When Cynthia Johnson (pictured left) of Bowie, Md., planned her trip to Syracuse for the USBC Women's Championships, she had no intention of staying in town to compete in the USBC Senior Queens.

Luckily for Johnson, her friends and teammates had enough confidence in her abilities to talk her into staying, and she's now the first-round leader at the Senior Queens with a 1,128 five-game total at the Oncenter Convention Center on Saturday. Three-time Senior Queens champion Sandy Postma of Lansing, Ill., is second with 1,108, and Karen Miller of Las Vegas is third with 1,087.

"Yesterday, I bowled in the Women's Championships, but I was planning to go home on Monday," said Johnson, who posted a 1,810 scratch all-events total at the Women's Championships this week. "Some people told me I should stay, so here I am. This is my first time bowling in anything this big, and I'm so nervous."

The 51-year-old right-hander didn't appear nervous as she climbed into the lead with games of 260, 216, 235, 202 and 215.

"I am just trying to bowl as well as I can and make it to the next day," Johnson said. "I'm glad I decided to bowl. Now, I am just going to try and relax and get some rest for tomorrow."

Defending champion Char Hammel (right) of Las Vegas also bowled well Saturday and finished her five games with a 1,038 total, which is 12th overall. She used the opportunity to try some different balls and entry angles, since she's already guaranteed a spot in the 32-person match-play bracket as the defending champion.

Senior Queens qualifying continues with five more games Sunday at 10 a.m. Eastern.

After two rounds, the 76-person field will be cut to the top 40 players, who will bowl an additional five games Monday morning. Following the third round, the top 31 qualifiers will join Hammel in the double-elimination match-play bracket.

The Senior Queens finals will be broadcast live on BOWL.com on Wednesday at 10 a.m. Eastern.

 

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2011 USBC Senior Queens - First Round Qualifying

Top 40 with position, hometown and 5-game total

Complete Results

1, Cynthia Johnson, Bowie, Md., 1,128
2, Sandra Postma, Lansing, Ill., 1,108
3, Karen Miller, Las Vegas, 1,087
4, Paula Vidad, Sun City, Calif., 1,084
5, Dana Miller-Mackie, Albuquerque, N.M., 1,076
6, Nancy Fehr, Cincinnati, 1,075
7, Becky Clark, Des Moines, Iowa, 1,070
8, Pam Sprow, Lakeland, Fla., 1,051
T9, LuAnn Carbonetto, Blauvelt, N.Y., 1,049
T9, Stephanie Beck, Dubuque, Iowa, 1,049
11, Pam Lawrence, Pflugerville, Texas, 1,047
12, Linda Rose, North Arlington, N.J., 1,041
13, Char Hammel, Las Vegas, 1,038
14, Susan Turchen, Wilmington, Del., 1,037
15, Mary Sukonik, Staten Island, N.Y., 1,025
16, Patti Schultz, Braidwood, Ill., 1,023
17, Roberta Havholm, Dayton, Ohio, 1,020
18, Melody Felton, Colfax, Iowa, 1,016
19, Judy Koester, Rochester, N.Y., 1011
20, Rosa Moro, East Syracuse, N.Y., 995
21, Marci Williams, Wichita, Kan., 988
22, Shelley West, Omaha, Neb., 986
23, Lil Johnson, Lawton, Okla., 984
24, Connie Palmer, El Cajon, Calif., 983
25, Debbie Wade, West Jordan, Utah, 972
T26, Marliss Tapp, Portage, Mich., 971
T26, Joan Reilly, Wilmington, N.C., 971
28, Dora Nettleman, Eaton Rapids, Mich., 969
29, Judy Vogel, Slidell, La., 966
30, Lucy Sandelin, Tampa, Fla., 965
31, Christine Macke, Fairfax Station, Va., 963
32, Debra Sinek, Odenton, Md., 961
T33, Pam Buckner, Reno, Nev., 956
T33, Marianne Morton, Palm Coast, Fla., 956
T35, Christina Green, Westerly, R.I., 955
T35, Andi Whitlock, Middletown, Del., 955
37, Rosanne Allen, El Paso, Texas, 951
38, Heidi Pagenkopf, Lynnwood, Wash., 948
39, Mary Brooks, Hyattsville, Md., 946
40, Barbara Batt, Jacksonville, Fla., 945