RENO, Nev. – The 101st edition of the United States Bowling Congress Women’s Championships came to a close July 3 at the National Bowling Stadium, with the 2021 event featuring several record-breaking performances during its 72-day run.
The 2021 USBC Women’s Championships kicked off April 23 and welcomed 2,552 four-player teams to Reno. Participants competed in four average-based divisions in team competition (Diamond, Ruby, Emerald and Sapphire) and six divisions in doubles, singles and all-events (Diamond, Ruby, Emerald, Sapphire, Amethyst and Topaz).
All standings are unofficial and pending final verification.
Colombia’s Maria José Rodriguez and Guatemala’s Sofia Granda finished the 2021 event at the top of the leaderboard in Diamond Doubles, posting the first 1,500-plus doubles score in tournament history with a 1,560 total May 11.
Rodriguez became the ninth bowler at the Women’s Championships to record an 800 series to lead the effort, rolling games of 245, 279 and 286 for an 810 series. Granda, who made her tournament debut, added games of 225, 269 and 256 for a 750 series.
The previous doubles record was held by USBC Hall of Famers Carolyn Dorin-Ballard and Lynda Barnes, who won the 2004 title with a 1,498 total.
Near-record scores also topped the standings in Diamond Team, Diamond Singles and Diamond All-Events.
On May 10, the members of Bowl 2 Win of Mechanicville, New York, rolled games of 883, 1,003 and 923 for a 2,809 total, the second-highest team series since the Women’s Championships switched from five- to four-player teams in 2014.
The performance was led by Team USA member Liz Kuhlkin’s 752 series, and she was joined by Robin Orlikowski (704), Jessica Aiezza (696) and Suzanne Morine (657).
The four-player team series record is 2,819, rolled by Bowlieve In A Cure of Arlington, Texas, during the 2014 event at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center.
Sharon Powers of Lakewood, Colorado, is in position to claim a title in back-to-back Women’s Championships appearances after rolling an 801 series in Diamond Singles on May 21.
Powers, who made her 45th tournament appearance in 2021, fired games of 289, 268 and 244 to become the 10th bowler to record an 800 series at the Women’s Championships.
Her performance marked the second time a bowler has reached an 800 series in the singles event. Michelle Feldman of Auburn, New York, won Classic Singles in 2009 with an 816 series, which also took place at the National Bowling Stadium.
Powers captured her first win at the 2019 Women’s Championships in Wichita, Kansas, helping Lakewood’s Powerhouse claim the Diamond Team title.
Malaysia’s Shalin Zulkifli averaged more than 250 for her nine games at the 2021 event to lead the way in Diamond All-Events with a 2,253 total May 12, the third-highest all-events score in tournament history.
Zulkifli, who won more than 90 medals in international competition during her career on the junior and adult versions of the Malaysian national team, rolled sets of 782 in team, 752 in doubles and 719 in singles.
Jodi Woessner of Oregon, Ohio, holds the all-events record at the Women’s Championships with a 2,330 total, posted at the 2010 tournament in El Paso, Texas.
A pair of bowlers finished with the lead in multiple events at the 2021 Women’s Championships.
Shalanda Nunn of Lafayette, Indiana, took the lead in Sapphire Singles and Sapphire All-Events on June 6 with scores of 671 and 1,740, respectively.
Nunn used games of 237, 253 and 181 to take over the top spot in singles, and she added sets of 587 in team and 482 in doubles to roll to the top of the leaderboard in all-events.
Rebecca Grant of Lake Havasu City, Arizona, finished the 2021 event at the top of the Topaz Doubles and Topaz All-Events standings after her performance June 11.
Grant paired with Diena Wasson of Enumclaw, Washington, to move into the lead in Topaz Doubles with a 907 total. Grant had a 531 series, and Wasson tallied 376.
Grant added sets of 514 in singles and 461 in team to also take the all-events lead with a 1,506 total.
Her singles performance also placed her in the lead at the time, but she was passed by Joan Boesen of Bullhead City, Arizona, on June 24, who finished at the top of Topaz Singles with a 518 series.
In addition to the two 800 series rolled at the 2021 event, a pair of bowlers also connected for perfect games at the National Bowling Stadium.
Tina Williams of Pflugerville, Texas, was the first player in 2021 to achieve the feat, as she started her doubles set May 12 with 12 consecutive strikes.
The USBC Board member and former Team USA member added games of 225 and 212 for a 737 series, and her overall performance placed her in fifth in Diamond All-Events with 2,195.
Karen Barcal of Albuquerque, New Mexico, rolled 300 during her final game of team competition June 11. She had started her set with games 189 and 235 for a 724 series.
Barcal made a second run at perfection during her doubles set the following day, rolling 299 in her second game on the way to a 787 series. She started doubles with 245 and finished with 243.
She added 576 in singles for a 2,087 all-events total.
If she would have completed the second perfect game, she would have joined USBC and Professional Women’s Bowling Association Hall of Famer Jeanne Naccarato of Tacoma, Washington, as the only bowlers at the Women’s Championships with multiple 300 games, and Barcal would have become the first to roll two during the same tournament.
Barcal is the first bowler at the Women’s Championships to roll both a 300 and 299 on the championship lanes.
Ruth Heath-Trott of Montpelier, Ohio, was the only bowler at the 2021 event to celebrate reaching 50 years of tournament participation when she made her milestone appearance May 9.
Heath-Trott, president of the Ohio State USBC and 2017 Helen Baker Award for Outstanding Association Service recipient, began her tournament career at the 1970 Women’s Championships in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and has only missed one tournament appearance along the way.
The 2021 Women’s Championships did take a brief hiatus in May to welcome the USBC Queens to the National Bowling Stadium. The Queens is a major championship on the PWBA Tour.
Julia Bond of Aurora, Illinois, went undefeated in match play and defeated 2011 Queens champion Missy Parkin of Laguna Hills, California, in the title match, 238-154, to capture her second career PWBA Tour title and first major championship.
The Women’s Championships will head to the Chicagoland area in 2022, as Stardust Bowl in Addison, Illinois, serves as host from April 24-July 10 (last team date). Registration for the 2022 event is open.
For more information on the USBC Women’s Championships, visit BOWL.com/WomensChamp.
Founded in 1895, today USBC and its 1,524 state and local associations proudly serve more than a million members. USBC is headquartered in Arlington, Texas, working toward a future for the sport. The online home for USBC is BOWL.com.
2021 USBC WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIPS
At National Bowling Stadium, Reno, Nev.
(Top 5 division leaders with hometown and pinfall)
As of July 3, 2021
NOTE: All standings are unofficial and pending final verification.
TEAM
Diamond
(For bowlers with combined averages of 665 and above)
1, Bowl 2 Win (Robin Orlikowski, Suzanne Morine, Jessica Aiezza, Liz Kuhlkin), Mechanicville, N.Y., 2,809. 2, Storm Nation, Brigham City, Utah, 2,704. 3, Sterner Strong #1, Oregon, Ohio, 2,701. 4, Elizabeth the Gloriana, Campbell, Calif., 2,696. 5, Chicks With Altitude, Fort Collins, Colo., 2,677.
Ruby
(For bowlers with combined averages of 600-664)
1, Happy Cats (Dawn Trodler, Denise Brabec, Kristine Guindon, Pamela O’Neil), Elgin, Ill., 2,283. 2, Magic Four, Orrum, N.C., 2,253. 3, Phillipa of Hainault, Campbell, Calif., 2,251. 4, Poco Loco, Houston, 2,250. 5, Crossways LLC, Okarche, Okla., 2,233.
Emerald
(For bowlers with combined averages of 545-599)
1, No Pin Intended (Lisa Herrington, Peggy Herrington, Misty Williams, Kelly Medley), Cheyenne, Wyo., 2,113. 2, Bowlaholics, Glendale, Ariz., 2,082. 3, Back Again, Chicago, 2,068. 4, Nordic Lanes III, Rushford, Minn., 2,066. 5, Where Here, Sioux Falls, S.D., 2,062.
Sapphire
(For bowlers with combined averages of 544 and below)
1, Pocket Pounders (Belinda Partida, Janell Smith, Tammy Lepley, Debi Richardson), Haltom City, Texas, 1,989. 2, Faith Catering, Goodland, Ind., 1,880. 3, Mixed Blessings, Tyler, Texas, 1,872. 4, Rock N’ Rowdy Rollers, Gun Barrel City, Texas, 1,868. 5, Burgh Queens Bees, Carmichaels, Pa., 1,862.
DOUBLES
Diamond
(For bowlers with combined averages of 350 and above)
1, Maria José Rodriguez, Austin, Texas/Sofia Granda, Guatemala, 1,560. 2, Nichole Hiraoka, Daly City, Calif./Karsyn Lukosius, Brick, N.J., 1,472. 3, Kaleena Henning-Shannon, Omaha, Neb./Jasmine Snell, Papillion, Neb., 1,458. 4, Karen Reid, Tracy, Calif./Anggie Ramirez Perea, Austin, Texas, 1,440. 5, Casie Wojahn, Evans, Colo./Jennifer Cupples, Colorado Springs, Colo., 1,421.
Ruby
(For bowlers with combined averages of 322-349)
1, Kimberley Haney, Aberdeen, Md./Khrystyna Liske, Delta, Pa., 1,308. 2, Jennifer Putibet, Maywood, Ill./Bettie Vines-Mathis, Park Forest, Ill., 1,285. 3, Eunsook So/Chong McHugh, Fort Worth, Texas, 1,259. 4, LaShun Vessel, Houston/Sandra Rouse, Tomball, Texas, 1,215. 5(tie), Julia Woodall, Clinton Township, Mich./Deana Harris, Warren, Mich., and Patricia Long, Joliet, Ill./Ashley Bennett, Plainfield, Ill., 1,207.
Emerald
(For bowlers with combined averages of 298-321)
1, Dawn Leuellen-Howie, Phoenix/Sabrina Tucci, Glendale, Ariz., 1,220. 2, Erica Scott, Converse, Texas/Elicia Sears, San Antonio, 1,208. 3, Angel Fulton/Maria Veney, San Antonio, 1,169. 4, Helen Jackson/Judy Seui, Clarksville, Tenn., 1,154. 5, Cynthia Pumphrey/DaShonda Bailey, Little Rock, Ark., 1,148.
Sapphire
(For bowlers with combined averages of 276-297)
1, Katherine Dowd, Pinconning, Mich./Kate Biskupski, Bay City, Mich., 1,090. 2, Patsy Lewis, Panama City, Fla./Ginny Schena, Haverhill, Mass., 1,080. 3, Tina Duarte, Herriman, Utah/Aubrey Clark, Layton, Utah, 1,070. 4, Tori King/Savannah Cisneros, Cedar City, Utah, 1,067. 5, Sara Schulz, Sterling Heights, Mich./Diane Schulz, Lenox, Mich., 1,054.
Amethyst
(For bowlers with combined averages of 250-275)
1, Sharold Moser, Addy, Wash./Malinda Carpenter, Colville, Wash., 1,072. 2(tie), Robin Burks, Cottage Grove, Minn./Christine Martin, St. Paul Park, Minn., and Rhonda White, Odessa, Texas/Mallory Tozier, Boulder, Colo., 1,012. 4, Sandra DuVall-Wolfe, West Grove, Pa./Susan Kolodziej, Longs, S.C., 1,006. 5, Renee Arntz, Altoona, Ala./Lynn Koehler, Boaz, Ala., 1,003.
Topaz
(For bowlers with combined averages of 249 and below)
1, Diena Wasson, Enumclaw, Wash./Rebecca Grant, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., 907. 2(tie), Dolores Peace, Dover, Del./Doris Butler, Hartly, Del., and Karen Andrus, Rigby, Idaho/Roseanna Seymour, Idaho Falls, Idaho, and Joanna LeBeau/Lady Carajohn, Peotone, Ill., 902. 5, Linda Johnson/Sue Janssen, Kearney, Neb., 894.
SINGLES
Diamond
(For bowlers with averages of 175 and above)
1, Sharon Powers, Lakewood, Colo., 801. 2, Verity Crawley, England, 793. 3, Erin Lenahan, Las Vegas, 792. 4, Jennifer Parsons, Deland, Fla., 779. 5, Heather Dettrey, Lincoln, Calif., 770.
Ruby
(For bowlers with averages from 161-174)
1, Dawn Sundblade, Indian Trail, N.C., 732. 2, DaShonda Bailey, Little Rock, Ark., 724. 3, Rose Waters, Auburn Hills, Mich., 704. 4(tie), Gay Socha, Fayetteville, Ga., and Jennifer Nusbaum, Leonardtown, Md., and Darla Moorhead, Perham, Minn., 696.
Emerald
(For bowlers with averages from 149-160)
1, Melinda Jenkins, Longmont, Colo., 663. 2, Tonya Hausser, Loveland, Colo., 662. 3, Julie Badham, Centerville, Utah, 650. 4, Sheila Allen, Woodbridge, Va., 646. 5, Julie Lancaster, Littleton, Colo., 643.
Sapphire
(For bowlers with averages from 138-148)
1, Shalanda Nunn, Lafayette, Ind., 671. 2, Alisha Stahler, Pine Island, Minn., 605. 3, Shannon Quigley, Bartlett, Ill., 595. 4(tie), Korey Young, Montpelier, Idaho, and Kimberlee Edson, Sandy, Utah, 594.
Amethyst
(For bowlers with averages from 125-137)
1(tie), Wendy Kelley, Trout Creek, Mont., and Bonnie Winters, Ansley, Neb., 600. 3, Mary Graves, Overland Park, Kan., 556. 4, Ellen Brogdon, Phenix City, Ala., 550. 5, Cindy Spotanski, Loveland, Colo., 546.
Topaz
(For bowlers with averages of 124 and below)
1, Joan Boesen, Bullhead City, Ariz., 518. 2, Rebecca Grant, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., 514. 3, Cheryl Durham, Clinton, Md., 507. 4, Kathy Ronca, New Franklin, Ohio, 506. 5, Peggy Little, Conroe, Texas, 505.
ALL-EVENTS
Diamond
(For bowlers with averages of 175 and above)
1, Shalin Zulkifli, Malaysia, 2,253. 2, Ashley Crowder, Tamarac, Fla., 2,206. 3(tie), Maria José Rodriguez, Austin, Texas, and Liz Kuhlkin, Schenectady, N.Y., 2,197. 5, Tina Williams, Pflugerville, Texas, 2,195.
Ruby
(For bowlers with averages from 161-174)
1, DaShonda Bailey, Little Rock, Ark., 2,055. 2, LaShun Vessel, Houston, 1,958. 3, Rose Waters, Auburn Hills, Mich., 1,950. 4, Deborah Manthey, Dearborn, Mich., 1,915. 5, Jennifer Nusbaum, Leonardtown, Md., 1,890.
Emerald
(For bowlers with averages from 149-160)
1, Kimberly Ruiz-Grewen, Canton, Ga., 1,809. 2, Erica Scott, Converse, Texas, 1,801. 3, Cindy Pate, Lafayette, La., 1,765. 4, Tricia Arthur, Casselberry, Fla., 1,763. 5(tie), Sherry Theisen, Surprise, Ariz., and Heather Guzman, Granby, Mass., 1,755.
Sapphire
(For bowlers with averages from 138-148)
1, Shalanda Nunn, Lafayette, Ind., 1,740. 2, Tori King, Cedar City, Utah, 1,685. 3, Pauline Atchison, Euless, Texas, 1,683. 4, Shannon Quigley, Bartlett, Ill., 1,670. 5, Liz Clark, Elk Grove, Calif., 1,644.
Amethyst
(For bowlers with averages from 125-137)
1, Lady Carajohn, Peotone, Ill., 1,612. 2, Malinda Carpenter, Colville, Wash., 1,567. 3, Pam Rolf, Hutchinson, Minn., 1,549. 4, Tina Jennings, Kemp, Texas, 1,544. 5, Tammy Lepley, Reno, Nev., 1,537.
Topaz
(For bowlers with averages of 124 and below)
1, Rebecca Grant, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., 1,506. 2, Gina Mix, Collinsville, Okla., 1,425. 3, Pamela Sauers, Conneaut Lake, Pa., 1,418. 4, Julia Fugitt, Grapevine, Texas, 1,406. 5, Cheryl Durham, Clinton, Md., 1,398.
Bowlers Journal International – Professional Bowling Magazine
