Junior Team USA claims silver in three events on final day of 2024 IBF World Youth Championships

Junior Team USA bowlers (from left to right) Zach Andresen, Jacob Bockstie, Braden Mallasch and Brandon Bohn pose with their silver medals during the men's team medal ceremony at Incheon's Fiesta Bowling Center on Thursday. 

FULL RESULTS

ARLINGTON, Texas
– Junior Team USA bowlers walked away with silver medals in three events during Thursday’s final day of competition at the 2024 International Bowling Federation World Youth Championships in Incheon, Korea.

The quartet of Zach Andresen of Princeton, Minnesota; Jacob Bockstie of Nottingham, Maryland; Brandon Bohn of Jackson, New Jersey; and Braden Mallasch of Waupaca, Wisconsin, authored a runner-up finish in the men’s team event, falling to the Czech Republic by a final score of 2-1 (224-234, 224-184 and 180-204) during the gold-medal match at Incheon’s Fiesta Bowling Center.

Bockstie and Bohn also walked away with silver in men’s doubles. The duo entered Thursday’s action in search of gold but was swept 2-0 in the finals by the German tandem of Max Lorenz and Paul Purps, who topped the Americans by scores of 226-166 and 244-207 to claim the top spot on the podium.

It took just two games to determine the women’s doubles champions as well, and it was Sweden’s Maja Engberg and Nora Johansson that had gold draped around their necks at the end of that contest as they got past Americans Katelyn Abigania of San Diego and Annalise OBryant of Ball Ground, Georgia, during two close games (172-170 and 228-217) to secure first place.

OBryant walked away with a bronze medal in women’s singles as well. She earned it on July 12 when she was defeated by Finland’s Stella Lökfors 2-1 (202-205, 202-198 and 241-254) during a hard-fought best-of-three semifinal bout.

Lökfors would go on to claim silver after being defeated by Singapore’s Arianne Tay 2-0 (216-168 and 199-156) in Thursday’s women’s singles gold-medal match.

Men’s singles gold went to Purps, who engineered a sweep of his own on Thursday by defeating Sweden’s Carl Eklund by scores of 212-189 and 236-201.

The final two gold medals awarded on Thursday went to bowlers from Malaysia and Korea.

The Malaysians earned theirs by defeating Singapore 2-0 (221-211 and 236-190) during the women’s team finals, while the hosts from Korea thrilled the home crowd by reaching the top of the podium in the mixed team event thanks to a 2-1 (248-192, 201-236 and 267-219) gold-medal match victory over Sweden.

The 2024 World Youth Championships, which featured teams from 39 different countries, began on July 9 and ended with Thursday’s final-round action in each event and their accompanying medal ceremonies.

During their 10-day stint in Korea, Junior Team USA bowlers collected a total of nine medals across four events – men’s team, women’s singles and men’s and women’s doubles.

Bockstie, Bohn and OBryant brought home two medals apiece with Bockstie and Bohn collecting two silvers (men’s team and men’s doubles) and OBryant laying claim to a silver and a bronze (women’s doubles and women’s singles).

Abigania (women’s doubles), Andresen (men’s team) and Mallasch (men’s team) each earned a silver medal of their own.

Gianna Brandolino of Channahon, Illinois, and Jillian Martin of Stow, Ohio, also represented Junior Team USA in Incheon, but neither reached the podium at this year’s tournament.

For more information on Junior Team USA, visit BOWL.com/JuniorTeamUSA.