Luckily, the proprietor of Sun Valley Lanes allowed the women to practice before and after the PWBA Lincoln Open in preparation for the upcoming events.
A few girls arrived early to the PWBA Lincoln Tour stop and after gym workouts, lots of practice and some laundry duty, we managed to also have a little fun on the famous "O Street."
This week, we bowled on a 41 foot pattern with higher volume using Kegel Ice oil.
During practice, I seemed to have a good look using a variety of bowling balls. However, during the first block of qualifying, the lanes changed a bit (as they usually do) and I couldn't quite seem to get my ball to react accordingly. I shot -9 and was in 43rd place with 6 games to go.
Rob Gotchall and I discussed my issues and we decided to drill a ball in the very short break. I drilled a stronger Track Paradox, which gave me a chance at the top 16 cut. I can't say enough good things about this ball. It is definitely one to add to your arsenal!
The second block, I shot games of 257, 217, 182, 232, 202 and 194 for +75 overall and ended up in 29th place, missing the top 16, but still cashing in the tournament. Although it was definitely not my goal, I was at least throwing the ball better, as well as shooting much better at my spares.
Congratulations to Hammer staffer Amanda Greene for dominating and winning the event.
After the PWBA Lincoln Open, Clara and I had our 3rd clinic of the season, this time at Mockingbird Lanes in Omaha, Nebraska. We had a quite a few youth come out and a few travelled far to participate in the clinic.
The next few days, we worked out at the gym, practiced hard and also made a trip to the outlets that were nearby. We then made the 8 hour trek to Welch, Minnesota. The last hour and a half was all back country roads, with gorgeous views of corn fields, lakes, barns and silos (which for this California girl was a rare sight.)
The PWBA Minnesota Open was hosted by Treasure Island Casino and Island Xtreme Bowl. We bowled on a 47 foot, light volume pattern using Kegel Fire oil.
During the first block of qualifying, I shot +222 using my Ebonite Pivot and was in 3rd place going into the final 6 game block of qualifying. Still needing a different look later on in the block, I drilled a Hammer Red Legend Solid in the short break.
I came back and shot +209 the second block for +431 overall using my Ebonite Pivot and Red Legend Pearl and was sitting in 2nd place going into matchplay. Feeling great going into matchplay and overall loving the competitiveness of matches, I was confident going into the final day of the tournament.
Well, Sunday was a completely different story. The lanes were much different (as they usually are) but I couldn't seem to get my ball to go through the pins correctly, no matter what I tried. I physically threw the ball very well, but it was just one of those days where nothing seems to go your way. My matchplay record was a horrific 4-10-2. My opponents averaged 234.3 which was higher than the tournament leader's average.
Despite all of this, I still managed to come in 8th place in the PWBA Minnesota Open. I hit the pocket a lot, just couldn't carry as much as I needed to. I'm very proud of how well I physically threw the ball and maintained my concentration despite the bad breaks. I also didn't miss one single pin spare in 28 games and I shot at quite a few.
This tournament was special because my amazing in-laws flew in to Minnesota to come and cheer me on. It was definitely nice having the family support there!
Congratulations to Team C300 staffer Diana Zavjalova for winning the tournament.
On to the next event in Detroit! Until then...
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