Silver Lake Atom Splitters, L.A. X advance to PBA League Elias Cup Finals
04/13/15
The defending champion Bass Pro Shops Silver Lake Atom Splitters and the Wheaties L.A. X survived an intense semifinal round, capped by two more sudden-death roll-offs, to advance to the third annual Professional Bowlers Association League Elias Cup Finals at Bayside Bowl. The finals will air Sunday (April 19) at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The semifinal round, which aired last Sunday on ESPN, completed a highly-competitive Baker team series at Bayside Bowl which saw all six best-of-two-game elimination matches decided by sudden-death roll-offs.
Bowling in front of a loud, enthusiastic crowd of Maine bowling fans, Silver Lake won a chance to defend its Elias Cup title by rallying to defeat the Concrete Software BROOKLYN STyLES while L.A. X came from behind to edge the HotelPlanner.com Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits.
In the first semifinal match, Silver Lake rolled four strikes out of the gate, but Brooklyn answered with a string of five strikes and clinched a 244-230 victory when Sean Rash and Parker Bohn III put together three strikes in the final two frames. Silver Lake anchor bowler Dick Allen could have given the Atom Splitters a 1-0 lead with a strike on his first shot in the 10th frame, but he left the 1-2-4-6-10 to end his team's hopes.
In game two, both teams struggled to carry back-to-back strikes. A double by Mika Koivuniemi and Chris Barnes gave Silver Lake a temporary 12-pin lead in the seventh frame, but Craig Nidiffer's 4-6-10 split helped Brooklyn get back in the game.
The match came down to the 10th frame where Allen threw three strikes to lock up a 204-192 decision and send the match into a roll-off where his strike gave Silver Lake the win, 10-9, after Bohn left a 10 pin.
It was a match where Silver Lake manager Mark Baker front-loaded his lineup with proven stars Koivuniemi (15 career titles) and Barnes (18 titles), followed by Nidiffer (no title), Tom Daugherty (one title) and Allen (three titles) because "Mika and Chris throw the ball the straightest," Baker said. "I thought the lane condition would break down more than it did."
The surprising lineup put Allen in position to deal with the 10th-frame pressure, but it was situation he embraced.
"In the first game, I picked up the wrong ball," Allen said of his five-count shot in the 10th frame. "But I got loose and picked up the right ball the next time, and that was the key.
"I knew (the roll-off) shot was good when I let it go," he added. "I like being in that position. I want to be there. That's what makes you a better bowler."
In the second semifinal match, Pittsburgh started with a pair of single-pin spares followed by a string of five strikes, running away with a 234-197 win. But game two also turned into a struggle for both teams to throw back-to-back strikes.
The Jack Rabbits filled every frame, but managed only two strikes. L.A. X got the lead when Sweden's Martin Larsen, Australia's Jason Belmonte and England's Stuart Williams threw consecutive strikes in the middle of the game, and held on for a 202-190 decision to send the match into sudden-death.
In the roll-off, Pittsburgh's Wes Malott (4 pin) and Belmonte (10 pin) bowled first and tied, 9-9. Pittsburgh's Ryan Ciminelli and L.A. X's Williams each threw strikes. On the third roll-off shot, Larsen struck and the Jack Rabbits' Osku Palermaa left a 10 pin to send L.A. X into the Elias Cup finals.
"That's why you practice hour after hour, and travel so much, and leave your family – for moments like this," Larsen said. "It's great when you do it for yourself, but it's five times more fun when you do it for your team."
Next Sunday's Elias Cup title match will consist of singles, alternate-ball doubles and Baker trios matches – each worth one point – and a Baker team match that will be worth three points. If the match ends in a 3-3 tie, the title will be decided in a one-ball sudden-death roll-off.
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Bayside Bowl in Portland, Maine, March 29, 2015 (aired April 12)
Semifinal Match One (best-of-two-game Baker team format)
Game One: Concrete Software BROOKLYN STyLES (Walter Ray Williams Jr., Jason Sterner, Tom Smallwood, Sean Rash, Parker Bohn III) def. Bass Pro Shops Silver Lake Atom Splitters (Mika Koivuniemi, Chris Barnes, Craig Nidiffer, Tom Daugherty, Dick Allen), 244-230.
Game Two: Silver Lake def. Brooklyn, 204-192.
One-Ball Sudden-Death Roll-Off: Silver Lake (Dick Allen) def. Brooklyn (Parker Bohn III), 10-9.
Semifinal Match Two (best-of-two-game Baker team format)
Game One: HotelPlanner.com Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits (Bryon Smith, Dan MacLelland, Ryan Ciminelli, Osku Palermaa, Wes Malott) def. Wheaties L.A. X (Stuart Williams, Andres Gomez, Martin Larsen, Patrick Allen, Jason Belmonte), 234-197.
Game Two: L.A. def. Pittsburgh, 202-190.
One-Ball Sudden-Death Roll-Off: L.A. (Jason Belmonte) tied Pittsuburgh (Wes Malott), 9-9; L.A. X (Stuart Williams) tied Pittsburgh (Ryan Ciminelli), 10-10; L.A. X (Martin Larsen) def. Pittsburgh (Osku Palermaa), 10-9.
2015 PBA League
Two more sudden-death roll-offs needed to decide championship finalists
The defending champion Bass Pro Shops Silver Lake Atom Splitters and the Wheaties L.A. X survived an intense semifinal round, capped by two more sudden-death roll-offs, to advance to the third annual Professional Bowlers Association League Elias Cup Finals at Bayside Bowl. The finals will air Sunday (April 19) at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN.The semifinal round, which aired last Sunday on ESPN, completed a highly-competitive Baker team series at Bayside Bowl which saw all six best-of-two-game elimination matches decided by sudden-death roll-offs.
Bowling in front of a loud, enthusiastic crowd of Maine bowling fans, Silver Lake won a chance to defend its Elias Cup title by rallying to defeat the Concrete Software BROOKLYN STyLES while L.A. X came from behind to edge the HotelPlanner.com Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits.
In the first semifinal match, Silver Lake rolled four strikes out of the gate, but Brooklyn answered with a string of five strikes and clinched a 244-230 victory when Sean Rash and Parker Bohn III put together three strikes in the final two frames. Silver Lake anchor bowler Dick Allen could have given the Atom Splitters a 1-0 lead with a strike on his first shot in the 10th frame, but he left the 1-2-4-6-10 to end his team's hopes.In game two, both teams struggled to carry back-to-back strikes. A double by Mika Koivuniemi and Chris Barnes gave Silver Lake a temporary 12-pin lead in the seventh frame, but Craig Nidiffer's 4-6-10 split helped Brooklyn get back in the game.
The match came down to the 10th frame where Allen threw three strikes to lock up a 204-192 decision and send the match into a roll-off where his strike gave Silver Lake the win, 10-9, after Bohn left a 10 pin.
It was a match where Silver Lake manager Mark Baker front-loaded his lineup with proven stars Koivuniemi (15 career titles) and Barnes (18 titles), followed by Nidiffer (no title), Tom Daugherty (one title) and Allen (three titles) because "Mika and Chris throw the ball the straightest," Baker said. "I thought the lane condition would break down more than it did."
The surprising lineup put Allen in position to deal with the 10th-frame pressure, but it was situation he embraced.
"In the first game, I picked up the wrong ball," Allen said of his five-count shot in the 10th frame. "But I got loose and picked up the right ball the next time, and that was the key.
"I knew (the roll-off) shot was good when I let it go," he added. "I like being in that position. I want to be there. That's what makes you a better bowler."
In the second semifinal match, Pittsburgh started with a pair of single-pin spares followed by a string of five strikes, running away with a 234-197 win. But game two also turned into a struggle for both teams to throw back-to-back strikes.The Jack Rabbits filled every frame, but managed only two strikes. L.A. X got the lead when Sweden's Martin Larsen, Australia's Jason Belmonte and England's Stuart Williams threw consecutive strikes in the middle of the game, and held on for a 202-190 decision to send the match into sudden-death.
In the roll-off, Pittsburgh's Wes Malott (4 pin) and Belmonte (10 pin) bowled first and tied, 9-9. Pittsburgh's Ryan Ciminelli and L.A. X's Williams each threw strikes. On the third roll-off shot, Larsen struck and the Jack Rabbits' Osku Palermaa left a 10 pin to send L.A. X into the Elias Cup finals.
"That's why you practice hour after hour, and travel so much, and leave your family – for moments like this," Larsen said. "It's great when you do it for yourself, but it's five times more fun when you do it for your team."
Next Sunday's Elias Cup title match will consist of singles, alternate-ball doubles and Baker trios matches – each worth one point – and a Baker team match that will be worth three points. If the match ends in a 3-3 tie, the title will be decided in a one-ball sudden-death roll-off.
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PBA League Elias Cup Playoffs
Bayside Bowl in Portland, Maine, March 29, 2015 (aired April 12)
Semifinal Match One (best-of-two-game Baker team format)
Game One: Concrete Software BROOKLYN STyLES (Walter Ray Williams Jr., Jason Sterner, Tom Smallwood, Sean Rash, Parker Bohn III) def. Bass Pro Shops Silver Lake Atom Splitters (Mika Koivuniemi, Chris Barnes, Craig Nidiffer, Tom Daugherty, Dick Allen), 244-230.
Game Two: Silver Lake def. Brooklyn, 204-192.
One-Ball Sudden-Death Roll-Off: Silver Lake (Dick Allen) def. Brooklyn (Parker Bohn III), 10-9.
Semifinal Match Two (best-of-two-game Baker team format)
Game One: HotelPlanner.com Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits (Bryon Smith, Dan MacLelland, Ryan Ciminelli, Osku Palermaa, Wes Malott) def. Wheaties L.A. X (Stuart Williams, Andres Gomez, Martin Larsen, Patrick Allen, Jason Belmonte), 234-197.
Game Two: L.A. def. Pittsburgh, 202-190.
One-Ball Sudden-Death Roll-Off: L.A. (Jason Belmonte) tied Pittsuburgh (Wes Malott), 9-9; L.A. X (Stuart Williams) tied Pittsburgh (Ryan Ciminelli), 10-10; L.A. X (Martin Larsen) def. Pittsburgh (Osku Palermaa), 10-9.
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