College bowling prepares new leader at USBC Open
May 25, 2014
RENO, Nev. - Trevor Silva of Davis, Calif., has seen his game improve quite a bit during his three years of college bowling, and his hard work paid off on the sport's biggest stage Sunday as he took the lead in Classified All-Events at the 2014 United States Bowling Congress Open Championships.
The 21-year-old right-hander got off to a great start with a 667 series in team Saturday, and that gave him the confidence and momentum he needed to continue his run at the National Bowling Stadium, despite the challenges he saw on the 40-foot Sport-certified doubles and singles oil pattern.
Five of Silva's first six games this weekend were above 200, and he added a 624 set in doubles to put him in good position for the all-events lead. Although he faltered briefly in singles, he picked up the pace as soon as one of his teammates let him know the top spot was within reach.
Silva threw five clutch strikes in the middle of his singles finale and closed with a 224 game to cap off a 564 singles effort. He finished his second USBC Open Championships appearance with a 1,855 all-events total, passing Ryan Yadao of Las Vegas, who previously held the lead with 1,792.
"The first time I bowled this tournament, I was nervous and shaking, but I just finished my third year of college bowling, and working with the coaches has helped me a lot," said Silva, who bowls for the University of California-Davis. "I've worked a lot on focusing on my mark, focusing on my delivery and making sure every shot counts. Repeating shots and making spares also is important."
Silva doesn't have much time to bowl in a league, but he does hit the lanes three times each week to keep his game sharp. Two of those nights are spent with his UC-Davis teammates on challenging Sport lane conditions, and the third night is an opportunity to just throw some games with friends.
After an eye-opening Open Championships debut at the NBS in 2013, Silva did raise his expectations for this year's event but kept them moderate and in line with the improvement he's seen in the last year.
"I wanted to average 190 out here this weekend, which I thought was fair based on what I've been working on in practice," Silva said. "I knew if I came out and repeated shots, I would do well, but I never expected anything like this. It's incredible."
Having his friends and teammates around him really helped Silva stay calm and focused on the lanes in Reno this week, and they'll likely be there in the coming weeks as he waits to see if his score is enough to claim the Classified All-Events title at the 2014 Open Championships, which concludes July 13.
"A lot of people from my area were here, and that really helped me bowl well this weekend," Silva said. "If I was here alone, it would've been a whole different ball game. Right now, I'm ecstatic. I am extremely happy and will check the leaderboards at least a few times a week."
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open/Women's Championships page.
Presenting sponsors for the 2014 USBC Open Championships include Circus Circus Reno, Eldorado Hotel Casino Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino Reno.
The 21-year-old right-hander got off to a great start with a 667 series in team Saturday, and that gave him the confidence and momentum he needed to continue his run at the National Bowling Stadium, despite the challenges he saw on the 40-foot Sport-certified doubles and singles oil pattern.
Five of Silva's first six games this weekend were above 200, and he added a 624 set in doubles to put him in good position for the all-events lead. Although he faltered briefly in singles, he picked up the pace as soon as one of his teammates let him know the top spot was within reach.
Silva threw five clutch strikes in the middle of his singles finale and closed with a 224 game to cap off a 564 singles effort. He finished his second USBC Open Championships appearance with a 1,855 all-events total, passing Ryan Yadao of Las Vegas, who previously held the lead with 1,792.
"The first time I bowled this tournament, I was nervous and shaking, but I just finished my third year of college bowling, and working with the coaches has helped me a lot," said Silva, who bowls for the University of California-Davis. "I've worked a lot on focusing on my mark, focusing on my delivery and making sure every shot counts. Repeating shots and making spares also is important."
Silva doesn't have much time to bowl in a league, but he does hit the lanes three times each week to keep his game sharp. Two of those nights are spent with his UC-Davis teammates on challenging Sport lane conditions, and the third night is an opportunity to just throw some games with friends.
After an eye-opening Open Championships debut at the NBS in 2013, Silva did raise his expectations for this year's event but kept them moderate and in line with the improvement he's seen in the last year.
"I wanted to average 190 out here this weekend, which I thought was fair based on what I've been working on in practice," Silva said. "I knew if I came out and repeated shots, I would do well, but I never expected anything like this. It's incredible."
Having his friends and teammates around him really helped Silva stay calm and focused on the lanes in Reno this week, and they'll likely be there in the coming weeks as he waits to see if his score is enough to claim the Classified All-Events title at the 2014 Open Championships, which concludes July 13.
"A lot of people from my area were here, and that really helped me bowl well this weekend," Silva said. "If I was here alone, it would've been a whole different ball game. Right now, I'm ecstatic. I am extremely happy and will check the leaderboards at least a few times a week."
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open/Women's Championships page.
Presenting sponsors for the 2014 USBC Open Championships include Circus Circus Reno, Eldorado Hotel Casino Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino Reno.