California team sets record, shakes up standings at Women’s Championships
June 11, 2024
RENO, Nev. – The members of Cal-Neva Girls of Tracy, California, had a lot to celebrate over their two days at the 2024 United States Bowling Congress Women’s Championships, finishing their time at the National Bowling Stadium with a record score, an 800 series and two spots at the top of the standings.
The group – Karen Reid, Brittany Tierney, Brittany Hillman and Andrea Castillo – was on fire throughout their team event Sunday, putting up impressive scores each game to take the lead in the Diamond Division and set the new team series record with 2,846. Their score edged out the previous leader – Ballard vs. the Big C of Keller, Texas – by four pins. Ballard vs. the Big C had broken the four-player record May 10 with 2,842.
The team started out strong with 984 in Game 1, had 898 in Game 2 and finished with 964 in Game 3.
Hillman, a 2012 Scratch Team titlist at the USBC Women’s Championships, led the way scoring an 803. It marked the first 800 series of the 2024 event in Reno.
Reid was next with 733, Castillo scored 701 and Tierney finished off the set with a 609 series.
It was a close finish for the team, as achieving the lead and record became more and more of a reality. It all came down to the wire as Castillo needed two strikes and seven pins in her final frame to surpass the leading total.
The pressure was very high for the Las Vegas bowler, but she was able to strike out and secure the lead for the group.
When asked about how she felt, Castillo said, “I feel overwhelmed, excited, speechless – I just don’t even know how to put it into words right now. I was shaking head to toe. I’ve been in this position before, where I needed to strike out and have done it. But, with it being a team event and working so hard, it’s so much harder. I was so excited when I got the last strike.”
Castillo’s teammates knew of the possibility of taking the lead, but she didn’t. The final few shots for Castillo were nail-biting for the teammates, but she wanted to focus on bowling well.
“My teammates did, but I didn’t, because I tell them all the time that I don’t like to know the score and just want to throw the ball,” Castillo said. “So, I had no idea. Not knowing helped me out a lot, because I am not a score watcher. I just throw the ball, and they tell me the score once it’s over.”
Hillman started out Game 1 with the front eight to end with 276. In Game 2, she finished with 258, and in Game 3, she had the front eight again to score 269 for the 803 series.
She needed a mark with good count in her final frame for the chance at 800 and was able to deliver a strike on her first shot. Hillman left a 10 pin on her second delivery to officially secure the 800 and covered the spare to close the set.
Achieving such a high score is always a proud moment, and the bowler from Tracy, California, was feeling the same. The emotions were high for her as she accomplished the first 800 of the 2024 tournament and became the 14th competitor all-time at the Women's Championships to reach the milestone.
“I am still on a high, super nervous and shaking,” Hillman said. “There was a lot of anxiety going into the 10th for me and my team.”
Getting up to that moment, one must be very calm and collected, and for Hillman, she was able to maintain her routine.
“I kind of thought about getting to the 800, but I just kept drinking water,” Hillman said. “I knew I was close to the 800, but I just didn’t know exactly where I was.”
Hillman’s 10th frame helped to give Castillo the chance to take the lead, and she felt so many emotions of joy for her 800 and the team bowling well.
“I feel on top of the world – I just want to go celebrate with my team,” Hillman said. “Hopefully, this score holds up for the rest of the tournament.”
Hillman noted how well they worked as a team, and how she was happy to perform for her teammates after struggling last year at the Women’s Championships.
“I feel pretty good, since last year I struggled and they killed it,” Hillman said. “It just feels good to come out and do well, but it truly was a team effort. I just really love these girls.”
Another big performance was in store for Cal-Neva Girls on Monday as Karen Reid of Tracy, California, tied for the lead in Diamond Singles at the 2024 event.
After starting with a stellar 667 in doubles, she finished singles with 784 to take a share of the lead with Katie Clayton-Robinson of Tampa, Florida.
With her 733 in team, Reid finished off her 2024 appearance with a score of 2,184 to also tie Clayton-Robinson for second in Diamond All-Events. Kayla Pashina of Otsego, Minnesota, leads with 2,198.
During singles, Reid started out with 249, then rolled 267 in Game 2. She finished strong with 268 in Game 3.
After back-to-back spares in the sixth and seventh frames, Reid needed the last five strikes to tie Clayton-Robinson for the lead and delivered.
When asked about her reaction to the news, Reid said, “A little in disbelief, because I thought I missed it after the seventh frame. When I threw the strike in the 10th frame, everyone was cheering, and it wasn’t until after the last strike where I knew what was going on.”
Continuing the success from Sunday gave Reid the knowledge she needed to keep up Monday. Having this mindset helped her adjust if she needed to during doubles and singles.
“Bowling well on the lanes from yesterday, I had an idea of what I needed to do,” Reid said. “I struggled a little bit in doubles, but overall, this is the best I’ve thrown the ball in a long time.”
Reflecting on how the performance went, Reid had all positive things to say. It wouldn’t have been such a success if it wasn’t for her team, though, as they were constantly communicating with each other throughout the tournament.
“I have always bowled really well in these tournaments, but not this well,” Reid said. “It was a very good turnout, but I couldn’t do it without my teammates. We tell each other what we see and how we’re doing. It helped a lot, and I just wanted everyone to do well.”
Having a new team trying to figure out chemistry can be a struggle sometimes, but with Reid and the Cal-Neva Girls, it was easy. It was their second year bowling together at the Women’s Championships, but they have known each other for a while.
“We as a team want to score well together,” Reid said. “This is actually our second year together, but I have known them for a really long time. This year just really worked out well for us.”
The thought of taking home multiple titles at the end of the tournament is unbelievable news for Reid. It shows that all the work up to this moment has paid off, and she could have a trophy or two to show for it. It all comes down to waiting for the tournament to finish and see the outcome.
The time in Reno has been such a wonderful moment for Reid. She accomplished several goals, worked well with her teammates and scored well.
“I would be ecstatic if that stayed,” Reid said. “I just feel very blessed.”
Hillman added 695 in doubles and 602 in singles for a 2,100 all-events total. Castillo had 706 in singles and 630 in doubles for 2,037, and Tierney had 697 in singles and 659 in doubles for 1,965.
As a group, the Cal-Neva Girls ended the tournament knocking down 8,286 pins to average more than 230 at the 2024 event.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Women’s Championships page.
The group – Karen Reid, Brittany Tierney, Brittany Hillman and Andrea Castillo – was on fire throughout their team event Sunday, putting up impressive scores each game to take the lead in the Diamond Division and set the new team series record with 2,846. Their score edged out the previous leader – Ballard vs. the Big C of Keller, Texas – by four pins. Ballard vs. the Big C had broken the four-player record May 10 with 2,842.
The team started out strong with 984 in Game 1, had 898 in Game 2 and finished with 964 in Game 3.
Hillman, a 2012 Scratch Team titlist at the USBC Women’s Championships, led the way scoring an 803. It marked the first 800 series of the 2024 event in Reno.
Reid was next with 733, Castillo scored 701 and Tierney finished off the set with a 609 series.
It was a close finish for the team, as achieving the lead and record became more and more of a reality. It all came down to the wire as Castillo needed two strikes and seven pins in her final frame to surpass the leading total.
The pressure was very high for the Las Vegas bowler, but she was able to strike out and secure the lead for the group.
When asked about how she felt, Castillo said, “I feel overwhelmed, excited, speechless – I just don’t even know how to put it into words right now. I was shaking head to toe. I’ve been in this position before, where I needed to strike out and have done it. But, with it being a team event and working so hard, it’s so much harder. I was so excited when I got the last strike.”
Castillo’s teammates knew of the possibility of taking the lead, but she didn’t. The final few shots for Castillo were nail-biting for the teammates, but she wanted to focus on bowling well.
“My teammates did, but I didn’t, because I tell them all the time that I don’t like to know the score and just want to throw the ball,” Castillo said. “So, I had no idea. Not knowing helped me out a lot, because I am not a score watcher. I just throw the ball, and they tell me the score once it’s over.”
Hillman started out Game 1 with the front eight to end with 276. In Game 2, she finished with 258, and in Game 3, she had the front eight again to score 269 for the 803 series.
She needed a mark with good count in her final frame for the chance at 800 and was able to deliver a strike on her first shot. Hillman left a 10 pin on her second delivery to officially secure the 800 and covered the spare to close the set.
Achieving such a high score is always a proud moment, and the bowler from Tracy, California, was feeling the same. The emotions were high for her as she accomplished the first 800 of the 2024 tournament and became the 14th competitor all-time at the Women's Championships to reach the milestone.
“I am still on a high, super nervous and shaking,” Hillman said. “There was a lot of anxiety going into the 10th for me and my team.”
Getting up to that moment, one must be very calm and collected, and for Hillman, she was able to maintain her routine.
“I kind of thought about getting to the 800, but I just kept drinking water,” Hillman said. “I knew I was close to the 800, but I just didn’t know exactly where I was.”
Hillman’s 10th frame helped to give Castillo the chance to take the lead, and she felt so many emotions of joy for her 800 and the team bowling well.
“I feel on top of the world – I just want to go celebrate with my team,” Hillman said. “Hopefully, this score holds up for the rest of the tournament.”
Hillman noted how well they worked as a team, and how she was happy to perform for her teammates after struggling last year at the Women’s Championships.
“I feel pretty good, since last year I struggled and they killed it,” Hillman said. “It just feels good to come out and do well, but it truly was a team effort. I just really love these girls.”
Another big performance was in store for Cal-Neva Girls on Monday as Karen Reid of Tracy, California, tied for the lead in Diamond Singles at the 2024 event.
After starting with a stellar 667 in doubles, she finished singles with 784 to take a share of the lead with Katie Clayton-Robinson of Tampa, Florida.
With her 733 in team, Reid finished off her 2024 appearance with a score of 2,184 to also tie Clayton-Robinson for second in Diamond All-Events. Kayla Pashina of Otsego, Minnesota, leads with 2,198.
During singles, Reid started out with 249, then rolled 267 in Game 2. She finished strong with 268 in Game 3.
After back-to-back spares in the sixth and seventh frames, Reid needed the last five strikes to tie Clayton-Robinson for the lead and delivered.
When asked about her reaction to the news, Reid said, “A little in disbelief, because I thought I missed it after the seventh frame. When I threw the strike in the 10th frame, everyone was cheering, and it wasn’t until after the last strike where I knew what was going on.”
Continuing the success from Sunday gave Reid the knowledge she needed to keep up Monday. Having this mindset helped her adjust if she needed to during doubles and singles.
“Bowling well on the lanes from yesterday, I had an idea of what I needed to do,” Reid said. “I struggled a little bit in doubles, but overall, this is the best I’ve thrown the ball in a long time.”
Reflecting on how the performance went, Reid had all positive things to say. It wouldn’t have been such a success if it wasn’t for her team, though, as they were constantly communicating with each other throughout the tournament.
“I have always bowled really well in these tournaments, but not this well,” Reid said. “It was a very good turnout, but I couldn’t do it without my teammates. We tell each other what we see and how we’re doing. It helped a lot, and I just wanted everyone to do well.”
Having a new team trying to figure out chemistry can be a struggle sometimes, but with Reid and the Cal-Neva Girls, it was easy. It was their second year bowling together at the Women’s Championships, but they have known each other for a while.
“We as a team want to score well together,” Reid said. “This is actually our second year together, but I have known them for a really long time. This year just really worked out well for us.”
The thought of taking home multiple titles at the end of the tournament is unbelievable news for Reid. It shows that all the work up to this moment has paid off, and she could have a trophy or two to show for it. It all comes down to waiting for the tournament to finish and see the outcome.
The time in Reno has been such a wonderful moment for Reid. She accomplished several goals, worked well with her teammates and scored well.
“I would be ecstatic if that stayed,” Reid said. “I just feel very blessed.”
Hillman added 695 in doubles and 602 in singles for a 2,100 all-events total. Castillo had 706 in singles and 630 in doubles for 2,037, and Tierney had 697 in singles and 659 in doubles for 1,965.
As a group, the Cal-Neva Girls ended the tournament knocking down 8,286 pins to average more than 230 at the 2024 event.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Women’s Championships page.