PAC NW INVITATIONAL

champs Connor Jackley, Chloe Bartlett, & Tyler Denune

        Connor Jackley, Chloe Bartlett, and Tyler Denune captured titles in a thrilling finish to the season, at the Pac NW Invitational, hosted by Traingle Bowl in Longview.

        Daniel Hanson, having a quieter season after his Bowler of the Year run last year, was the only bowler to average over 200 in qualifying on the brutal dual lane conditions (shark on one lane, cheetah on the other) to grab the top seed for triple-elimination matchplay.  He did well in matchplay, surviving until the final six.  Darren Stanley, needing a top-3 finish to make the TPC, got hot in matchplay as well, as did Nick Devlin, trying to lock up Bowler of the Year in a tight contest.  He was eliminated in round seven in a heartbreaking tenth frame against Tyler Satter, but the resulting 5th place finish was enough to wrap up B.O.Y.  Stanley bowed out to Connor Jackley in the same round, falling just short of his TPC goal despite a great spring run. 

        Now down to four players, Josh Mullen ended Satter's fine run, while Jackley eliminated Hanson in third place, setting up a title match where Connor would have to beat Josh twice for the title.  Mullen appeared to steal away the title from Connor with a tenth frame double, but an 8-count fill resulted in a 223-222 loss, forcing a decider for the title.  In the final game, a late 2-8-10 from Mullen derailed his chances, and Jackley's steady game led to a 219-188 win, good for his second career JBT title, first major, and a $1,000 scholarship payday.

        Tristan Sievers led handicap division qualifying with a fine round, but struggled in matchplay, bowing out in round four.  Instead, 9 ear-old Tyler Denune had the hot hand, winning his first six matches before losing, but still landing in the final four with that performance.  In that round, Johnny Leggett, trying to defend his Invite title, stayed alive by handing Denune his second loss, while Jonathan Buatista eliminated Kelsey Abrahamsen in fourth place.  Kelsey was putting up scores that would have beaten every scratch bowler for a while, and the 4th place finish was plenty to wrap up her second consecutive Bowler of the Year honor.

        With three bowlers remaining, Bautista enjoyed a bye while Denune eliminated Leggett in a rematch, setting up one game for all the marbles between Jonathan and Tyler.  Denune, who followers of the Tour know for that infamous single-digit game on Badger back in September, never let that game bother him back then, and his steady improvement blossomed into dominance here.  Unlike many of our younger bowlers over the years in this long format, he just got better as he went, and in a close title match-  thanks to a hard-fought effort from Bautista- Tyler came up with the 214-203 win, good for the first title of his career, and the ultimate full-circle story of persistence paying off!

        Courtney Nikolas had a brilliant Invitational, making the cut in the main event and firing 279 in matchplay before bowing out in 13th place, but Chloe Bartlett was even more brilliant in the second half of the title match, striking in five of the last six frames to beat Courtney 216-193 for the Girls Invitational title, and a $200 bonus courtesy of Impact Bowling, the JBT's Women's Series title sponsor.

        Huge thanks to Triangle Bowl, another one of the fantastic host centers that we are lucky to have in the Northwest, for being so hospitable to our bowlers and parents all weekend.   Top season-long finishers now advance to the 2014 JBT Tourning Players' Championship, our most important event, where Pac NW bowlers have dominated for many years.  Will they again this time?  We'll find out soon!