Hall of famers unable to repeat at Women's Championships
April 29, 2015
By Wishelle Banks and Aaron Smith
USBC Communications
RENO, Nev. - As United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famers Jeanne Naccarato of Tacoma, Washington, and Robin Romeo of Newhall, California, walked down Center Aisle at the National Bowling Stadium to accept their Diamond Doubles trophies from the 2014 USBC Women's Championships, they were focused on the task at hand - finding similar success in 2015.
The two are as experienced and accomplished as any competitors at the Women's Championships with a combined nine wins in 72 tournament appearances, and they definitely are able to feed off of each other as they proved last year at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center, but they still are not immune to the excitement and pressure that comes with the annual march to the lanes.
At the NBS on Monday, the duo got off to a slow start and came up short in their title defense.
Romeo set the pace this year with a 578 series, while Naccarato finished with 559 for a 1,137 total. Danielle McEwan of Stony Point, New York, and 2013 USBC Queens champion Diana Zavjalova of Beavercreek, Ohio, lead Diamond Doubles with 1,356.
"It was tough," said Romeo, who made her 36th tournament appearance and owns five Women's Championships titles. "I was pretty excited about bowling today. There was a lot of energy, and everything felt really good. I didn't know if we were going to take the lead, but I thought we would bowl well together because we've been friends for a really long time. We kind of feed off of each other. But, we had a slow start and just never really got anything going."
Although the two were unable to repeat last year's performance, Naccarato and Romeo both were able to reflect on their storied careers on the championship lanes and enjoyed the opportunity to compete as doubles partners once again.
Last year during doubles, Naccarato rolled a perfect game on the way to a 746 series, and Romeo wasn't far behind, adding a 733 set to help the pair to the fourth-highest doubles set in tournament history, 1,479.
"We definitely do feed off each other," said Naccarato, a four-time Women's Championships titlist who made her 36th tournament appearance. "We always think we're going to bowl well together. I thought maybe we bowled well today, but, equipment-wise, I think I was trapped. We both threw the ball pretty well through the whole tournament, but equipment played a significant role in scoring out there today."
Romeo and Naccarato first met on the lanes when they were just 21 years old and have developed a definitive affinity as doubles partners now that their friendship has spanned more than three decades.
Both found success on the Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour, including teaming up to capture the 2000 Track Doubles title in Las Vegas. Romeo and Naccarato also are members of the PWBA Hall of Fame, winning 17 and 10 titles, respectively.
For Romeo, the next stop on her journey will be the 2015 USBC Senior Queens, which she'll enter as the defending champion. The 2015 event will take place at The Ashwaubenon Bowling Alley in Green Bay, Wisconsin, from May 13-19.
"I'm going to bowl the Senior Queens in Green Bay," said Romeo, who rolled an 805 series during her team event at the 2009 Women's Championships and went on to claim the Classic All-Events title. "This year, I'm also going to try and bowl some of the new PWBA Tour events. I bowl some of the men's PBA50 tournaments, so I'm going to try and bowl as much as I can."
While reflecting on how far they have come in the sport of bowling, Naccarato and Romeo exude the natural grace that has gotten them this far.
"I didn't know how many years I would bowl, and I didn't know I was going to own a bowling center," said Naccarato, the proprietor of Tacoma's Tower Lanes Entertainment Center. "I always look forward to this every year, bowling with Robin, Carol (Norman) and Donna (Conners). And in June, Liz Johnson will bowl with us at the Open Championships, and that's fun, too. We just have a great time."
Romeo finished her 2015 campaign by moving into fourth place in Diamond Singles with a 674 series and eighth place in Diamond All-Events with a 1,848 total. Naccarato also moved into the top 10 in Diamond All-Events, finishing one spot behind Romeo with 1,834.
The two helped Newhall's UCANBOWL 2 into third place in Diamond Team on Sunday with a 2,449 total.
Zavjalova leads Diamond Singles with 734 and Diamond All-Events with 2,102, and she helped East Coast of Palm Harbor, Florida to the top of the leaderboard in Diamond Team with 2,588.
The Diamond Division is for bowlers with entering averages of 190 and above. Diamond Doubles includes pairs with combined entering averages of 380 and higher.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open/Women's Championships page.
USBC Communications
RENO, Nev. - As United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famers Jeanne Naccarato of Tacoma, Washington, and Robin Romeo of Newhall, California, walked down Center Aisle at the National Bowling Stadium to accept their Diamond Doubles trophies from the 2014 USBC Women's Championships, they were focused on the task at hand - finding similar success in 2015.
The two are as experienced and accomplished as any competitors at the Women's Championships with a combined nine wins in 72 tournament appearances, and they definitely are able to feed off of each other as they proved last year at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center, but they still are not immune to the excitement and pressure that comes with the annual march to the lanes.
At the NBS on Monday, the duo got off to a slow start and came up short in their title defense.
Romeo set the pace this year with a 578 series, while Naccarato finished with 559 for a 1,137 total. Danielle McEwan of Stony Point, New York, and 2013 USBC Queens champion Diana Zavjalova of Beavercreek, Ohio, lead Diamond Doubles with 1,356.
"It was tough," said Romeo, who made her 36th tournament appearance and owns five Women's Championships titles. "I was pretty excited about bowling today. There was a lot of energy, and everything felt really good. I didn't know if we were going to take the lead, but I thought we would bowl well together because we've been friends for a really long time. We kind of feed off of each other. But, we had a slow start and just never really got anything going."
Although the two were unable to repeat last year's performance, Naccarato and Romeo both were able to reflect on their storied careers on the championship lanes and enjoyed the opportunity to compete as doubles partners once again.
Last year during doubles, Naccarato rolled a perfect game on the way to a 746 series, and Romeo wasn't far behind, adding a 733 set to help the pair to the fourth-highest doubles set in tournament history, 1,479.
"We definitely do feed off each other," said Naccarato, a four-time Women's Championships titlist who made her 36th tournament appearance. "We always think we're going to bowl well together. I thought maybe we bowled well today, but, equipment-wise, I think I was trapped. We both threw the ball pretty well through the whole tournament, but equipment played a significant role in scoring out there today."
Romeo and Naccarato first met on the lanes when they were just 21 years old and have developed a definitive affinity as doubles partners now that their friendship has spanned more than three decades.
Both found success on the Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour, including teaming up to capture the 2000 Track Doubles title in Las Vegas. Romeo and Naccarato also are members of the PWBA Hall of Fame, winning 17 and 10 titles, respectively.
For Romeo, the next stop on her journey will be the 2015 USBC Senior Queens, which she'll enter as the defending champion. The 2015 event will take place at The Ashwaubenon Bowling Alley in Green Bay, Wisconsin, from May 13-19.
"I'm going to bowl the Senior Queens in Green Bay," said Romeo, who rolled an 805 series during her team event at the 2009 Women's Championships and went on to claim the Classic All-Events title. "This year, I'm also going to try and bowl some of the new PWBA Tour events. I bowl some of the men's PBA50 tournaments, so I'm going to try and bowl as much as I can."
While reflecting on how far they have come in the sport of bowling, Naccarato and Romeo exude the natural grace that has gotten them this far.
"I didn't know how many years I would bowl, and I didn't know I was going to own a bowling center," said Naccarato, the proprietor of Tacoma's Tower Lanes Entertainment Center. "I always look forward to this every year, bowling with Robin, Carol (Norman) and Donna (Conners). And in June, Liz Johnson will bowl with us at the Open Championships, and that's fun, too. We just have a great time."
Romeo finished her 2015 campaign by moving into fourth place in Diamond Singles with a 674 series and eighth place in Diamond All-Events with a 1,848 total. Naccarato also moved into the top 10 in Diamond All-Events, finishing one spot behind Romeo with 1,834.
The two helped Newhall's UCANBOWL 2 into third place in Diamond Team on Sunday with a 2,449 total.
Zavjalova leads Diamond Singles with 734 and Diamond All-Events with 2,102, and she helped East Coast of Palm Harbor, Florida to the top of the leaderboard in Diamond Team with 2,588.
The Diamond Division is for bowlers with entering averages of 190 and above. Diamond Doubles includes pairs with combined entering averages of 380 and higher.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open/Women's Championships page.