Junior Team USA sends three to singles medal rounds at World Youth Championships
June 29, 2026
Junior Team USA bowlers (from left to right) Katelyn Abigania of San Diego, Gianna Brandolino of Channahon, Illinois, and Landin Jordan of Sycamore, Illinois, survived match play in their respective divisions at the 2026 IBF World Youth Championships in Malaysia on Monday and now are guaranteed no worse than bronze-medal finishes when singles action wraps up at Megalanes in Sarawak this weekend.
FULL RESULTS
ARLINGTON, Texas – Katelyn Abigania of San Diego, Gianna Brandolino of Channahon, Illinois, and Landin Jordan of Sycamore, Illinois, are guaranteed medals after making it through match play in their respective divisions on Monday and punching their tickets to the singles semifinals at the 2026 International Bowling Federation World Youth Championships, which is taking place at Megalanes Sarawak Bowling Centre in Sarawak, Malaysia, through July 6.
Abigania and Brandolino earned their berths in the medal round by posting matching 5-2 records to finish first and second, respectively, in Girls’ Singles Match Play Group B at Megalanes on Monday.
Abigania got there thanks to a seven-game total of 1,439 (a 205.6 average), which included winning scores of 193, 231 226, 246 and 211. Brandolino was equally strong, finishing with a total of 1,537 (a 219.6 average) and recording games of 257, 238, 201, 206 and 207 during her five match-play victories.
Jordan advanced to the semifinals thanks to a 4-3 record and second-place finish in Boys’ Singles Match Play Group A. The talented two-handed righty from Illinois secured that spot after overcoming an 0-2 start by winning four of his last five matches on the strength of winning totals of 226, 276, 201 and 245. That effort allowed Jordan to finish the day with a seven-game total of 1,596 (a 228 average).
Joining Jordan in the Boys’ Singles semifinals will be Julian Dinham of Australia (6-1 – 1,677), Emil Svensson of Sweden (5-2 – 1,570) and New Zealand’s Ben Pettit (5-2 – 1,532).
The Girls’ Singles medal rounds will feature Junior Team USA’s Abigania and Brandolino and Singapore’s Shi En Lim (6-1 – 1,517) and Hazel Tan Wei Ning (5-2 – 1,549).
Singles semifinal- and final-round action will take place on Sunday along with the doubles semifinals in both divisions.
By reaching the semis, Abigania, Brandolino and Jordan are guaranteed no worse than bronze-medal finishes in their respective divisions; nevertheless, all three have their sights set on singles gold.
If Sunday’s girls’ semifinal bouts go as planned for Junior Team USA, Abigania and Brandolino would face one another in the gold-medal match. That’s an outcome Abigania is hoping for very much as it would add another chapter to the list of famous American v. American battles for gold.
“I keep thinking about the adult worlds when Danielle (Urbano, nee’ McEwan) had to bowl Shannon (O’Keefe) for gold, so this reminds me of that,” Abigania said, referring to the 2019 World Bowling Women’s Championships gold-medal match between American legends at South Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas. “It would be really cool to experience something like that; it would mean everything.”
Brandolino’s take was similar.
“Facing Katelyn (Abigania) in the final match would be cool and exciting because we’re here as a team, not individuals,” Brandolino said. “For both of us to make it to the last match would truly be a win-win situation.”
While Jordan will be hoping to reach the finals in the boys’ division, for him, just making it to the medal round was quite an achievement considering the start he got off to at Megalanes on Monday.
“It took a lot of patience and great shot making just to make it this far because there were quite a few moments where the pins weren’t falling my way today,” Jordan said. “I felt like I easily could’ve started 2-0, but instead, I was 0-2. At that point, I knew I pretty much had to win the rest of my matches, or that was going to be it for me.”
Win he did, and now that he’s reached the semifinals, Jordan hopes to use some of the tricks he implemented during Monday’s thrilling run to keep the momentum going when singles action wraps up this weekend.
“There were definitely a couple of things I did with the urethane balls to get them to go through the pins properly that I will probably carry with me into the medal rounds,” Jordan said. “Also, just knowing that I can throw shots and put up big games when I need them gives me a lot of confidence, which is always a key factor.”
Junior Team USA’s Jacob Bockstie of Nottingham, Maryland; Josh Hammons of Topeka, Kansas; Erin Klemencic of Powder Springs, Georgia; and Elizabeth Teuber of Holly, Michigan, also participated in singles match play in their respective divisions on Monday but were able to reach the semifinals.
Bockstie (4-3 – 1,571) and Hammons (4-3 – 1,517) finished third and fifth, respectively, in Boys’ Singles Match Play Group B while Teuber (5-2 – 1,501) and Klemencic (3-4 – 1,397) landed in positions three and sixth while competing in Girls’ Singles Match Play Group A.
With the singles semifinalists determined, attention will shift to the doubles events with the first two rounds in each division being completed on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Team qualifying and match play will take place on Thursday and Friday with the first two rounds of mixed team action immediately following on Saturday.
Singles medals will be awarded and doubles semifinal action completed in both divisions on Sunday.
The final day of competition will be the most extensive, however, as July 6’s docket will feature the doubles finals and the semifinals and finals for both the team and mixed team events.
Once the final shots have been delivered and the final medals conferred, the Victory Banquet will officially bring the 2026 IBF World Youth Championships to a close on the evening of July 6.
CLICK HERE for more information on Junior Team USA.
FULL RESULTS
ARLINGTON, Texas – Katelyn Abigania of San Diego, Gianna Brandolino of Channahon, Illinois, and Landin Jordan of Sycamore, Illinois, are guaranteed medals after making it through match play in their respective divisions on Monday and punching their tickets to the singles semifinals at the 2026 International Bowling Federation World Youth Championships, which is taking place at Megalanes Sarawak Bowling Centre in Sarawak, Malaysia, through July 6.
Abigania and Brandolino earned their berths in the medal round by posting matching 5-2 records to finish first and second, respectively, in Girls’ Singles Match Play Group B at Megalanes on Monday.
Abigania got there thanks to a seven-game total of 1,439 (a 205.6 average), which included winning scores of 193, 231 226, 246 and 211. Brandolino was equally strong, finishing with a total of 1,537 (a 219.6 average) and recording games of 257, 238, 201, 206 and 207 during her five match-play victories.
Jordan advanced to the semifinals thanks to a 4-3 record and second-place finish in Boys’ Singles Match Play Group A. The talented two-handed righty from Illinois secured that spot after overcoming an 0-2 start by winning four of his last five matches on the strength of winning totals of 226, 276, 201 and 245. That effort allowed Jordan to finish the day with a seven-game total of 1,596 (a 228 average).
Joining Jordan in the Boys’ Singles semifinals will be Julian Dinham of Australia (6-1 – 1,677), Emil Svensson of Sweden (5-2 – 1,570) and New Zealand’s Ben Pettit (5-2 – 1,532).
The Girls’ Singles medal rounds will feature Junior Team USA’s Abigania and Brandolino and Singapore’s Shi En Lim (6-1 – 1,517) and Hazel Tan Wei Ning (5-2 – 1,549).
Singles semifinal- and final-round action will take place on Sunday along with the doubles semifinals in both divisions.
By reaching the semis, Abigania, Brandolino and Jordan are guaranteed no worse than bronze-medal finishes in their respective divisions; nevertheless, all three have their sights set on singles gold.
If Sunday’s girls’ semifinal bouts go as planned for Junior Team USA, Abigania and Brandolino would face one another in the gold-medal match. That’s an outcome Abigania is hoping for very much as it would add another chapter to the list of famous American v. American battles for gold.
“I keep thinking about the adult worlds when Danielle (Urbano, nee’ McEwan) had to bowl Shannon (O’Keefe) for gold, so this reminds me of that,” Abigania said, referring to the 2019 World Bowling Women’s Championships gold-medal match between American legends at South Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas. “It would be really cool to experience something like that; it would mean everything.”
Brandolino’s take was similar.
“Facing Katelyn (Abigania) in the final match would be cool and exciting because we’re here as a team, not individuals,” Brandolino said. “For both of us to make it to the last match would truly be a win-win situation.”
While Jordan will be hoping to reach the finals in the boys’ division, for him, just making it to the medal round was quite an achievement considering the start he got off to at Megalanes on Monday.
“It took a lot of patience and great shot making just to make it this far because there were quite a few moments where the pins weren’t falling my way today,” Jordan said. “I felt like I easily could’ve started 2-0, but instead, I was 0-2. At that point, I knew I pretty much had to win the rest of my matches, or that was going to be it for me.”
Win he did, and now that he’s reached the semifinals, Jordan hopes to use some of the tricks he implemented during Monday’s thrilling run to keep the momentum going when singles action wraps up this weekend.
“There were definitely a couple of things I did with the urethane balls to get them to go through the pins properly that I will probably carry with me into the medal rounds,” Jordan said. “Also, just knowing that I can throw shots and put up big games when I need them gives me a lot of confidence, which is always a key factor.”
Junior Team USA’s Jacob Bockstie of Nottingham, Maryland; Josh Hammons of Topeka, Kansas; Erin Klemencic of Powder Springs, Georgia; and Elizabeth Teuber of Holly, Michigan, also participated in singles match play in their respective divisions on Monday but were able to reach the semifinals.
Bockstie (4-3 – 1,571) and Hammons (4-3 – 1,517) finished third and fifth, respectively, in Boys’ Singles Match Play Group B while Teuber (5-2 – 1,501) and Klemencic (3-4 – 1,397) landed in positions three and sixth while competing in Girls’ Singles Match Play Group A.
With the singles semifinalists determined, attention will shift to the doubles events with the first two rounds in each division being completed on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Team qualifying and match play will take place on Thursday and Friday with the first two rounds of mixed team action immediately following on Saturday.
Singles medals will be awarded and doubles semifinal action completed in both divisions on Sunday.
The final day of competition will be the most extensive, however, as July 6’s docket will feature the doubles finals and the semifinals and finals for both the team and mixed team events.
Once the final shots have been delivered and the final medals conferred, the Victory Banquet will officially bring the 2026 IBF World Youth Championships to a close on the evening of July 6.
CLICK HERE for more information on Junior Team USA.