Coastal South Eagles claim U15 title in USA Bowling National Championships
July 26, 2023
INDIANAPOLIS – The team representing the Coastal South region won the title in the 15-and-under division at the 2023 USA Bowling National Championships. The finals aired on CBS Sports Network Tuesday night.
The Coast South region’s Eagles defeated the Pocket Punishers from the Mountain region in a 3-0 sweep.
The best-of-five match championship round featured a four-person Baker format with the lead-off bowler bowling the first, fifth and ninth frames, the second bowler bowling the second, sixth and 10th frames, the third bowler bowling frames three and seven, and the fourth bowler bowling frames four and eight.
The Eagles brought a four-person team to the event, so they didn’t have the luxury of any substitutions. The roster for the Eagles featured athletes Gavin Murray, Ridgely Potter Jr., Emmanuel Guevara and Carly Rhodes (the only female in the finals), and head coach Scott DeBoer.
Bowling for the Mountain region’s Pocket Punishers were Diego Lujuan, Blaine Canfield, Jonathan Van Der Merwede, Ronin Rivera and Raider Ramsdell. Anthony Rivera was the head coach and he was assisted by Mike Lujan.
In Game 1, the Eagles struck in eight of their first nine frames, leaving open frames in the seventh and 10th. The Punishers also had two open frames and eight strikes, but couldn’t string the strikes together as effectively as their opponent, and the result was a 229-203 win for the Eagles.
It was more of the same in Game 2. After an open frame in the first, the Eagles strung together six consecutive strikes before another open frame in the eighth. They finished with the last four strikes for a 245 game. The Punishers never could find any momentum as they didn’t throw consecutive strikes until a three-bagger late in the game. Open frames in the second and fifth kept them trailing in every frame after the first, and they ended up with 194, leaving the Eagles on the verge of the championship.
Game 3 was a lower-scoring affair and a closer match. The Punishers held an eight-pin lead after eight frames, but an open frame after a 2-10 split in the ninth, combined with a strike and spare in the 10th, left them within reach of the Eagles. Potter, working off a spare by Murray in the ninth, doubled in the 10th to seal the match, and the championship, 179-166.
“In this event, every frame is important,” Guevara said. “You have to make adjustments quickly and you have to trust them to bowl well. You have to make your spares, make good shots and keep the mood positive. It’s an all-around fun tournament, but it’s also hard.”
Afterward, coach DeBoer talked about what it was like to coach the Eagles.
“This particular group is easy to coach,” DeBoer said. “They do their own stuff, so most of my job is just making sure they see what I see and then helping them understand when to make a change, but they do most of it on their own. We stress communication among the team members and I try to keep the mood light. I’m just really proud of this group.”
BowlTV.com provided live coverage of the qualifying and match play rounds leading up to the finals.
The 2023 USA Bowling National Championships featured 16 regions in U15. Each team that competed in Indianapolis earned their spot by winning their region.
For more information on the USA Bowling National Championships, head to: bowl.com/youth/usa-bowling.
The next CBS Sports Network telecast from the 2023 Junior Gold Championships is Tuesday, Aug. 1, at 7 p.m. Eastern and will feature both the boys and girls finals in the U12 division.
The Coast South region’s Eagles defeated the Pocket Punishers from the Mountain region in a 3-0 sweep.
The best-of-five match championship round featured a four-person Baker format with the lead-off bowler bowling the first, fifth and ninth frames, the second bowler bowling the second, sixth and 10th frames, the third bowler bowling frames three and seven, and the fourth bowler bowling frames four and eight.
The Eagles brought a four-person team to the event, so they didn’t have the luxury of any substitutions. The roster for the Eagles featured athletes Gavin Murray, Ridgely Potter Jr., Emmanuel Guevara and Carly Rhodes (the only female in the finals), and head coach Scott DeBoer.
Bowling for the Mountain region’s Pocket Punishers were Diego Lujuan, Blaine Canfield, Jonathan Van Der Merwede, Ronin Rivera and Raider Ramsdell. Anthony Rivera was the head coach and he was assisted by Mike Lujan.
In Game 1, the Eagles struck in eight of their first nine frames, leaving open frames in the seventh and 10th. The Punishers also had two open frames and eight strikes, but couldn’t string the strikes together as effectively as their opponent, and the result was a 229-203 win for the Eagles.
It was more of the same in Game 2. After an open frame in the first, the Eagles strung together six consecutive strikes before another open frame in the eighth. They finished with the last four strikes for a 245 game. The Punishers never could find any momentum as they didn’t throw consecutive strikes until a three-bagger late in the game. Open frames in the second and fifth kept them trailing in every frame after the first, and they ended up with 194, leaving the Eagles on the verge of the championship.
Game 3 was a lower-scoring affair and a closer match. The Punishers held an eight-pin lead after eight frames, but an open frame after a 2-10 split in the ninth, combined with a strike and spare in the 10th, left them within reach of the Eagles. Potter, working off a spare by Murray in the ninth, doubled in the 10th to seal the match, and the championship, 179-166.
“In this event, every frame is important,” Guevara said. “You have to make adjustments quickly and you have to trust them to bowl well. You have to make your spares, make good shots and keep the mood positive. It’s an all-around fun tournament, but it’s also hard.”
Afterward, coach DeBoer talked about what it was like to coach the Eagles.
“This particular group is easy to coach,” DeBoer said. “They do their own stuff, so most of my job is just making sure they see what I see and then helping them understand when to make a change, but they do most of it on their own. We stress communication among the team members and I try to keep the mood light. I’m just really proud of this group.”
BowlTV.com provided live coverage of the qualifying and match play rounds leading up to the finals.
The 2023 USA Bowling National Championships featured 16 regions in U15. Each team that competed in Indianapolis earned their spot by winning their region.
For more information on the USA Bowling National Championships, head to: bowl.com/youth/usa-bowling.
The next CBS Sports Network telecast from the 2023 Junior Gold Championships is Tuesday, Aug. 1, at 7 p.m. Eastern and will feature both the boys and girls finals in the U12 division.