Bohn, Henderson lead after Day 1 of qualifying at inaugural USBC U22 Masters and Queens

FULL STANDINGS

DETROIT
– It’s often said that you can’t win a tournament on Day 1, but you can certainly lose it.

If that’s truly the case, then it was clear that Brandon Bohn of Jackson, New Jersey, and Dannielle Henderson of Jacksonville, Alabama, had no designs on losing anything during Friday’s opening round of qualifying at the inaugural United States Bowling Congress U22 Masters and Queens.

Bohn used games of 235, 234, 267, 196, 203, 211 and 225 to come in with a seven-game total of 1,571 (a 224.43 average) and lead the 151-player men’s field at Super Bowl in Canton, while Henderson finished with 1,653 (a 236.14 average) thanks to scores of 212, 258, 254, 234, 289, 204 and 202 en route to first place among the 76 women competing at Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park.

Bohn was joined in the men’s Day 1 top five by Josh Prowse of Marion, Iowa (1,515); Rory Clark of Muskego, Wisconsin (1,499); Cayleb Carey of Hobart, Indiana (1,491); and Mason Spies of Marion, Ohio (1,491).

In addition to Henderson, the women’s top five included Brooke Salzman of Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota (1,530); Jenna Stretch of Auburn Township, Ohio (1,522); Emma Siekierski of Davison, Michigan (1,509); and Payton Hartgrove of Columbus, Ohio (1,488).

Nevertheless, position No. 32 in the standings is the one that all eyes will be focused upon as competition continues as that represents the final advancing spot for match play.

There was a three-way tie for lucky No. 32 after Friday’s opening round of U22 Masters qualifying with Jacob Johnson of Redford, Michigan; Michael Anderson II of Olathe, Kansas; and Zander Parise of Ottawa, Illinois, all coming in with matching totals of 1,367.

Only two bowlers finished Day 1 sharing the 32nd and final position in the U22 Queens draw as Abby Bach of Fort Thomas, Kentucky, and Juliana Kerrigan of Ashland, Virginia, both recorded seven-game scores of 1,345.

Spectators who took in the action at Super Bowl on Friday could hardly be surprised to see Bohn’s name atop the leaderboard. After all, the powerful left-hander’s resume includes a stint on Team USA, multiple years as a member of Junior Team USA, three Junior Gold Championships titles, a U.S. Amateur championship and seemingly countless other accolades.

As such, it seemed fitting when Bohn experienced smooth sailing during the early portion of Friday’s qualifying block, during which he averaged just over 245 in Games 1-3.

The pace slowed a bit from there, however, and that fact was not lost on the Day 1 U22 Masters leader.

“I felt like I was on cruise control during the first three and a half games,” Bohn said. “I wouldn’t say the wheels fell off after that, but we had to change a tire because things got a little sketchy during Games 5 and 6.”

But even with the late-round challenges, Bohn was pleased with his opening-day performance and the position it put him in heading into Saturday’s final seven games of qualifying.

“I feel really good right now because, thankfully, I’m not going to be one of the bowlers who lost it on the first day,” Bohn said. “Also, it’s really cool to come out here and lead the first round in this tournament’s history. But still, it was just Round 1 on Day 1, and there’s a lot of bowling left, so I need to focus on putting some more good days together.”

Bohn and the rest of the U22 Masters field will return to Super Bowl for seven more games of qualifying on Saturday, after which the field will be cut down to the top 32 for match play.



The same scenario will play out for this year’s U22 Queens competitors, who will return to Thunderbowl Lanes for their second and final seven-game qualifying block on Saturday morning as well. 

Both tournaments will see the bowlers on B Squad kick things off on Saturday morning at 11 a.m. Eastern with A Squad following at 4:30 p.m. Eastern.

When that happens, Henderson will be looking to continue riding the momentum she created on Friday when she cruised to a 123-pin lead over Salzman.

Henderson is easy to pick out from the crowd as she is the rare female bowler using the two-handed style (from the right side). When she is lined up, the pin action generated from the power of her two-handed delivery is certainly an attention grabber.

As far as what went right for Henderson on Friday night at Thunderbowl Lanes, she summed it up in three words.

“Patience and confidence,” Henderson said. “Mostly patience, honestly. We preach that so much at school, and I think my patience really showed today. Plus, when I show a lot of confidence, I tend to bowl better, and I had a lot of confidence today.”

Henderson cited the chance to earn a spot on Junior Team USA as a motivating factor to bowl in the inaugural U22 Queens event.

“I first heard about this event while I was in school,” Henderson said. “Then, when we got out of school, it kind of went out of my mind. Then my coach (Bryan O’Keefe) reminded me that there was a chance to make Junior Team USA, and that would really mean a lot to me. So, I got myself signed up, and here we are.”

So how did she get there? Well, according to Henderson, it has a lot to do with her unique style.

“I think because of the way I throw it, not many people can get as left as I can,” Henderson said. “I was able to stay there most of the night, and I had little transition, so that was good. It wasn’t until really the last game that I had to figure things out a little bit.”

If she can figure things out on Saturday even close to as well as she did during Friday’s opening qualifying round, then Henderson should be a safe bet to advance to the match-play portion of this year’s U22 Queens.

Bracket match play for both the U22 Masters and U22 Queens will kick off Sunday morning at 10 a.m. Eastern.

Each match will be two games with total pinfall determining the winner. A player will be eliminated from the competition upon losing his or her second match.

Eight rounds of matches will be contested in each tournament on Sunday with just the top three players in each event surviving and advancing to the final day of competition on Monday.

The finals for both tournaments will conclude at Strobl Arena at Thunderbowl Lanes on Memorial Day at noon Eastern when the final three athletes in each event will participate in the BowlTV stepladder finals.

In addition to the first-place trophies, prize money and distinction of being crowned the first champions in each tournament’s history, a total of eight spots on Junior Team USA also will be awarded to the top finishers at the 2024 U22 Masters and Queens.

Those berths on will go to the top three age-eligible finishers after the qualifying rounds at both the U22 Masters and Queens and to each tournament’s champion.

If the champion has already acquired a spot or is not age eligible, the fourth and final Junior Team USA position up for grabs at each event will be given to the next-highest age-eligible finisher after the qualifying rounds.  

Age-eligible athletes will be those who have not reached their 21st birthday by Jan. 1, 2025.

All rounds of competition leading up to the stepladder will be streamed live exclusively on BowlTV.

For more information on the 2024 U22 Masters and Queens, visit BOWL.com/U22.