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NORDENSON, FRAWLEY CAPTURE SINGLES GOLD

bowlingball.com 10/28/2015

LAS VEGAS - Sweden's Kristina Nordenson outlasted teammate Susanne Olsson to capture the gold medal in women's singles at the 2015 World Bowling Senior Championships at Sam's Town Bowling Center.

In the all-Swedish championship match, Nordenson delivered a key double in the sixth and seventh frames to take the lead, and she went on to secure the title with a 205-181 victory.

Both players started strong, with Olsson holding a slight advantage in the early stages of the match, but she was unable to cover the 3 pin in the seventh frame as Nordenson connected for the double. Both players opened in the ninth frame, giving Nordenson the opportunity to lock up the title with a mark and good count in the 10th. Nordenson sealed the win with a strike as Olsson missed on her first offering to earn the silver medal.

"I just tried to relax and execute," Nordenson said. "Before the semifinal match, we said we would see each other in 20 minutes. This is fantastic."

Nordenson, who earned her spot in the medal round by qualifying fourth with a six-game total of 1,197, advanced to the finals after defeating top seed Lucy Sandelin of the United States, 199-194, in the semifinals. Sandelin, a United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer and the defending singles champion at the World Bowling Senior Championships, led qualifying with a 1,231 total.

Olsson punched her ticket into the finals after besting Finland's Tuula Tamminen, 236-194. Sandelin and Tamminen earned bronze medals for their performances.

Paula Vidad of the United States nearly joined Sandelin in the semifinals, finishing fifth with a 1,194 series. USBC Hall of Famers Tish Johnson (1,177) and Robin Romeo (1,144) placed seventh and 13th respectively.

Australia's Andrew Frawley took home the men's singles title. The 51-year-old right-hander got off to an early advantage in the championship match against top seed Todd Sim of Canada and never looked back, claiming the gold medal with a 224-183 victory.

Frawley started the match with four consecutive strikes as Sim stayed clean but was unable to double. Frawley nearly opened the window after leaving a 3-6-7-10 split in the sixth frame, but he converted it to keep Sim at bay.

"I had a pretty good ball reaction in practice, so I was feeling relatively confident," Frawley said. "I was really trying to burn up a spot to roll it into, and it really started to roll early. I had to make a move and was a little late. So, I made the move, and Tom got a little unlucky with a few taps, so I relaxed after that."

A 4-7-10 split in the ninth from Sim ended any hope of a comeback as Frawley brought Australia its first gold medal. Sim, who lead qualifying with a 1,415 six-game total, earned the silver medal for his performance.

Frawley advanced to the semifinals as the No. 3 seed after posting a 1,339 total in qualifying. He defeated Scotland's Alan Keddie, 215-211, to earn his spot in the championship match.

Sim advanced to the final by besting fellow Canadian John Chapman, 243-206, in the other semifinal. Keddie and Chapman both earned bronze medals.

Ron Mohr of the United States just missed advancing to the semifinals, finishing qualifying in fifth with 1,297. Lennie Boresch Jr. placed seventh with 1,270, while Johnny Petraglia (1,106) and Bob Learn Jr. (1,074) finished outside of the top 50.

UNITED STATES, COLOMBIA WIN DOUBLES GOLD

United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer Lucy Sandelin and Paula Vidad won the gold medal in women's doubles, while Colombia's Nicolas Ruiz and Julio Soto took the men's title.

In the women's final, Sandelin and Vidad topped Germany's Martina Beckel and Gisela Insinger, 430-417. In the men's title match, Ruiz and Soto recorded an exciting one-pin victory over Canada's John Chapman and Ray Vervynck, 429-428.

The U.S. women saw Germany take the early advantage, but five consecutive strikes in the middle of the title tilt from Vidad gave the United States the edge as the match headed into the homestretch.

"When I get pumped up, it helps me throw better shots, and it got us going," said Vidad, who finished the game with 218 she celebrated her 56th birthday. "We're a great team. I couldn't be happier. This is the best birthday ever."

Sandelin rolled consecutive strikes of her own in the eighth, ninth and 10th as she bested her silver-medal performance in doubles from the 2013 tournament with teammate Tish Johnson.

"I've had two years to think about coming in second and getting silver," said Sandelin, who added 212 to the winning total. "I've been waiting for this day, and really just tried to take it one shot at a time. I even said to myself that this is why I've been practicing every time at home. I've been looking forward to this day for two years, and it's awesome to be standing there with that gold medal around my neck with Paula."

Sandelin and Vidad, who led qualifying with a six-game total of 2,419, made the finals with a victory over Canada's France Joubert and Jill Friis, 414-372, in the semifinal match.

Beckel and Insinger cruised into the finals with a 420-343 win over USBC Hall of Famers Robin Romeo and Johnson. Canada and the United States took home bronze medals.

Neither doubles pair relented in the men's championship game as Canada held a 14-pin advantage entering the final frame. Ruiz delivered three strikes to start the 10th for Colombia, reducing the deficit to three pins as anchors Soto and Vervynck stepped up.

"I knew how close the match was going to be," said Ruiz, who finished with a 215 game. "I made an adjustment for the last frame and got three strikes."

Both Soto and Vervynck delivered strikes to start the 10th frame. Soto left the 1-5-8-9 combination on his second offering, giving Vervynck the opportunity to get nine or better on his second shot to secure the title. Vervynck left the 3-9-10 split, giving both players the chance to spare to force a tie. Soto recorded the mark, while Vervynck only was able to knock down the 9 and 10 pins to send the gold to Colombia. Chapman and Vervynck earned silver medals.

"I knew I had to make the spare," said Soto, who added 214 to the effort. "I needed it, and I made it. I'm very happy."

The Colombians, who also made the medal round by a single pin to qualify fourth with a combined six-game total of 2,447, defeated USBC Hall of Famers Lennie Boresch Jr. and Johnny Petraglia in the semifinals to advance to the title match, 391-358. Petraglia and Boresch led qualifying with 2,656.

Chapman and Vervynck earned their spot in the finals by defeating Australia's Robert Chinner and Shaun Cummings, 434-395. The United States and Australia earned bronze medals.

Ron Mohr and Bob Learn Jr. of the United States missed advancing to the medal round by just 15 pins, but finished ninth overall with 2,432. Mohr and Hugh Miller teamed for the doubles title at the 2013 tournament.

UNITED STATES SWEEPS TEAM GOLD

The United States swept the men's and women's team titles.

In the men's final, the U.S. took advantage of some early miscues by Australia as they coasted to an 887-675 victory. The women's gold-medal match went down to the final frame, with the U.S. outlasting Mexico, 785-754.

The U.S. men's team quickly distanced themselves from their opponent after all four Australian players were unable to mark in the fourth frame. The U.S. never let off the gas as they were led by Ron Mohr, the only returning member from the U.S. team that won silver at the 2013 event, who fired a 278 game. Mohr was joined by Johnny Petraglia (212), Lennie Boresch Jr. (210) and Bob Learn Jr. (187).

"This was everything," said Mohr, who won gold medals in doubles and all-events in 2013. "Two years ago, we missed the team gold, which is the objective. To capture it this year and see the guys' reactions, it's as good as it gets."

The win capped off a resilient performance by the U.S. squad, which started the final round of qualifying nearly 120 pins out of the medal round before averaging more than 225 as a team in their final two games to move into third with a six-game total of 4,972.

The U.S. men defeated Sweden, which bested them in the 2013 title match, in the semifinal to advance to the championship round, 859-805, while Australia, which led qualifying with 5,087, rolled over Canada, 858-713. Sweden and Canada earned bronze medals.

Neither team backed down in the women's title match, as both the U.S. and Mexico continued to keep the pressure on one another throughout the entire game. The U.S. team, featuring Tish Johnson (214), Lucy Sandelin (201), Robin Romeo (193) and Paula Vidad (177), held the advantage as both teams started the 10th frame, and did what they needed to secure the win.

"The big thing in a match like that is filling frames," said Romeo, who teamed with Johnson and Sandelin to take the bronze medal in team event in 2013. "The lanes were tough and strikes were hard to come by. We were disappointed with bronze in 2013, so we really wanted to win the gold this year. There's no feeling in the world that can match bowling for your country."

The U.S. women's team paced qualifying with a 4,861 total, and defeated Australia in the semifinal, 821-707, to earn their spot in the finals. Mexico edged out defending champion Sweden in the other semifinal, 765-746. Australia and Sweden took home bronze. The all-events medalists also were determined Saturday as Sandelin and Canada's John Chapman secured gold medals by posting the highest 18-game totals from singles, doubles and team qualifying.

Sandelin, a USBC Hall of Famer, cruised to the gold by nearly 150 pins over the rest of the women's field with a 3,756 total. Sweden's Susanne Olsson took silver with 3,617, and defending all-events champion Robin Romeo moved from fifth to third in her final game to earn bronze with 3,542.

"I'm a big student of the mental game, and really try to focus on the process and not the result," said Sandelin, who also has won gold in doubles and bronze in singles this week. "If you focus on the process, the result takes care of itself. I wasn't focusing on all-events. I just wanted to take it one shot at a time and cover my spares, and that's why I think I did so well. I've worked very hard to get here, and it feels awesome."

Chapman nearly averaged 218 for the week as he finished with a 3,922 total to record the win after collecting a silver medal in doubles and bronze in singles and team. Boresch earned silver with 3,904, while Australia's Shaun Cummings took bronze with 3,889.

"I'm battling a knee injury, so I'm surprised that I'm bowling as well as I am," Chapman said. "This is my first time bowling for Canada at 56 years old, so I wanted to give it my best. I'm known for my consistency, and I think I proved it this week. I'm ecstatic. To win gold in all-events, I couldn't be prouder. It's a great feeling."

The top 24 players in all-events on both the men's and women's side also advanced to Masters, which will start Sunday at 12:30 p.m. Eastern. All advancers will bowl an additional six games to determine the top eight for round-robin match play. The top four scores after match play, including bonus pins, will advance to the medal round.

Mohr (3,872) and Petraglia (3,712) placed fourth and 11th, respectively, to advance to Masters on the men's side for the United States. Johnson (3,535) and Vidad (3,520) finished fourth and fifth in all-events to also advance to Masters.

S W E D E N , AUSTRALIA WIN MASTERS GOLD
LAS VEGAS - Sweden's Susanne Olsson and Australia's Andrew Frawley claimed Masters titles as the 2015 World Bowling Senior Championships came to a close.

Olsson defeated Lucy Sandelin of the United States, 222-184, in the women's title match at Sam's Town Bowling Center, while Frawley captured his second gold medal of the event with a 269-222 victory over Lennie Boresch Jr. of the United States in the men's finals.

Olsson, who was the runner-up in Masters, put together a stretch of six strikes in seven frames to distance herself from Sandelin, who was unable to double in the title match.

"Everything worked out really well on the lanes today," said Olsson, who also earned silver medals in singles and all-events and bronze in team at this year's event. "I became more and more comfortable, and just needed to stay focused and was able to go all the way, so it was nice. This means a lot for the whole team."

The right-hander made it to the finals after narrowly escaping Tish Johnson of the United States in her semifinal match, 202-201. Finishing first, Olsson was unable to convert the 4-6-7 split in the 10th to give Johnson the opportunity to double to advance. After recording the first strike, Johnson left the 3 pin on her second shot to take home bronze. Sandelin, who captured three gold medals in 2015, edged teammate and defending Masters champion Robin Romeo in the other semifinal, 192-190. Romeo also earned bronze.

Frawley, who started the 2015 event by winning gold in singles, put on a nearly flawless effort in the championship round as he finished with nine consecutive strikes. Boresch missed a single-pin conversion in the third frame, but kept the match close until the ninth frame when he was unable to strike for the fifth consecutive time.

"One thing that I didn't do the whole week was watch what the other guys were doing and how they were scoring," said Frawley, who also helped Australia capture the silver medal in team competition. "Lennie was squaring up on the patterns and I wasn't on the long pattern at all. Before the final, I decided to square up similar to how he was playing them and it just worked out. I got a few breaks, and sometimes it just works out like that. It's been a really great week."

Frawley defeated Ron Mohr of the United States, 215-186, in the semifinals, while Boresch earned his spot in the title round by defeating Canada's Todd Sim, 237-174.

Two other members of the U.S. squad advanced to Sunday's Masters competition. Paula Vidad finished eighth overall on the women's side, while Johnny Petraglia placed 15th for the men.

The top 24 players in all-events on both the men's and women's side after 18 games of qualifying advanced to Masters. All advancers bowled an additional six games to determine the top eight for round-robin match play. The top four scores after match play, including bonus pins, advanced to the medal round.

The World Bowling Senior Championships featured more than 200 male and female participants age 50 and older fr om 33 countries vying for medals in singles, doubles, team, all-events and Masters competition.

Article was posted with permission from Stars & Strikes, America's Bowling Newsmagazine. www.starsandstrikesbowling.com