American women win gold, men bronze in team event at 2025 IBF World Cup
January 14, 2025
Members of Team USA pose with their medals at the conclusion of the team finals at the 2025 IBF World Cup in Hong Kong. The women won gold while the men earned bronze. Back row (from left to right): Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio; Jillian Martin of Stow, Ohio; Lauren Russo of Ballwin, Missouri; and Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona. Front row (from left to right): Packy Hanrahan of Wichita, Kansas; Chris Via of Blacklick, Ohio; Matt Russo of Ballwin, Missouri; and Kristopher Prather of Romeoville, Illinois
FULL STANDINGS
HONG KONG – Team USA finished up its run at the 2025 International Bowling Federation World Cup in style, winning the Women’s Team gold medal and the Men’s Team bronze during Tuesday’s arena-setting finals at Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Hong Kong.
Since team competition only began at the World Cup starting with the 2022 event in Queensland, Australia – the tournament only awarded singles medals from 1965-2019 – Tuesday’s win marked the first time in program history that the Team USA women earned World Cup team gold.
The American women’s squad of Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona; Jillian Martin of Stow, Ohio; Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio, and Lauren Russo of Ballwin, Missouri, entered bracket match play as the No. 3 seed, but by the time the final balls were thrown on Tuesday, they stood alone atop the podium.
The Team USA ladies began their historic march to victory with a 3-1 semifinal win over No. 7 Singapore.
The bout began with the Americans striking six times in the first eight frames en route to a 222-183 victory, but Singapore fired back during Game 2, using a late double to top Team USA, 190-186, and even the match.
That was as much ground as the ladies in red, white and blue were willing to give up, however, as they used a clutch four-bagger in frames five through eight to win Game 3 by a score of 223-205 and then took advantage of three open frames from Singapore to take Game 4 by a count of 224-172 to win the match and officially earn their shot at the Women’s Team gold medal.
Standing in their way would be top-seeded Malaysia, which cruised to victory during the other women’s semifinal, sweeping No. 5 Macao by scores of 202-184, 211-178 and 205-176 to punch its own ticket to the gold-medal match.
Whereas the quarterfinal- and semifinal-round matches were best-of-five affairs, the women’s finals format was best of three, so getting off to a solid start was crucial.
The Team USA ladies did just that, staying clean and using key strikes in the ninth frame and during the first two shots in the 10th to take the opener by a final score of 214-195.
But as expected, Malaysia wasn’t ready to go down without a fight, a fact that was made clear as it used a closing five-bagger to rally for a 222-211 victory during Game 2 to even the match and leave the Women’s Team gold medal riding on the outcome of one final game.
Like the two that preceded it, the third game was a nip-and-tuck affair, but Team USA used clutch doubles in the sixth and seventh and ninth and 10th to grind its way to a 198-176 victory to win the match and its first World Cup Women’s Team gold medal.
Malaysia claimed silver while both Macao and Singapore earned bronze.
Given the wide range of ages and international experience levels represented on the Team USA women’s roster at this year’s World Cup, that medal meant different things to each of the four athletes who competed in Hong Kong.
For Pluhowsky, the most veteran women’s team member at 42 years old and with 25 years of Team USA experience under her belt, the answer was simple.
“Team USA had a strong performance this week,” Pluhowsky said. “It started with all of us making the bracket in singles and then coming away with a medal. Then, when the team event started, we were able to compile what we learned through singles to help us advance to the bracket.
“Today, we just tried to have fun and enjoy the moment, staying focused on ourselves and making quality shots. It feels great to be World Cup champions.”
Despite coming at things from the other end of the spectrum at just 20 years old and with three years of Team USA experience, Martin’s feelings were largely the same.
“Being a world champion is an amazing feeling, something that you dream about a lot,” Martin said. “Obviously, we came here to win gold, so it’s great that we were able to achieve that. But it’s also great that we got to form those bonds and learn how to work with each other as well.
“Also, it was great to be surrounded by such an amazing group of ladies. I don’t have as much experience at the adult level and am still pretty young, so it can be pretty nerve-racking at times. But they were there for me the entire time, and I was grateful for that. It’s wonderful to be surrounded by the best and to know that the work paid off.”
According to Russo, that work was plenty hard both mentally and physically.
“We had things thrown at us that really tested our patience throughout the week, and I felt like we really stuck together through all of that and had a pretty solid outcome,” Russo said. “As far as being a World Cup champion is concerned, it’s pretty incredible to live out these dreams that I’ve had since I was a little girl. To be able to do it with some of the best athletes in the United States, including one of my closest friends in Bryanna (Coté) and Shannon (Pluhowsky) during her 25th year on the team, makes it even more special.”
Special would be a bit of an understatement when describing what Tuesday’s victory meant to Coté, which makes sense seeing as how she was the only Team USA woman competing in Hong Kong who also was a member of the American women’s 2022 World Cup squad that missed out on a team medal.
“To be a part of the first World Cup Women’s Team gold in program history is just surreal,” Coté said. “The moment really hasn’t sunk in yet as I think I’ve asked myself a dozen times already ‘did that really just happen?’ We may not have gone 3-0, 3-0 today, but we bowled amazingly and selflessly. This moment will be cherished for a very long time.
“Today’s win is definitely special because I kind of felt like we were underdogs at this event. We had many ups and downs, but when it came time to perform under the bright lights, we shined. And now we’re going on the International Training and Research Center World Champions Wall.”
The Team USA men’s foursome of Packy Hanrahan of Wichita, Kansas; Kristopher Prather of Romeoville, Illinois; Matt Russo of Ballwin, Missouri; and Chris Via of Blacklick, Ohio, was hoping to put its picture up on that wall as well, right next to the shot of Team USA’s 2022 World Cup men’s gold medal team.
It would have been tough to bet against the American men at the start of Tuesday’s semifinal round. After all, Team USA entered as the No. 1 seed in the Men’s Team competition after having gone 11-2 during qualifying and then running roughshod over Thailand and Peru during Monday’s Round of 16 and quarterfinals.
Unfortunately, Team USA’s earlier-round success did not translate to victory during Tuesday’s semifinal bout with No. 3 Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico took advantage of a pair of open frames by the Americans to take Game 1 by a final score of 186-175.
Team USA swung back hard during the following game, striking eight times en route to a 234-158 victory that tied the match 1-1.
That was the last game the Americans would capture, however, as timely strikes from Puerto Rico combined with frequent single-pin leaves by Team USA allowed Puerto Rico to win the next two games (200-196 and 210-177) and the match.
The loss forced the Americans to settle for a bronze-medal finish alongside Kuwait, which was defeated 3-1 (205-153; 159-201; 245-206 and 234-233) by Malaysia in the other men’s semifinal.
Malaysia would go on to top Puerto Rico 3-2 (203-170; 216-257; 197-180; 185-222 and 227-161) one round later to capture the 2025 World Cup Men’s Team gold medal. Puerto Rico walked away with silver.
Even though the American men were unable to successfully defend the Men’s Team title they won at the 2022 World Cup in Australia, Prather was very proud of the effort he and his teammates put forth in Hong Kong.
“Overall, I’m super happy with our performance and proud of everyone,” Prather said. “These events are incredibly difficult to win. I feel like we bowled every bit as well as Puerto Rico, but unfortunately the pins didn’t fall our way, and that’s sometimes how you lose.
“I think we put forth a stellar performance during our time at the World Cup. We had great communication and saw great leadership from everyone at one point or another. We’re going to go home with our heads held high, and I just look forward to making another run at the podium with these guys at some point.”
The 2025 IBF World Cup began on Jan. 5 and came to a close at the conclusion of Tuesday’s medal ceremonies.
In addition to Tuesday’s team medals, Hanrahan earned bronze during the Men’s Singles event, which was contested at Top Bowl, Kai Tak Sports Park, in Kowloon, Hong Kong, China, from Jan. 7-10.
CLICK HERE for more information on Team USA.
FULL STANDINGS
HONG KONG – Team USA finished up its run at the 2025 International Bowling Federation World Cup in style, winning the Women’s Team gold medal and the Men’s Team bronze during Tuesday’s arena-setting finals at Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Hong Kong.
Since team competition only began at the World Cup starting with the 2022 event in Queensland, Australia – the tournament only awarded singles medals from 1965-2019 – Tuesday’s win marked the first time in program history that the Team USA women earned World Cup team gold.
The American women’s squad of Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona; Jillian Martin of Stow, Ohio; Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio, and Lauren Russo of Ballwin, Missouri, entered bracket match play as the No. 3 seed, but by the time the final balls were thrown on Tuesday, they stood alone atop the podium.
The Team USA ladies began their historic march to victory with a 3-1 semifinal win over No. 7 Singapore.
The bout began with the Americans striking six times in the first eight frames en route to a 222-183 victory, but Singapore fired back during Game 2, using a late double to top Team USA, 190-186, and even the match.
That was as much ground as the ladies in red, white and blue were willing to give up, however, as they used a clutch four-bagger in frames five through eight to win Game 3 by a score of 223-205 and then took advantage of three open frames from Singapore to take Game 4 by a count of 224-172 to win the match and officially earn their shot at the Women’s Team gold medal.
Standing in their way would be top-seeded Malaysia, which cruised to victory during the other women’s semifinal, sweeping No. 5 Macao by scores of 202-184, 211-178 and 205-176 to punch its own ticket to the gold-medal match.
Whereas the quarterfinal- and semifinal-round matches were best-of-five affairs, the women’s finals format was best of three, so getting off to a solid start was crucial.
The Team USA ladies did just that, staying clean and using key strikes in the ninth frame and during the first two shots in the 10th to take the opener by a final score of 214-195.
But as expected, Malaysia wasn’t ready to go down without a fight, a fact that was made clear as it used a closing five-bagger to rally for a 222-211 victory during Game 2 to even the match and leave the Women’s Team gold medal riding on the outcome of one final game.
Like the two that preceded it, the third game was a nip-and-tuck affair, but Team USA used clutch doubles in the sixth and seventh and ninth and 10th to grind its way to a 198-176 victory to win the match and its first World Cup Women’s Team gold medal.
Malaysia claimed silver while both Macao and Singapore earned bronze.
Given the wide range of ages and international experience levels represented on the Team USA women’s roster at this year’s World Cup, that medal meant different things to each of the four athletes who competed in Hong Kong.
For Pluhowsky, the most veteran women’s team member at 42 years old and with 25 years of Team USA experience under her belt, the answer was simple.
“Team USA had a strong performance this week,” Pluhowsky said. “It started with all of us making the bracket in singles and then coming away with a medal. Then, when the team event started, we were able to compile what we learned through singles to help us advance to the bracket.
“Today, we just tried to have fun and enjoy the moment, staying focused on ourselves and making quality shots. It feels great to be World Cup champions.”
Despite coming at things from the other end of the spectrum at just 20 years old and with three years of Team USA experience, Martin’s feelings were largely the same.
“Being a world champion is an amazing feeling, something that you dream about a lot,” Martin said. “Obviously, we came here to win gold, so it’s great that we were able to achieve that. But it’s also great that we got to form those bonds and learn how to work with each other as well.
“Also, it was great to be surrounded by such an amazing group of ladies. I don’t have as much experience at the adult level and am still pretty young, so it can be pretty nerve-racking at times. But they were there for me the entire time, and I was grateful for that. It’s wonderful to be surrounded by the best and to know that the work paid off.”
According to Russo, that work was plenty hard both mentally and physically.
“We had things thrown at us that really tested our patience throughout the week, and I felt like we really stuck together through all of that and had a pretty solid outcome,” Russo said. “As far as being a World Cup champion is concerned, it’s pretty incredible to live out these dreams that I’ve had since I was a little girl. To be able to do it with some of the best athletes in the United States, including one of my closest friends in Bryanna (Coté) and Shannon (Pluhowsky) during her 25th year on the team, makes it even more special.”
Special would be a bit of an understatement when describing what Tuesday’s victory meant to Coté, which makes sense seeing as how she was the only Team USA woman competing in Hong Kong who also was a member of the American women’s 2022 World Cup squad that missed out on a team medal.
“To be a part of the first World Cup Women’s Team gold in program history is just surreal,” Coté said. “The moment really hasn’t sunk in yet as I think I’ve asked myself a dozen times already ‘did that really just happen?’ We may not have gone 3-0, 3-0 today, but we bowled amazingly and selflessly. This moment will be cherished for a very long time.
“Today’s win is definitely special because I kind of felt like we were underdogs at this event. We had many ups and downs, but when it came time to perform under the bright lights, we shined. And now we’re going on the International Training and Research Center World Champions Wall.”
The Team USA men’s foursome of Packy Hanrahan of Wichita, Kansas; Kristopher Prather of Romeoville, Illinois; Matt Russo of Ballwin, Missouri; and Chris Via of Blacklick, Ohio, was hoping to put its picture up on that wall as well, right next to the shot of Team USA’s 2022 World Cup men’s gold medal team.
It would have been tough to bet against the American men at the start of Tuesday’s semifinal round. After all, Team USA entered as the No. 1 seed in the Men’s Team competition after having gone 11-2 during qualifying and then running roughshod over Thailand and Peru during Monday’s Round of 16 and quarterfinals.
Unfortunately, Team USA’s earlier-round success did not translate to victory during Tuesday’s semifinal bout with No. 3 Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico took advantage of a pair of open frames by the Americans to take Game 1 by a final score of 186-175.
Team USA swung back hard during the following game, striking eight times en route to a 234-158 victory that tied the match 1-1.
That was the last game the Americans would capture, however, as timely strikes from Puerto Rico combined with frequent single-pin leaves by Team USA allowed Puerto Rico to win the next two games (200-196 and 210-177) and the match.
The loss forced the Americans to settle for a bronze-medal finish alongside Kuwait, which was defeated 3-1 (205-153; 159-201; 245-206 and 234-233) by Malaysia in the other men’s semifinal.
Malaysia would go on to top Puerto Rico 3-2 (203-170; 216-257; 197-180; 185-222 and 227-161) one round later to capture the 2025 World Cup Men’s Team gold medal. Puerto Rico walked away with silver.
Even though the American men were unable to successfully defend the Men’s Team title they won at the 2022 World Cup in Australia, Prather was very proud of the effort he and his teammates put forth in Hong Kong.
“Overall, I’m super happy with our performance and proud of everyone,” Prather said. “These events are incredibly difficult to win. I feel like we bowled every bit as well as Puerto Rico, but unfortunately the pins didn’t fall our way, and that’s sometimes how you lose.
“I think we put forth a stellar performance during our time at the World Cup. We had great communication and saw great leadership from everyone at one point or another. We’re going to go home with our heads held high, and I just look forward to making another run at the podium with these guys at some point.”
The 2025 IBF World Cup began on Jan. 5 and came to a close at the conclusion of Tuesday’s medal ceremonies.
In addition to Tuesday’s team medals, Hanrahan earned bronze during the Men’s Singles event, which was contested at Top Bowl, Kai Tak Sports Park, in Kowloon, Hong Kong, China, from Jan. 7-10.
CLICK HERE for more information on Team USA.