Busy day in Ruby Division at 2024 USBC Women’s Championships

RENO, Nev. – Scores were flying high across the board in the Ruby Division on Thursday at the 2024 United States Bowling Congress Women’s Championships, as Jaynee Peel and Erin VanEvera-Welch of Midland, Texas, had an excellent performance to take the doubles lead and Jessica Davis of Fernley, Nevada, secured the top spot for singles and all-events.

In doubles, the Texas bowlers finished with a 1,298 total at the National Bowling Stadium, with Peel scoring 719 (193, 258, 268) and VanEvera-Welch adding 579 (194, 183, 202) to take the lead.

Vivian Geary of Orlando, Florida, and Jodi Ragazzo of Apopka, Florida, had held the lead in Ruby Doubles since April 30 with 1,271.

Coming back strong is what Peel and VanEvera-Welch came to accomplish at the 2024 USBC Women’s Championships. Having taken a break from bowling, scoring well in doubles was exciting news from them.

“I feel good – I took a few years off from bowling, and it’s my first year back,” Peel said. “It feels good to come out and compete with some of the best bowlers.”

“This also is my first year at nationals, and not bowling in two decades, so it’s been great,” VanEvera-Welch said.

Getting back into the groove of things can be difficult for some bowlers, but when it works out, it all pays off. In doubles, working together was important for them to succeed, and they both relied on each other to do well. It was a team effort to accomplish what they strived to do, which was bowl well.

“Doubles went really well, and I shot a 719,” Peel said. “It’s a team effort, because Erin really carried her portion as well, but it felt really good to come out and bowl well. We just communicate with each other and take it frame by frame.”

Putting in the hard work and having it pay off is a rewarding feeling, and the Texas bowlers felt a sense of relief as their appearance at the tournament concluded. Achieving the top score, with the possibility of taking home the win, would be an amazing moment for them.

“It’s going to feel great, but there are some amazing bowlers out here,” Peel said. “It’s going to be great.”

Ruby Doubles features pairs with combined entering averages of 311-350.

Jessica Davis at the 2024 USBC Women's Championships

A huge performance was happening for Davis as she had an impressive run at the 2024 Women’s Championships.

She kept the momentum going through each set, posting 641 in team, 653 in doubles and 739 in singles (232, 229, 278) to finish with an all-events score of 2,033.

When asked about how she felt about the news, Davis said, “I am super excited, especially because I already put a lot of pressure on myself all the time and have high expectations.”

Throughout the tournament, Davis found her rhythm after putting up a solid score in her team event Wednesday. This helped her heading into doubles and singles Thursday.

“I found a really good line yesterday, and I knew I needed to throw it the same way and stick with it,” Davis said. “After yesterday’s team event, I knew what I needed to work on and what went wrong to then fix it.”

Focusing on bowling well is Davis’ main priority, and she believes keeping all distractions away is key.

“I really don’t watch the scores too much, or I get into my head,” Davis said. “I just try to dance around or sing to keep myself loose and focused.”

After taking a hiatus from bowling, Davis has been on the move looking to improve and practice when she can. Surrounding herself with great coaches and mentors has really helped her a lot as she returned, and her performance showed how much the work has paid off.

“I had children, and college, so I came back to bowl as soon as I could,” Davis said. “I had some great coaches and people helping me become better.”

Overall, the tournament was a very successful one for Davis, and she hopes to keep that rhythm going in the future.

“Getting a 300 or an 800 is always the goal,” Davis said. “I also think I need to work on my mental game before that. I just love bowling here – it’s my favorite place.”

Susan Musgrave of Edmond, Oklahoma, had previously led Ruby Singles with 691.

Cathleen Haffner at the 2024 USBC Women's Championships

Cathleen Haffner of Burke, Virginia, had taken the lead in Ruby All-Events the squad before Davis bowled on Thursday. Haffner rolled scores of 677 in singles, 623 in doubles and 608 in team for a 1,908 total to take over the top spot.

Amanda Moore of Twin Falls, Idaho, and Paula Landis of Riverton, Wyoming, had started Thursday tied for the lead in Ruby All-Events with 1,903.

Ruby Singles and All-Events includes bowlers with entering averages of 156-175.

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