Bandy perfect at Junior Gold Championships
07/13/07
Pikeville College senior Kayla Bandy of Danville, Va., became the first female in the 10-year history of the United States Bowling Congress Junior Gold Championships to shoot a perfect game during qualifying Thursday.
Bandy, who was named Most Valuable Player for the 2006-07 collegiate bowling season by the National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association, fired the perfect game in the second game of her final qualifying block at AMF Thruway Lanes.
"This is my first 300 game on Sport Bowling conditions and just the second one I've ever had," said Bandy, a former two-time Junior Team USA member. "In the 10th frame, every shot was in the pocket. But two of the previous strikes in the game, I carried a couple of Brooklyns."
The perfect game was a much-needed boost for Bandy, who turns 21 on Monday. After opening the tournament with 1,224 at Transit Lanes, she shot just 1,038 at AMF Airport Lanes. She closed with a final six-game block of 1,248 at AMF Thruway to lock up a spot in the semifinals Friday.
"That game definitely gave me a boost for not only the entire tournament, but also for this set," Bandy said. "I didn't bowl too awesome the other games, so that 300 really helped me out."
Bandy's perfect game was the third overall by a female in the Junior Gold Championships. Jennifer Wright of Columbia, S.C., shot 300 in the semifinals last year on the way to winning the title, and Essence Harris of Lompoc, Calif., shot a perfect game in the finals in 1998.
More than 1,500 of the top youth bowlers in the country are competing in the Junior Gold Championships, which are being conducted at three bowling centers this week. The athletes are battling for $100,000 in scholarships and the title of U.S. Junior Amateur champion.
Qualifying competition for the boys and girls divisions consists of three six-game blocks over four days wrapping up on Thursday. After 18 games, the top 96 males and 48 females (including all ties) will advance to the semifinals.
"My goal was to be in the top 16 before the first cut because otherwise it's just too hard to catch up," Bandy said. "To win the tournament would be the ultimate, but the big goal is to make Junior Team USA again. Missing last year was really hard. After you've done it once, you want to experience that feeling again. There's nothing like it."
The semifinalists bowl six games Friday to determine the top 32 males and top 32 females who compete in the finals. The remaining bowlers compete in six final games with the top male and top female declared U.S. Junior Amateur champions.
The top five finishers who are U.S. citizens in the boys and girls divisions will earn automatic spots on Junior Team USA, serving as United States representatives in international competition in 2008. The National Selection Committee will choose six additional Junior Gold competitors, three males and three females, to round out the 2008 team.
USBC Youth
AMF Thruway Lanes, Transit Lanes, AMF Airport Lanes in Buffalo N.Y., USA (July 7-13, 2007)
Pikeville College senior Kayla Bandy of Danville, Va., became the first female in the 10-year history of the United States Bowling Congress Junior Gold Championships to shoot a perfect game during qualifying Thursday. Bandy, who was named Most Valuable Player for the 2006-07 collegiate bowling season by the National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association, fired the perfect game in the second game of her final qualifying block at AMF Thruway Lanes.
"This is my first 300 game on Sport Bowling conditions and just the second one I've ever had," said Bandy, a former two-time Junior Team USA member. "In the 10th frame, every shot was in the pocket. But two of the previous strikes in the game, I carried a couple of Brooklyns."
The perfect game was a much-needed boost for Bandy, who turns 21 on Monday. After opening the tournament with 1,224 at Transit Lanes, she shot just 1,038 at AMF Airport Lanes. She closed with a final six-game block of 1,248 at AMF Thruway to lock up a spot in the semifinals Friday.
"That game definitely gave me a boost for not only the entire tournament, but also for this set," Bandy said. "I didn't bowl too awesome the other games, so that 300 really helped me out."
Bandy's perfect game was the third overall by a female in the Junior Gold Championships. Jennifer Wright of Columbia, S.C., shot 300 in the semifinals last year on the way to winning the title, and Essence Harris of Lompoc, Calif., shot a perfect game in the finals in 1998.
More than 1,500 of the top youth bowlers in the country are competing in the Junior Gold Championships, which are being conducted at three bowling centers this week. The athletes are battling for $100,000 in scholarships and the title of U.S. Junior Amateur champion.
Qualifying competition for the boys and girls divisions consists of three six-game blocks over four days wrapping up on Thursday. After 18 games, the top 96 males and 48 females (including all ties) will advance to the semifinals.
"My goal was to be in the top 16 before the first cut because otherwise it's just too hard to catch up," Bandy said. "To win the tournament would be the ultimate, but the big goal is to make Junior Team USA again. Missing last year was really hard. After you've done it once, you want to experience that feeling again. There's nothing like it."
The semifinalists bowl six games Friday to determine the top 32 males and top 32 females who compete in the finals. The remaining bowlers compete in six final games with the top male and top female declared U.S. Junior Amateur champions.
The top five finishers who are U.S. citizens in the boys and girls divisions will earn automatic spots on Junior Team USA, serving as United States representatives in international competition in 2008. The National Selection Committee will choose six additional Junior Gold competitors, three males and three females, to round out the 2008 team.