Johnson, Bidwell lead in singles at Pan Am Games
July 24, 2015
TORONTO – Liz Johnson of Cheektowaga, New York, and Devin Bidwell of Wichita, Kansas, each led their division in singles qualifying at the Pan American Games on Friday as all four U.S. bowlers qualified for match play and an opportunity to reach the medal round.
Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio, and Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, South Carolina, each qualified fifth as the field was reduced to the top eight bowlers for Saturday’s round-robin match play, one-game matches with the winner receiving 20 bonus pins. The top four bowlers after match play advance to the medal round, also on Saturday.
Bidwell, left, was third after the morning qualifying session, 16 pins behind Canada’s Dan MacLelland, but took the lead in the second afternoon game. Bidwell finished with a 2,753 total (229.4 average) for the 12 qualifying games and takes a 54-pin lead into Saturday.
“I felt good going into today, I’ve learned a bunch about the lanes,” Bidwell said. “I really felt I was just playing in the moment today. It carried over for both blocks.”
Johnson, the Pan American Games defending singles champion, had a 2,709 total (225.8 average), and leads Colombia’s Clara Guerrero by 75 pins. Johnson took the lead in the morning session and never relinquished it.
“I stuck with the same ball all day, all 12 games, stayed out of trouble and made some good moves, “Johnson said. “I felt like I threw it better and kept the splits to a minimum, compared to the last few days.”
Pluhowsky, top left, who won the singles title at the 2003 Pan American Games, had a 2,553 total (212.8 average). She was seventh after the morning block but was 116 pins better for her second six games.
“This morning, I never really had a great look and didn’t throw it very well,” Pluhosky said. “This afternoon, I took what we learned yesterday and had much better reaction, obviously.”
Jones, fourth in the morning session, had a 2,603 total (216.9 average) and had to deal with a tight back after a slip in the fourth game. But he already was looking forward to Saturday.
“We bowl eight games tomorrow with the two lane patterns, one on each lane, so hopefully it will be a better day execution-wise,” Jones said. “We have bowled long enough now in the building to have an idea of what’s going on. So now, it’s pretty much on us.”
Johnson said it will be a “fun day” on Saturday with all four Team USA players competing.
“Hopefully, we can get everyone into the finals,” Johnson said.
PAN AMERICAN GAMES RESULTS
MEN’S QUALIFYING (12 games)
Top eight advance to Saturday’s match play:
1. Devin Bidwell, United States, 2,753
2. Dan MacLelland, Canada, 2,699
3. Francois Lavoie, Canada, 2,694
4. Marcelo Suartz, Brazil, 2,611
5. Tommy Jones, United States, 2,603
6. Mario Quintero, Mexico, 2,596
7. Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela, 2,593
8. Alejandro Cruz, Mexico, 2,546
WOMEN’S QUALIFYING (12 games)
Top eight advance to Saturday’s match play:
1. Liz Johnson, United States, 2,709
2. Clara Guerrero, Colombia, 2,634
3. Thashaina Seraus, Aruba, 2,591
4. Aumi Guerra, Dominican Republic, 2,589
5. Shannon Pluhowsky, United States, 2,553
6. Rocio Restrepo, Colombia, 2,550
7. Sandra Gongora, Mexico, 2,510
8. Kristie Lopez, Puerto Rico, 2,445
Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio, and Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, South Carolina, each qualified fifth as the field was reduced to the top eight bowlers for Saturday’s round-robin match play, one-game matches with the winner receiving 20 bonus pins. The top four bowlers after match play advance to the medal round, also on Saturday.
Bidwell, left, was third after the morning qualifying session, 16 pins behind Canada’s Dan MacLelland, but took the lead in the second afternoon game. Bidwell finished with a 2,753 total (229.4 average) for the 12 qualifying games and takes a 54-pin lead into Saturday.“I felt good going into today, I’ve learned a bunch about the lanes,” Bidwell said. “I really felt I was just playing in the moment today. It carried over for both blocks.”
Johnson, the Pan American Games defending singles champion, had a 2,709 total (225.8 average), and leads Colombia’s Clara Guerrero by 75 pins. Johnson took the lead in the morning session and never relinquished it.
“I stuck with the same ball all day, all 12 games, stayed out of trouble and made some good moves, “Johnson said. “I felt like I threw it better and kept the splits to a minimum, compared to the last few days.”
Pluhowsky, top left, who won the singles title at the 2003 Pan American Games, had a 2,553 total (212.8 average). She was seventh after the morning block but was 116 pins better for her second six games.
“This morning, I never really had a great look and didn’t throw it very well,” Pluhosky said. “This afternoon, I took what we learned yesterday and had much better reaction, obviously.”
Jones, fourth in the morning session, had a 2,603 total (216.9 average) and had to deal with a tight back after a slip in the fourth game. But he already was looking forward to Saturday.
“We bowl eight games tomorrow with the two lane patterns, one on each lane, so hopefully it will be a better day execution-wise,” Jones said. “We have bowled long enough now in the building to have an idea of what’s going on. So now, it’s pretty much on us.”
Johnson said it will be a “fun day” on Saturday with all four Team USA players competing.
“Hopefully, we can get everyone into the finals,” Johnson said.
PAN AMERICAN GAMES RESULTS
MEN’S QUALIFYING (12 games)
Top eight advance to Saturday’s match play:
1. Devin Bidwell, United States, 2,753
2. Dan MacLelland, Canada, 2,699
3. Francois Lavoie, Canada, 2,694
4. Marcelo Suartz, Brazil, 2,611
5. Tommy Jones, United States, 2,603
6. Mario Quintero, Mexico, 2,596
7. Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela, 2,593
8. Alejandro Cruz, Mexico, 2,546
WOMEN’S QUALIFYING (12 games)
Top eight advance to Saturday’s match play:
1. Liz Johnson, United States, 2,709
2. Clara Guerrero, Colombia, 2,634
3. Thashaina Seraus, Aruba, 2,591
4. Aumi Guerra, Dominican Republic, 2,589
5. Shannon Pluhowsky, United States, 2,553
6. Rocio Restrepo, Colombia, 2,550
7. Sandra Gongora, Mexico, 2,510
8. Kristie Lopez, Puerto Rico, 2,445