. Her best finish on the PWBA Tour was a second-place effort at the 2016 PWBA St. Petersburg-Clearwater Open.

To help move on from her past struggles, Boomershine has worked hard on her mental game. Her focus on keeping matches closes and finishing strong allowed her to compile a 19-5 record on the way to the top of the standings in the all-match-play Hall of Fame Classic.

While the hard work and preparation didn't translate to her first PWBA Tour win, Boomershine collected three top-10 finishes at the Kickoff Classic Series. She was sixth in the Bowlers Journal Classic and seventh in the ITRC Classic.

"It didn't turn out the way I wanted, but I didn't miss a spare, and I shot over 200, so we're making moves, and I bowled the best game I could," said Boomershine, who was slowed by a 7-10 split in the fourth frame against Bond. "(This week) shows me I'm getting better. My spare shooting was good, I stuck to the game plan and I had a bad break. I wish the 7 or the 10 would've fallen. I only missed the pocket, I think, on the fill shot. I didn't really want to give away the head pin. I didn't want six, but it is what it is at this point.

"It has been a great week, I'm happy with my performance and I'm looking forward to the rest of the year. I'm up there in the points, so hopefully it's not devastating this time. I have a great support system, and I just hope I made everyone proud."

On the way to the title, Bond was able to showcase many of her strengths as the 41-foot oil pattern broke down, and the display of versatility included keeping her angles tight when the pattern was fresh, staying patient and using her ball speed to combat the transition.

A ball change heading into her semifinal meeting with 16-year-old Jillian Martin of Stow, Ohio, provided the firepower Bond needed to win the high-scoring matchup, 245-211.

Bond started the game with four consecutive strikes, and eight strikes in her first nine frames, while Martin kept the pressure on with five consecutive strikes after a first-frame spare. Back-to-back single pins and a 2-4-8-10 split from Martin ended her bid to become the youngest bowler in history to win a PWBA Tour event.

Martin had two opportunities this week to replace United States Bowling Congress and PWBA Hall of Famer Wendy Macpherson in the record book as the tour's youngest winner. Macpherson won the U.S. Women's Open in 1986 at the age of 18.

Martin's week also included a runner-up finish to Bryanna Cot‚ of Tucson, Arizona, in the ITRC Classic and an eighth-place performance in the season-opening Bowlers Journal Classic, won by two-time reigning PWBA Player of the Year Shannon O'Keefe of Shiloh, Illinois, for her 14th PWBA Tour title.

In each of the first two stepladder matches Tuesday, Bond was able to pile on the strikes out of the gate to pull ahead early.

Against Erin McCarthy of Omaha, Nebraska, a PWBA Tour champion in 2018, Bond struck five times in her first six frames to set the pace. A late ball change and double from McCarthy, coupled with an open frame from Bond, gave McCarthy a chance to add some pressure, but a 10 pin on the first shot of her final frame ended her run. Bond advanced to the semifinal by a score of 213-191.

Bond opened the night with a 213-157 victory over two-time PWBA Tour champion Dasha Kovalova of Ukraine. Bond struck three times in the first four frames to build a sizable lead, while three open frames never allowed Kovalova to gain any momentum.

"I had a good rookie season, but I felt in my heart I could've done better," Bond said. "I used the time off to work on some things, including my speed control, opening up my angles and making smarter, quicker choices, and to be able to test that progress on the biggest stage for women's bowling and find success means so much."

The field for the Series-ending tournament featured the week's top 24 performers, based on their combined qualifying totals from the Bowlers Journal Classic and ITRC Classic. The 18-game pinfall totals then were dropped, and the contenders battled over 24 head-to-head matches, with 30 bonus pins awarded for each victory, to determine the five players for Tuesday's championship round.

Boomershine, Martin and O'Keefe were the only three players from the week's 36-bowler field to make the match-play portion of all three national tournaments.

Three competitors - Martin, McCarthy and Kovalova - each made two championship-round appearances during the Kickoff Classic Series.

All of the qualifying and match-play rounds at the Kickoff Classic Series were broadcast live at BowlTV.com and will remain in the BowlTV archives for fans who want to revisit the action.

The 2021 PWBA Kickoff Classic Series marked the first national PWBA competition since September 2019. The 2020 PWBA Tour season was canceled due to COVID-19.

The prize fund for each of the three national tour stops is $65,000, with $10,000 going to each champion.

The 2021 PWBA Tour season will resume April 22 for the PWBA Twin Cities Open in Eagan, Minnesota.

In all, the 2021 PWBA Tour schedule will feature 20 events, highlighted by the introduction of the Classic Series events and an increase in the season's overall prize fund by nearly $400,000.

To learn more about the PWBA Tour, visit PWBA.com.

2021 PWBA Hall of Fame Classic
At the International Training and Research Center
Arlington, Texas

Tuesday's results

FINAL STANDINGS
1, Julia Bond, Aurora, Ill., 893 (four games), $10,000
2, Lindsay Boomershine, Perry, Utah, 210 (one game), $5,000
3, n-Jillian Martin, Stow, Ohio, 211 (one game), $3,500
4, Erin McCarthy, Omaha, Neb., 191 (one game), $3,000
5, Dasha Kovalova, Ukraine, 157 (one game), $2,500

STEPLADDER RESULTS
Match No. 1 - Bond def. Kovalova, 213-157
Match No. 2 - Bond def. McCarthy, 213-191
Semifinal - Bond def. Martin, 245-211
Championship - Bond def. Boomershine, 222-210

MATCH PLAY
(24 games, 30 bonus pins for a win, 15 bonus pins for a tie)

      1, Lindsay Boomershine, Perry, Utah, 19-5-0, 5,710. 2, Jillian Martin (n), Stow, Ohio, 18-6-0, 5,677. 3, Erin McCarthy, Omaha, Neb., 16-8-0, 5,628. 4, Julia Bond, Aurora, Ill., 14-10-0, 5,587. 5, Dasha Kovalova, Ukraine, 14-10-0, 5,528.

DID NOT ADVANCE

      6, Diana Zavjalova, Latvia, 13-11-0, 5,473, $2,150. 7, Maria Jos‚ Rodriguez, Colombia, 16-8-0, 5,416, $2,125. 8, Stefanie Johnson, McKinney, Texas, 12-12-0, 5,375, $2,075. 9, Jordan Richard, Tipton, Mich., 12-12-0, 5,366, $2,000. 10, Liz Johnson, Niagara Falls, N.Y., 13-11-0, 5,359, $1,900. 11, Rocio Restrepo, Uniontown, Ohio, 13-10-1, 5,331, $1,850. 12, Bryanna Cot‚, Tucson, Ariz., 15-9-0, 5,297, $1,800.
      13, Sandra Gongora, Mexico, 13-11-0, 5,277, $1,500. 14, Shannon O'Keefe, Shiloh, Ill., 11-13-0, 5,260, $1,500. 15, Caitlyn Johnson, Beaumont, Texas, 11-13-0, 5,218, $1,450. 16, Maria Bulanova, Russia, 9-14-1, 5,194, $1,450. 17, Clara Guerrero, Colombia, 10-14-0, 5,192, $1,400. 18, Valerie Bercier, Spring Lake, Mich., 10-14-0, 5,169, $1,400.
      19, Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif., 9-15-0, 4,972, $1,400. 20, Kristie Leong (n), Daly City, Calif., 9-15-0, 4,946, $1,400. 21, Ashly Galante, Palm Harbor, Fla., 11-13-0, 4,881, $1,350. 22, Lilia Robles, Mexico, 6-18-0, 4,822, $1,350. 23, Taylor Bulthuis, Coral Springs, Fla., 8-16-0, 4,755, $1,350. 24, Anggie Ramirez-Perea, Austin, Texas, 6-18-0, 4,740, $1,350.

Bryanna Cote Wins 2021 PWBA ITRC Classic

ARLINGTON, Texas – After almost five years, three heartbreaking runner-up finishes and a global pandemic, Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona, found her way back to the winner’s circle on the Professional Women’s Bowling Association Tour.

Everything about the 34-year-old right-hander’s journey to the trophy this week at the 2021 PWBA ITRC Classic was different than her breakthrough performance in 2016, except for the flood of emotions that came once the championship match concluded.

In a way, the teary-eyed Coté who stood at the microphone following her 244-238 win over Jillian Martin of Stow, Ohio, was the same young lady who had dreams of success on bowling’s biggest stages. At the same time, the words she spoke came from an experienced veteran who had learned from every bit of adversity and disappointment since her last win.

The victory, broadcast live on BowlTV, was the second of Coté’s career and earned her a $10,000 top prize. Her performance also denied Martin, a 16-year-old right-hander, the opportunity to become the youngest bowler in history to win a PWBA Tour event.

“Because it had been so long, it felt like the first time all over again,” Coté said. “I was really nervous for that match, no matter who I was going to bowl, because everyone had bowled well, and the pattern (43 feet) was really high-scoring. I just wanted to stay slow and bowl my own game.”

Three quick strikes helped the six-time Team USA member to an early advantage at the International Training and Research Center, while converting the challenging 2-4-5-8 combination in the fourth frame gave her a six-pin lead halfway through the game. Both players struck three consecutive times to set up a dramatic conclusion.

Though Martin failed to strike again in the ninth frame, she closed with three strikes to put Coté in a familiar position, one she had thought about when she strategically chose to finish on the right lane, a benefit of being the higher seed going into the match.

In her own final frame, Coté calmly delivered the mark and five pins she needed to clinch the title. She would have preferred to seal it with a strike, but the 10 pin on her first offering had other plans.

“I really was trying not to pay too much attention to the scores, but I knew I needed a mark,” Coté said. “Of course, everyone wants to strike there, and I thought it was a decent shot, but maybe not as good as the few before it. I was glad to leave something makeable. I took some extra time to slow my process, and I visualized myself making it. Then, I did.”

Being in that position, even being on that particular lane in that moment, were the result of her having matured as a player. She succeeded because she previously had failed.

At the 2019 PWBA Fountain Valley Open, her most recent bid for a second career title, a devastating 8 pin in a must-strike situation allowed Sweden’s Sandra Andersson to escape with a one-pin victory. Coté lost in that moment, but it helped her win Saturday at the ITRC.

“At Fountain Valley, I learned about my shot-making ability under pressure, and throwing a shot like that went a long way toward eliminating any self-doubt,” said Coté, who was the runner-up to Danielle McEwan in Fountain Valley in 2018 and again to eventual PWBA Player of the Year Shannon O’Keefe at the 2018 United States Bowling Congress Queens. “I’ve gained so much trust in my ability, and while that’s just one example, it all helped with how I handled the situation tonight.”

Coté’s first title came at the 2016 PWBA Lexington Open, where she was the less-experienced player making her first TV appearance, so she was able to relate to what Martin likely was feeling on the lanes Saturday. On the way to that win, Coté defeated O’Keefe and USBC Hall of Famer Kelly Kulick.

Though Martin’s first title match didn’t end the same way, she said the experience was unforgettable. A win would've added her name to the record book just above hall of famer Wendy Macpherson, who won the U.S. Women's Open in 1986 at age 18.

“It was surreal,” Martin said. “I probably won’t process it for a while. It’s so crazy. I put everything out there. In the end, I didn’t come out with the win, but I’m very happy with my performance. I can’t believe how far I made it.”

To earn the meeting with Coté, Martin had to defeat two of the PWBA Tour’s top competitors.

Martin kicked off the stepladder with her second win of the day against USBC Hall of Famer Liz Johnson of Niagara Falls, New York, this time sneaking by the 24-time PWBA Tour champion, 238-235.

Martin was able to build a lead with five consecutive strikes, starting in the fifth frame, and she stepped up in the 10th frame with a chance to shut out Johnson. Martin left a 10 pin on her first offering, spared it and knocked down nine pins to seal the win.

Earlier in the day during match play, Martin defeated Johnson 289-220. Martin also owns the highest game rolled this week at the ITRC, a 299 performance that came in match play during the season-opening Bowlers Journal Classic. A 4 pin ended her quest for the first perfect game of her career.

Martin’s semifinal victory over two-time PWBA Tour champion Dasha Kovalova of Ukraine was a little less eventful. Two splits and a missed single pin were the undoing for Kovalova, while Martin struck six times on the way to a 227-185 victory.

“Just bowling against all the ladies was a crazy experience because they’re people I’ve looked up to,” Martin said. “It was definitely nerve-wracking, but to come out here and bowl against them has been amazing.”

The ITRC Classic was the second event of the PWBA Kickoff Classic Series, which will feature three national tour stops and one regional event during its seven-day run at the ITRC, the home of Team USA.

This week’s Kickoff Classic Series marks the first PWBA Tour competition since September 2019. The 2020 season was canceled due to COVID-19.

Competition at the ITRC resumes Sunday with the PWBA Arlington Regional. The eight-game qualifying round will begin at 3 p.m. Eastern, and the four-player stepladder finals will take place at 9 p.m. EST. All of the action will be shown live at BowlTV.com.

The final event of the Kickoff Classic Series, the PWBA Hall of Fame Classic, will get underway Monday at 11 a.m. Eastern. The unique format will include 24 head-to-head matches over two days, with total pinfall, plus bonus pins for each win, determining the five players for the championship round.

Competitors qualified for the Hall of Fame Classic based on their combined qualifying totals from the Bowlers Journal Classic and ITRC Classic (18 games), but all pins have been dropped heading into the final tournament.

All of the qualifying and match-play rounds at the Kickoff Classic Series are being broadcast live at BowlTV.com, free of charge to visitors who create a login for the site. The four events include formal stepladder finals, with a BowlTV subscription required for those who want to watch live.

Each event at the PWBA Kickoff Classic Series is being contested on a different lane condition.

The prize fund for each of the three national tour stops is $65,000, with $10,000 going to each champion.

The 2021 PWBA Tour season will feature 20 events, highlighted by the introduction of the Classic Series events and an increase in the season’s overall prize fund by nearly $400,000.