All-girls team wins Youth Open

The 2010 United States Bowling Congress Youth Open wrappedup this weekend and the team title went to an all-girls team led by former JuniorTeam USA member Jessica Earnest.

More than 2,000 youth bowlers participated in the USBC Youth Open, sponsored byPepsi, which was held at Expo Bowl in Indianapolis, Ind. The non-qualifyingtournament is patterned after the USBC Open Championships and USBC Women'sChampionships. Youth bowlers competed in team (four players), doubles, singlesand all-events during the 11 days of competition.

Earnest, of Vandalia, Ill., rolled a 685 series as the team named USA Girls hadgames of 830, 803, and 896 for a 2,529 total to take the Division I team title.Liz Siebel of Hellertown, Pa., and Dayna Galganski of Orlando, Fla., each had a624 series, and Brittni Hamilton of Webster, N.Y., a current Junior Team USAmember who won the girls division at the 2010 Junior Gold Championships,contributed a 596 series.

Teams can be all boys, all girls or a combination, since teams are not dividedby gender. Earnest said the USA Girls team was done spur of the moment. She hadplanned to bowl doubles with Hamilton, a teammate at Vanderbilt, and they askedGalganski and Seibel to join them for the team event. Each of the USA Girlscompeted in the USBC Junior Gold Championships in Indianapolis before joiningtogether at the Youth Open.

"All four of us had made top15 at Junior Gold and we were tired,"Earnest said. "But we were paired up with a really good team and we hadfun."

The Rochester Four, with team members Michelle Secours of East Rochester, N.Y.,Kaitlin Quinn of Livonia, N.Y., Cory Barber of Rochester, N.Y., and Jacob Kentof Newark, N.Y., were second at 2,439.

The USA Girls' success didn't stop with the team title. Earnest claimed thegirls Division I all-events title with a 2,053 total (a 228 average for ninegames) to edge Breanna Moree (2,007) of Pittsburgh, Pa. Galganski was third inall-events followed by Brandi Branka of Momence, Ill., with Seibel placingfifth. The all-events score is the bowler's combined score from singles,doubles and team.

"I honestly wasn't thinking all-events; I was just happy to be bowlingwell," Earnest said. "I didn't even think about what I was doing. Iwas just going out there to make people laugh and have a good time. That's whatthe Youth Open is all about."

In doubles, Ronnie Fujita of El Sobrante, Calif., and David Shaefer of Manteca,Calif., took the title with a 1,471 total with the four members of USA Girlstaking the next two spots. Earnest (761) and Hamilton (698) combined for 1,459to take second while Galganski (658) and Seibel (763) were third with 1,421.

Nicolas Sutherland of Grand Blanc, Mich., had games of 269, 221 and 278 for a768 total to edge A.J. Chapman of Manchester, Iowa, by one pin for the boysDivision I singles title. Matthew Brannan of Wetumpka, Ala., was third with a765 series.

Chapman won the boys Division I all-events title with a 2,016 total whileBrannan tied Richard Farrington of Rochester, N.Y., for second at 1,971.

For complete results from all divisions, click here.
All results are unofficial pending verification of averages.

The Youth Open will award approximately $100,000 in scholarships this year. Thetournament had four average-based divisions (129 and below, 130-159, 160-189and 190 and above) so participants were matched according to skill, not age orgender. Scores were based on actual pinfall and one out of every five entrantsin team, doubles and singles will receive scholarships, while one in six willreceive scholarships in all-events.