2008 Junior Ringin' Ten Tournament

In the first match of the stepladder Jacob Brask of Helena was defeated by Cody Fergen of Billings 134 to 213. Brask received a $100 scholarship for 5th place.

In the second match Jared White of Kalispell defeated Fergen 227 to 189. Fergen received a $150 scholarship for 4th place.

White also went on to defeat Billings bowler, Travis Bird with a big 290 game to Bird’s 202, placing Bird 3rd with a $225 scholarship.

In the championship match number one seed Amanda Mulcahy of Butte was defeated by Jared White 193 to 221. Mulcahy received a $350 scholarship for second and White received the $500 champion scholarship.

In the first match of the stepladder Daniel Pontual a Brazil exchange student from Missoula defeated Franky Butori of Butte 136 to 186. Butori received a $100 scholarship for 5th place.

Pontual went on to defeat Ashlee Houchin of Butte 183 to 193. Houchin received a 4th place $150 scholarship.

In the 3rd match Jeff Preston of Butte bowled a 221 game to hold off Pontual with a 113. Pontual received the 3rd place $225 scholarship.

In the championship match between number one seed, Max Ekren from Missoula and Jeff Preston was close with Ekren’s 200 game to Preston’s 192. Jeff Preston received a $350 scholarship and the champion, Ekren received $500.

National Bowling Stadium to host 2011 USBC Open Championships

The United States Bowling Congress has reached an agreement to bring the 2011 USBC Open Championships to the National Bowling Stadium in Reno, Nev.

Butte High girls win in Missoula

Construction of Osceola County, Fla. bowling facility delayed

Gelling wins Meagor Classic

Nate Gelling defeated defending champion Todd Edelen 257-237 in the exciting final match to capture the title at this year's edition of the Bill Meagor Peterson Point Scratch Bowling Classic, held recently at Star Lanes and Kingpin Lanes.

Gelling, who had won every other tournament sponsored by the Butte Bowling Association at least once in his young career, averaged 230 and won 8.5 games of the dozen leading up to the stepladder finals of the tourney he had not yet won. Gelling added the Meagor title to his collection this time, defeating 36 of Butte's best bowlers in the process.

The first night of the tournament was dominated by Tony Woodward, who rolled a sparkling 769 series for his first three games. Woodward led the second and third rounds as well, before being passed by Gelling after round four heading into the stepladder finals.

The stepladder began with fifth-seeded Zac Wooten downing No. 4 John Braderson 248-202. In the next match, Wooten lost to Edelen, the third seed. Edelen rolled the high game of the tourney with his 279-227 win. Edelen then defeated second-seeded Woodward by 11 pins in a tiebreaker, coming after a 208-208 deadlock. This, the most exciting match of the tourney, was followed by the final shootout between Edelen and Gelling, good friends away from the lanes.

In other tourney highlights, Butte Association and Montana Association hall of famer Bill Meagor, who won the title in 1986, and whose name the tourney bears, continued his string as the only bowler to participate in all 30 tourneys. Although he missed the cut, Meagor remains a tough competitor, averaging 197 last year at the age of 70.

This year's skins game was dominated by John Broderson, who took every skin but one. Kim Younce won the other one.

A new event in the tourney was the countdown-countup challenge, where Keith Meagor defeated Nate Gelling 13-10 to claim the first championship. The consolation was a three-way tie between Walt Parrett, Deb Martinich and Frank Butori Jr.

The remaining Sunday-morning tourney qualifiers and their Peterson point totals follow:

6, Jim McKenzie, 59.31;
7, Mark Hodges, 58.43;
8, Barry Butori, 58.05;
9, Dave Martinich, 57.43;
10, Keith Meagor, 57.37;
11, Leo Levengood, 55.16;
12, Keith Woods, 53.05;
13, Dan Newton, 52.47;
14, Bill Keller, 52.12;
15, Bob Shaw, 52.11;
16, Dan Grundhauser, 50.42;
17, Denton Martinich, 49.18;
18, Laurie Tripp, 47.05.

Submitted by tourney manager Walt Parrett.

2009 USBC State Open Championships moved

The 2009 USBC Open Championships have been moved. The tournament, which was originally to be held in the newly expanded Sleeping Giant Lanes in Helena, has shifted to Anaconda at Cedar Park Lanes and Copper City Bowl.

Anaconda last held the open tourney in 2003. Sleeping Giant will drop back two years in the rotation and play host to the tourney in 2011. The Helena center is scheduled to expand to 36 lanes in the next year.

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