American squads start strong on opening day of team qualifying at 2025 IBF World Cup
January 11, 2025
From left to right, Lauren Russo, Bryanna Coté, Shannon Pluhowsky and Jillian Martin
FULL STANDINGS
HONG KONG – One day after Packy Hanrahan of Wichita, Kansas, won bronze in Men’s Singles to capture Team USA’s first medal at the 2025 International Bowling Federation World Cup, both American teams took their first steps toward collecting additional hardware by finishing at or near the top of the standings during Saturday’s opening round of team qualifying at Top Bowl, which is located in Kai Tak Sports Park in Kowloon, Hong Kong, China.
The Team USA men’s quartet of Kristopher Prather of Romeoville, Illinois; Matt Russo of Ballwin, Missouri; Chris Via of Blacklick, Ohio; and Hanrahan went a perfect 6-0 during the opening round of Men’s Team qualifying to end the day alone in first place atop the Group A standings.
Singapore finished 5-1 on Saturday to secure second place in the 13-team group. From there, there was a four-way tie for spots three through six as Costa Rica, Denmark, Germany and Saudi Arabia all came in at 4-2.
The next four spots in the Group A were shared by India, Kuwait, New Zealand and Qatar, which all finished the first round at 3-3.
Finishing inside the top eight is the goal for all 25 men’s teams competing at this year’s World Cup as that is where they will need to be at the conclusion of Sunday’s final round of qualifying in order to advance to the Men’s Team bracket match-play round.
In Group B action on Saturday, Macao, Malaysia, Peru and Puerto Rico set the pace with matching 5-1 marks while Hong Kong and the Philippines each recorded marks of 4-2.
Bermuda (3-3), China (3-3) and Thailand (3-3) ended the opening round tied for the final advancing spot in the 12-team Group B standings.
This year’s Women’s Team competition features one 13-team group, and Malaysia seized control of it during Saturday’s first qualifying round by posting a perfect record of 7-0.
The Team USA women’s foursome of Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona; Jillian Martin of Stow, Ohio; Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio, and Lauren Russo of Ballwin, Missouri, weren’t far behind, finishing the opening round one game back with a mark of 6-1, which was the same record put up by China on Saturday.
The Philippines finished alone in third place at 5-2 while Macao (4-3), Singapore (4-3) and Sweden (4-3) and Denmark (3-4), Germany (3-4) and New Zealand (3-4) were close behind in spots four through six and seven through 10, respectively.
Like the men’s competition, women’s teams hoping to advance will have to finish inside the top eight at the conclusion of Sunday’s final qualifying block in order to keep their medal hopes alive.
Saturday’s solid Round 1 performances definitely bolstered the chances of both American squads, and that is something that made Team USA Head Coach Bryan O’Keefe quite happy.
“Things were great today,” O’Keefe said. “Both teams had a game plan coming in, and everyone stuck to it. Fortunately, it was working, so that was a good start. Even though we had a few close matches here and there, it never really felt like anyone got lost for too long, so it was pretty smooth sailing.”
O’Keefe hopes that trend continues on Sunday and during any additional rounds of competition his athletes may face.
“Saturday was really well-executed and we had good ball reaction, so hopefully we can carry that momentum into tomorrow and eventually into the bracket.”
Sunday’s final qualifying round will see all men’s teams bowl seven matches while the women’s squads complete their final six.
Teams in both the men’s and women’s division that finish in the top eight in their groups will advance to the bracket stage, which begins on Monday and continues until both fields are down to their final four teams.
The semifinals and finals in both the Men’s Team and Women’s Team competitions will be contested on Tuesday at Queen Elizabeth Stadium with medal ceremonies to follow.
CLICK HERE for more information on Team USA.
FULL STANDINGS
HONG KONG – One day after Packy Hanrahan of Wichita, Kansas, won bronze in Men’s Singles to capture Team USA’s first medal at the 2025 International Bowling Federation World Cup, both American teams took their first steps toward collecting additional hardware by finishing at or near the top of the standings during Saturday’s opening round of team qualifying at Top Bowl, which is located in Kai Tak Sports Park in Kowloon, Hong Kong, China.
The Team USA men’s quartet of Kristopher Prather of Romeoville, Illinois; Matt Russo of Ballwin, Missouri; Chris Via of Blacklick, Ohio; and Hanrahan went a perfect 6-0 during the opening round of Men’s Team qualifying to end the day alone in first place atop the Group A standings.
Singapore finished 5-1 on Saturday to secure second place in the 13-team group. From there, there was a four-way tie for spots three through six as Costa Rica, Denmark, Germany and Saudi Arabia all came in at 4-2.
The next four spots in the Group A were shared by India, Kuwait, New Zealand and Qatar, which all finished the first round at 3-3.
Finishing inside the top eight is the goal for all 25 men’s teams competing at this year’s World Cup as that is where they will need to be at the conclusion of Sunday’s final round of qualifying in order to advance to the Men’s Team bracket match-play round.
In Group B action on Saturday, Macao, Malaysia, Peru and Puerto Rico set the pace with matching 5-1 marks while Hong Kong and the Philippines each recorded marks of 4-2.
Bermuda (3-3), China (3-3) and Thailand (3-3) ended the opening round tied for the final advancing spot in the 12-team Group B standings.
This year’s Women’s Team competition features one 13-team group, and Malaysia seized control of it during Saturday’s first qualifying round by posting a perfect record of 7-0.
The Team USA women’s foursome of Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona; Jillian Martin of Stow, Ohio; Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio, and Lauren Russo of Ballwin, Missouri, weren’t far behind, finishing the opening round one game back with a mark of 6-1, which was the same record put up by China on Saturday.
The Philippines finished alone in third place at 5-2 while Macao (4-3), Singapore (4-3) and Sweden (4-3) and Denmark (3-4), Germany (3-4) and New Zealand (3-4) were close behind in spots four through six and seven through 10, respectively.
Like the men’s competition, women’s teams hoping to advance will have to finish inside the top eight at the conclusion of Sunday’s final qualifying block in order to keep their medal hopes alive.
Saturday’s solid Round 1 performances definitely bolstered the chances of both American squads, and that is something that made Team USA Head Coach Bryan O’Keefe quite happy.
“Things were great today,” O’Keefe said. “Both teams had a game plan coming in, and everyone stuck to it. Fortunately, it was working, so that was a good start. Even though we had a few close matches here and there, it never really felt like anyone got lost for too long, so it was pretty smooth sailing.”
O’Keefe hopes that trend continues on Sunday and during any additional rounds of competition his athletes may face.
“Saturday was really well-executed and we had good ball reaction, so hopefully we can carry that momentum into tomorrow and eventually into the bracket.”
Sunday’s final qualifying round will see all men’s teams bowl seven matches while the women’s squads complete their final six.
Teams in both the men’s and women’s division that finish in the top eight in their groups will advance to the bracket stage, which begins on Monday and continues until both fields are down to their final four teams.
The semifinals and finals in both the Men’s Team and Women’s Team competitions will be contested on Tuesday at Queen Elizabeth Stadium with medal ceremonies to follow.
CLICK HERE for more information on Team USA.