North Dakota teams work together at OC


RENO, Nev. - Teamwork and communication have been proven characteristics of the top teams at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships for many years. That formula held true as Action Realty 2 and Action Realty of Fargo, N.D., worked together to grab two of the top three spots in Regular Team on Wednesday.

Action Realty 2 moved into the top spot on the leaderboard with games of 1,025, 1,055 and 1,072 for a 3,152 total. Action Realty remained consistent on the way into third place, shooting 1,031, 1,031 and 1,027 for 3,089. The Legend of Dung Ho of Cerritos, Calif., previously held the lead with 3,114.

Ryan Selk led the way for Action Realty 2 with a 689 series. He was joined at the National Bowling Stadium by Steve Diederick (687), Michael Green (615), Dave Green (588) and Brock Green (573).

Both teams took advantage of the new 900 Global Showcase Lanes located on the first floor of the NBS. With help from three-time USBC Open Championships titlist and USBC Silver coach Matt McNiel, the teammates were able to develop a strategy and break down the oil pattern to their liking.

"Most of the guys went to the practice session yesterday," said Diederick, who made his ninth Open Championships appearance. "He told them to stay outside and break it down. We stuck with that plan, and it held true to form for a long time. In the third game, they started to break down a little bit, so we had to start moving inside. Overall, I think the plan seemed to work for us tonight."

Communication also played a key role as the oil transitioned. Although the core group of bowlers has been coming to the Open Championships for approximately 20 years, this was their first attempt at completely working together for the better of the both teams.

"Playing as a team helps a lot," said Selk, who made his fourth tournament appearance. "The communication between the guys was key. If a ball jumped high, we would talk and make sure it was the lane and not the person."

As their best tournament performance to date unfolded, the members of Action Realty 2 enjoyed the opportunity to relax and cheer each other on as the strikes started adding up.

"This is the best we've ever done," Diederick said. "When you miss a few spares early on the pressure mounts. As soon as you can find that line, and everybody starts striking, you just relax and make it happen. We held on to that for the night."

Action Realty was paced by Dillon Meyer, who rolled a 712 series. He was followed by Russ Meyer (609), Jim Kutter (600), Eric Parvey (594) and Dan Johnson (574).

Both teams returned to action Thursday for a run at Team All-Events and found similar results. Action Realty 2 was able to sneak into the top spot with a 9,123 total, while Action Realty moved into third place with 9,116. Dykeman's Farm of Pleasant Valley, N.Y., previously held the lead with 9,119.

Diederick led the way for Action Realty 2 with a 2,049 all-events total, currently second in Regular All-Events, and was followed by Selk (1,862), Michael Green (1,836), Dave Green (1,709) and Brock Green (1,667). Richard Thomas of Middleton, Wis., leads Regular All-Events with 2,051.

Dillon Meyer led the way for Action Realty with 1,981 and was followed by Parvey (1,886), Kutter (1,799), Russ Meyer (1,783) and Johnson (1,667).

Presenting sponsors for the 2013 USBC Open Championships include Circus Circus Reno, Eldorado Hotel Casino Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino Reno.