PLUHOWSKY WINS 2021 PWBA TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP FOR SECOND MAJOR TITLE

RENO, Nev. – Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton,

Ohio, captured her second major title, 

and first since 2006, in a dominating performance Sunday at the 2021 Professional Women’s Bowling 

Association Tour Championship. 
 
The 39-year-old left-hander defeated Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona, 244-178 to claim the final major of the 2021 PWBA Tour season. Pluhowsky earned $50,000 for the victory, and Coté collected $25,000 for her runner-up finish. 
 
The stepladder finals of the Tour Championship were broadcast live from the 

National Bowling Stadium on CBS Sports Network. 
 
Pluhowsky’s last win came at the 2006 United States Bowling Congress Queens, which also was held at the 78-lane venue. 
 
“I finally did it,” said Pluhowsky, a 21-time Team USA member. “I finally got over that hump. I get asked that question a lot, and I can erase it now. Fifteen years is a long time, but it’s worth the wait.” 
 
In the title match, Pluhowsky built the early advantage after connecting for four consecutive strikes, beginning in the second frame. Coté left back-to-back splits the first two times she bowled on the left lane and was unable to 

convert either.

She struggled to find a consistent look on that lane to get back into the match, 

and Pluhowsky filled frames to pull away. 
 
Pluhowsky, the No. 2 seed, looked comfortable under the bright lights in both of her wins Sunday. She started her semifinal match against Latvia’s Diana Zavjalova with 10 consecutive strikes, before a 6 pin ended her bid at a perfect game. It would’ve been the sixth 300 game during the championship round of a PWBA Tour event. 
 
Pluhowsky averaged 266.5 on Sunday, defeating Zavjalova, 289-199. 
 
“They were a little different, which typically happens on TV,” Pluhowsky said. “My ball reps told me to bowl my A game. I was able to throw it a little harder, so I could stay a little closer to it, and it worked out. I caught a couple lucky breaks, and you need that to win. I’ve had some bad luck on TV, but today was different.” 
 
Pluhowsky has been a top competitor on the PWBA Tour since it relaunched in 2015, making 15 championship-round appearances prior to Sunday’s appearance at the Tour Championship. 
 
She had been unable to turn those opportunities into victories, however, but a new approach has helped her enjoy each moment. 
 
At the U.S. Women’s Open in August, she qualified for the stepladder and rolled 279 in her first match, before losing her ball reaction on the way to a third-place finish. 
 
“I’ve had to work really hard,” Pluhowsky said. “I’m just trying to have fun. It’s not life or death anymore. I took it way too seriously and was trying too hard for too long. The last few times, I just tried to have fun. 

I lost my ball reaction at the U.S. Women’s Open and didn’t throw it the greatest 

in the second game, but here, I had a good look and tried to do what I needed to do.” 
 
Sunday’s win also was special for Pluhowsky because she was able to share it withher wife, Carrie, and father, Nick. 
 
“Things are looking up and really good,” Pluhowsky said. “We got married in July, and it means a lot that she’s able to travel with me. My dad flew in for the show, and he was worried he was going to jinx me. My mom was too 

nervous to come, so she stayed home. I wish the kids were here, but I’m glad he came and she’s here. It’s great.” 
 
Coté was the top seed for Sunday’s stepladder after averaging more than 233 in match play Friday and Saturday, but she had trouble figuring out the left lane on the championship pair. 
 
She noted some struggles on that lane earlier in the week during the finals of the PWBA Reno Classic, where she also was the top seed and finished as the runner-up to Stephanie Zavala of Downey, California. 
 
“I feel like I had the right lane down pretty well, but I’m still trying to figure out what was happening on the left lane,” Coté said. “I struggled with it at the Reno Classic, too. I made some moves, but you only get five shots on each lane, and everything is a guessing game when you get lost in that position. Shannon was bowling great, and I had to try to find ways to strike.” 
 
Coté still was able to collect some hardware Sunday. Her runner-up finish secured her spot at the top of the season-long points list, and it earned her PWBA Player of the Year honors for the first time in her career. 
 
The 35-year-old right-hander collected her second career PWBA Tour title in January at the PWBA ITRC Classic, and she added three runner-up finishes in her six championship-round appearances during the season. 
 
She entered the events in Reno this week eighth in points but quickly entered the conversation for the postseason award with her runner-up finish Tuesday. 
 
“I had talked to my husband about it, and coming into Reno, we never even thought player of the year was on the table,” Coté said. “I knew the points were very close, especially with two regular events and a major to go, and things could shift around pretty easily. You can’t count out those ahead of you, though, because they’re there for a reason. All I could do was just bowl and try to bowl great. When I realized I was getting closer and put myself in position to be player of the year, I just stayed the course and tried to stay focused. If it was meant to be, it was meant to be.” 
 
Zavjalova, a two-time major winner and four-time PWBA Tour champion, earned her spot in the semifinals with a 190-164 victory over Zavala, the 2021 PWBA Rookie of the Year. 
 
Zavjalova took advantage of a missed single pin by Zavala in the eighth frame and rolled strikes on five of her last six shots to advance. 
 
Zavala, a three-time winner during her rookie season, kicked off the stepladder with a 203-200 win over two-time PWBA Player of the Year Shannon O’Keefe of Shiloh, Illinois. 
 
Zavala needed to fill 17 pins in her final frame to eliminate O’Keefe and struck on her first delivery. A nine-count on her second shot secured the victory. 
 
O’Keefe entered the broadcast with the chance to earn the PWBA Player of the Year award for a third consecutive season, but she needed to record at least a fourth-place finish to force Coté to win the Tour Championship to earn enough competition points. 
 
The Tour Championship was the third event of the PWBA Fall Classic Series, which also included the Reno Classic and PWBA Pepsi Classic. 
 
After Zavala won the Reno Classic on Tuesday, Julia Bond of Aurora, Illinois, captured her third win of the year at the Pepsi Classic on Thursday. 
 
The Tour Championship featured the top 24 athletes from the first two events of the Fall Classic Series. The combined qualifying totals from the Reno Classic and Pepsi Classic (24 games) determined the players to advance to the season-ending event. 
 
Pinfall dropped at the beginning of the Tour Championship, which featured three eight-game blocks of round-robin match play Friday and Saturday. Total pinfall, including bonus pins for each victory, determined Sunday’s five finalists. 
 
The 2021 PWBA Tour season featured 20 events, kicking off in January at the PWBA Kickoff Classic Series in Arlington, Texas. 
 
To learn more about the PWBA Tour, visit PWBA.com. 
 

2021 PWBA Tour Championship at National Bowling Stadium Reno, Nev. 
 
Sunday’s results 
 
FINAL STANDINGS 
1, Shannon Pluhowsky, Dayton, Ohio, 533 (two games), $50,000 
2, Bryanna Coté, Tucson, Ariz., 178 (one game), $25,000 
3, Diana Zavjalova, Latvia, 389 (two games), $15,000 
4, Stephanie Zavala, Downey, Calif., 367 (two games), $12,000 
5, Shannon O’Keefe, Shiloh, Ill., 200 (one game), $9,000 
 
STEPLADDER RESULTS 
Match No. 1 – Zavala def. O’Keefe, 203-200 
Match No. 2 – Zavjalova def. Zavala, 190-164 
Semifinal – Pluhowsky def. Zavjalova, 289-199 
Championship – Pluhowsky def. Coté, 244-178 

COTÉ EARNS TOP SEED FOR STEPLADDER AT 2021 PWBA TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

RENO, Nev. – Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona, averaged more than 243 for her final eight games of match play Saturday at the 2021 Professional Women’s Bowling Association Tour Championship to earn the top seed for Sunday’s stepladder finals.

The live CBS Sports Network broadcast will begin at 5 p.m. Eastern, with Coté looking to secure her first major championship, a $50,000 top prize and the 2021 PWBA Player of the Year award.

The 35-year-old right-hander posted a 16-8 record in match play to claim the top seed with a 6,095 total, including bonus pins for each victory.

She’ll be joined in the stepladder by Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio (6,026), Latvia’s Diana Zavjalova (5,853), Stephanie Zavala of Downey, California (5,768), and Shannon O’Keefe of Shiloh, Illinois (5,763).

The Tour Championship is the final event, and third major, of the 2021 PWBA Tour season. It also marks the conclusion of the PWBA Fall Classic Series, which featured the PWBA Reno Classic and PWBA Pepsi Classic.

Coté was the top qualifier for the all-match-play Tour Championship, which used the combined qualifying totals from the Reno Classic and Pepsi Classic (24 games) to determine the 24 athletes advancing to the season-ending major.

Pinfall dropped at the beginning of the Tour Championship, but the fresh start didn’t slow Coté’s roll this week at the National Bowling Stadium. She was in second place after the first two blocks of round-robin match play Friday and averaged more than 257 for her first five games Saturday to take over the top spot on the event’s 40-foot lane condition.

“I was pretty nervous this morning,” said Coté, who won her second career PWBA Tour title earlier this season at the PWBA ITRC Classic. “I still had eight games to bowl, and anything can happen in eight games, especially with how high the scores were getting. I wanted to make good shots, see the lane clear with my ball reaction and take advantage of the big games. You usually hit one or two pairs with big games, and I was grateful to have a few more where my ball reaction was great and my ball was going through the pins really well.”

Coté finished as the runner-up to Zavala on Tuesday at the Reno Classic and placed ninth at the Pepsi Classic on Thursday.

Her performance this week at the NBS, coupled with consistent showings throughout the 2021 season, have vaulted Coté to the top of the season-long points list, which determines PWBA Player of the Year and PWBA Rookie of the Year awards. She started the Fall Classic Series eighth on the points list.

Zavala, a three-time winner on the PWBA Tour this year, secured her spot as top rookie earlier in the week at the Pepsi Classic.

Coté will make her sixth championship-round appearance of the season Sunday and lock up the postseason award for the first time in her career with a victory in the title match.

It also would be possible for Coté to win the award before she even throws a shot Sunday, if O’Keefe loses the opening match of the stepladder to Zavala.

O’Keefe, the two-time reigning PWBA Player of the Year, can win the award for the third consecutive season if she finishes in fourth place or higher and Coté finishes in second place.

All of the extra noise surrounding the player-of-the-year race and pressure of a major championship, television lights and big payday are things Coté plans to put out of her mind.

“I really can’t think about all the outside factors,” Coté said. “If I let my mind get there, my body is not going to know what to do. My mind needs to focus on the task at hand, and everything else will fall into place if I do that.”

As Coté secured her spot at the top of the standings, Zavala turned the leaderboard upside down.

Zavala started the event with five consecutive open frames on the way to a 96 game, but she averaged 229 for the rest of the opening block to finish the first round in 16th place.

She slipped to 20th place after Friday’s second eight-game round, but a memorable comeback Saturday earned her a sixth championship-round appearance of the year.

Zavala started Saturday’s final round 338 pins outside of the cut number but averaged more than 251 and went 7-1 to make an improbable run to the show. She rolled games of 286, 266, 269, 252, 231, 227, 265 and 217.

The 25-year-old right-hander entered Saturday’s position round in fifth place, but she was only four pins ahead of Poland’s Daria Pajak.

Zavala recorded a 217-205 win by rolling three strikes in her final frame and moved into fourth place overall. Pajak finished in sixth place with a 5,722 total.

Zavala will be making her second consecutive championship-round appearance at a major after finishing fourth at the U.S. Women’s Open in August.

Pluhowsky hopes to capture her second major title at the 78-lane venue. She won her lone PWBA Tour title at the 2006 United States Bowling Congress Queens. She also made the show at the U.S. Women’s Open this year, finishing in third place.

Zavjalova is the only athlete to advance to the championship round at each major this season.

She recorded fifth-place finishes at the USBC Queens, held at the NBS in May, and U.S. Women’s Open. She’s in search of her third major title (2013 and 2017 Queens) and fifth career PWBA Tour title.

O’Keefe is the defending champion at the Tour Championship and the only player to win the event twice (2017 and 2019). She won the season-opening PWBA Bowlers Journal Classic in January and is looking for her fourth major championship and 15th PWBA Tour title.

O’Keefe won the 2018 Queens at the NBS, defeating Coté in the title match, 221-189.

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

2021 PWBA Tour Championship
At National Bowling Stadium
Reno, Nev.

Saturday’s results

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

     1, Bryanna Coté, Tucson, Ariz., 16-8-0, 6,095. 2, Shannon Pluhowsky, Dayton, Ohio, 16-8-0, 6,026. 3, Diana Zavjalova, Latvia, 16-7-1, 5,853. 4, Stephanie Zavala, Downey, Calif., 13-11-0, 5,768. 5, Shannon O'Keefe, Shiloh, Ill., 14-9-1, 5,763.

DID NOT ADVANCE

     6, Daria Pajak, Poland, 13-11-0, 5,722, $6,000. 7, Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif., 14-10-0, 5,720, $5,000. 8, Shannon Sellens (n), Long Beach, N.Y., 13-11-0, 5,696, $4,500. 9, Liz Johnson, Niagara Falls, N.Y., 13-11-0, 5,671, $4,000. 10, Verity Crawley, England, 12-12-0, 5,658, $3,600. 11, Birgit Noreiks, Germany, 11-12-1, 5,599, $3,300.
     12, Sandra Gongora, Mexico, 13-9-2, 5,590, $3,000. 13, Maria José Rodriguez, Colombia, 14-10-0, 5,588, $2,800. 14, Kelly Kulick, Union, N.J., 12-12-0, 5,558, $2,600. 15, Julia Bond, Aurora, Ill., 12-11-1, 5,507, $2,400. 16, Ashly Galante, Palm Harbor, Fla., 12-12-0, 5,434, $2,250. 17, Stefanie Johnson, McKinney, Texas, 12-12-0, 5,432, $2,100.
     18, Valerie Bercier, Muskegon, Mich., 9-15-0, 5,359, $1,950. 19, Liz Kuhlkin, Schenectady, N.Y., 11-13-0, 5,332, $1,800. 20, Lindsay Boomershine, Perry, Utah, 9-15-0, 5,307, $1,650. 21, Misaki Mukotani, Japan, 6-18-0, 5,295, $1,550. 22, Dasha Kovalova, Ukraine, 8-16-0, 5,266, $1,450. 23, Shalin Zulkifli, Malaysia, 9-15-0, 5,046, $1,350.
     24, Jen Higgins, Lewis Center, Ohio, 7-17-0, 5,015, $1,250.

BOND CAPTURES THIRD TITLE OF 2021 IN DRAMATIC FINISH AT PWBA PEPSI CLASSIC

RENO, Nev. – Julia Bond of Aurora, Illinois, concluded the championship match at the Professional Women’s Bowling Association Pepsi Classic with six consecutive strikes to win her third career title in an intense finish Thursday at the National Bowling Stadium.

The 25-year-old right-hander was trailing throughout the match against Colombia’s Maria José Rodriguez and recorded the victory after Rodriguez left a devastating 7-10 split to start her final frame, 234-222.

Bond collected the $10,000 top prize for her third win of the 2021 PWBA Tour season. The Pepsi Classic was broadcast live on BowlTV.com.

In the title tilt, Bond fell behind early after she was unable to convert a 3-6-10 combination in the second frame. Rodriguez built her lead on the strength of six strikes through the first eight frames, and a spare in the ninth frame gave her the opportunity to lock out Bond in the 10th to secure her third PWBA Tour title.

Bond finished the match first, and her final three strikes forced Rodriguez to roll a strike on her first delivery for the chance to win the title. A nine count on the first offering from Rodriguez opened the door for the chance at a tie, if she converted the spare and rolled a strike on her fill ball.

“I’m very proud of the way I finished that match,” Bond said. “I think it shows who I am as a person. I don’t care if I’m losing or down, I’m always going to attempt to throw a great shot, because every shot holds the same importance for me.

“This win makes me happy. It makes me feel like I’m where I’m supposed to be. I’ve learned a lot, and I’m continuing to learn, which makes me excited. There are things I still need to get better at and things I’m still learning, but being able to apply those things and succeed makes me excited for the future.”

Bond won three matches in the stepladder and averaged 231 on her way to the title. She defeated Stefanie Johnson of McKinney, Texas, in Thursday’s opening game, 203-192, and rolled eight strikes to defeat Missy Parkin of Laguna Hills, California, 256-220, to advance to the finals.

The championship pair did provide Bond with some initial trouble, however, since the ball that helped her make her fourth championship-round appearance of the season did not give her the best look.

She also made a ball change at the end of the game against Johnson and felt she was making the right choices, while trying to think ahead for her remaining matches.

“We knew what looked good based on qualifying and match play, but it didn’t look great on the TV pair,” said Bond, who won her first major at the 2021 United States Bowling Congress Queens, also held at the NBS. “I think we did a good job of being open-minded and flexible.”

Rodriguez was making her first championship-round appearance of the 2021 season after earning the top seed for the stepladder by a single pin over Parkin. Rodriguez struck on her fill ball against Parkin in the position round earlier on Thursday to finish qualifying with a 5,646 total, including bonus pins.

Parkin made her fifth championship-round appearance of the year. She has three runner-up finishes this season, including to Bond at the USBC Queens.

Johnson made her second consecutive finals appearance at the PWBA Fall Classic Series after placing third at the PWBA Reno Classic on Tuesday. It marked her third championship-round appearance of the season.

The Fall Classic Series features the final three events of the 2021 PWBA Tour season — the Reno Classic, Pepsi Classic and PWBA Tour Championship.

The Reno Classic and Pepsi Classic featured the same format. Each event featured 12 games of qualifying to determine the top 12 players for round-robin match play. At the conclusion of match play, the top four athletes, based on total pinfall and bonus pins, advanced to the stepladder finals.

Stephanie Zavala of Downey, California, won her third title of the season at the Reno Classic, defeating Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona, in the title match, 207-194.

The top 24 athletes based on their combined qualifying totals for the Reno Classic and Pepsi Classic (24 games) determined the advancers to the season-ending Tour Championship, the third major of the year.

Pinfall will drop at the beginning of the Tour Championship, with all advancers bowling three eight-game blocks of round-robin match play Friday and Saturday. The top five competitors, based on total pinfall and bonus pins, will advance to the stepladder finals.

The finals of the Tour Championship will be broadcast Sunday at 5 p.m. Eastern on CBS Sports Network, with the winner earning a $50,000 top prize.

All four finalists from the Pepsi Classic qualified for the Tour Championship, and Bond is looking to use the momentum from her win to make a run at a second major and the chance to win PWBA Player of the Year for the 2021 season, which is based on position on the season-long points list.

“After this event, I know I’m throwing it well,” Bond said. “It’s a nice confidence boost and offers a little validation. Now, I need to make good choices and be smart. That’s the goal heading into the next event.”

Heading into the final event, the race for PWBA Player of the Year features six players within 8,600 points of current leader Verity Crawley of England.

Crawley (118,600 points) is 300 points ahead of Ukraine’s Dasha Kovalova (118,300) and 355 points ahead of Bond (118,245).

Two-time reigning PWBA Player of the Year Shannon O’Keefe of Shiloh, Illinois, enters the Tour Championship in fourth place with 115,770 points and is followed by Coté (111,445), Parkin (110,262.5) and three-time PWBA Player of the Year Liz Johnson of Niagara Falls, New York (110,060).

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

2021 PWBA Pepsi Classic

At National Bowling Stadium
Reno, Nev.

Thursday’s results

FINAL STANDINGS
1, Julia Bond, Aurora, Ill., 693 (three games), $10,000
2, Maria José Rodriguez, Colombia, 222 (one game), $5,000
3, Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif., 220 (one game), $3,500
4, Stefanie Johnson, McKinney, Texas, 192 (one game), $2,700

STEPLADDER RESULTS
Match No. 1 – Bond def. Johnson, 203-192
Semifinal – Bond def. Parkin, 256-220
Championship – Bond def. Rodriguez, 234-222

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

     1, Maria José Rodriguez, Colombia, 8-4-0, 5,646. 2, Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif., 7-4-1, 5,645. 3, Julia Bond, Aurora, Ill., 8-4-0, 5,589. 4, Stefanie Johnson, McKinney, Texas, 7-5-0, 5,541.

DID NOT ADVANCE

     5, Kelly Kulick, Union, N.J., 7-5-0, 5,510, $2,250. 6, Dasha Kovalova, Ukraine, 3-9-0, 5,507, $2,000. 7, Liz Johnson, Niagara Falls, N.Y., 7-5-0, 5,480, $1,850. 8, Jen Higgins, Lewis Center, Ohio, 6-6-0, 5,436, $1,750. 9, Bryanna Coté, Tucson, Ariz., 5-7-0, 5,410, $1,650. 10, Verity Crawley, England, 5-7-0, 5,320, $1,600.
     11, Sandra Gongora, Mexico, 4-7-1, 5,311, $1,550. 12, Lindsay Boomershine, Perry, Utah, 4-8-0, 5,296, $1,500.