SO CAL INVITATIONAL

champs Eric Hatchett, Correen Lieber, and Michaela Buhain

$5,200 awarded at JBT So Cal Invitational;

California, Nevada, Washington youth bowlers earn titles

       Eric Hatchett, Michaela Buhain, and Correen Lieber earned major JBT victories, capturing titles at the JBT Southern California Conference Invitational Tournament, hosted by Canoga Park Bowl.

        Hatchett fired a 300 game to open the day, impressive considering that two very different lane patterns were used on each pair, and cruised to the #1 seed for the triple-elimination matchplay finals.  However, he promptly went 0-2 in his first two matches.  Eric somehow survived to the first bye, and then just kept on winning, knocking out a murderous schedule of Wesley Low, Curtis Lindeman, Kyle King, and Cortez Schenck en route to the title game.

        Fellow Las Vegas bowler Dallas Leong also had a heck of a day, qualifying 7th then putting on a show in matchplay, highlighted by a 300-289 stretch in the middle that included 26 consecutive strikes!  It was no surprise, then, that Dallas and Eric would end up playing for the title.

        In the title game, Leong struggled just a bit on the longer pattern, and when his look finally started to go on his bread-and-butter short pattern, Eric had the advantage he needed for the 224-203 win and the title, the 11th of his JBT career.

        Dawson Reese, enjoying a fine rookie season, led the qualifying round to grab the top seed for matchplay, and then cruised through eight rounds with a 6-1 record (with a bye) to land a spot in the title match.  His opponent seemed destined to be, as #2 Michaela Buhain lost to Dawson in round six, beat him in the round eight rematch, and then eliminated Jake Hilton in the semifinal game to set up a rubber match for all the marbles.

        Reese appeared to be in control through the first half of the title match, but late opens from Dawson and a late double from a very determined Buhain turned the match in Michaela's favor.  Needing a double in the tenth to win, Reese couldn't get the first strike, and an elated Buhain claimed her second JBT title and first major with the 218-204 win.

        In the simultaneous Girls' Invitational, Marina Stever cruised to the top seed, while Correen Lieber edged out Brooke Martinez for the second spot in the title game.  Stever came up with a brilliant 246 in the title game, but that was only good for a 40+ pin loss, as Lieber went spare-sheet (again, on two different patterns) for an incredible 290, her second on Tour in two months, and a well-deserved Invitational title.

        Thanks as always to the newly remodeled (with more to come) Canoga for always being fantastic hosts for our Tour.  Over $5,000 in scholarships were earned at this event alone, and over $6,800 on the weekend- WOW!  You won't get that anywhere else but JBT, so to be a part of it just check out our schedule and come on down!