K and J Finishing 1 returns to USBC Open Championships
June 05, 2024
LAS VEGAS – The members of K and J Finishing 1 of Carpentersville, Illinois, collected two wins and nine finishes in the top 10 during a dominating run at the 2023 United States Bowling Congress Open Championships, and the group recently returned to the tournament looking for a repeat performance in Las Vegas.
Although the teammates were unable to make another stop at the top of the standings during their appearance at the South Point Bowling Plaza, they showcased the talent and chemistry that will keep the group on everyone’s radar for years to come by working their way to several top 10s at the 2024 event.
At the 2023 event in Reno, Nevada, the team – comprised of Ryne Greenwood, Christopher Wiley, Zachary Woelfel, Nick Pate and Nick Kruml – recorded the victory in Team All-Events by 376 pins, posting a final 45-game tally of 10,394.
Kruml led the way for K and J Finishing 1 at the National Bowling Stadium to also collect the win in Regular All-Events with a 2,242 total.
Greenwood placed fourth in all-events with 2,162, Wiley was sixth with 2,134, and Pate and Woelfel added 1,969 and 1,887, respectively, to the seventh-highest Team All-Events score in tournament history.
Kruml also left Reno with the lead in Regular Doubles with Wiley (1,438) and Regular Singles (795), but both scores were passed in the final month of the 2023 tournament to add a pair of runner-up finishes to the group’s 2023 collection.
K and J Finishing 1 also placed third in Regular Team (3,433), while Wiley (fifth with 762) and Greenwood (eighth with 757) added two additional top 10s in Regular Singles.
Along with the success at the Open Championships, the group also collected several top 10s and a win at the Bowlers Journal Championships, which also was held at the National Bowling Stadium in 2023.
Wiley and Jim Schroeder of Waukesha, Wisconsin, earned the victory in Open Doubles at the Bowlers Journal, posting a 1,507 score.
Returning to the tournament in 2024 as part of an eight-team group meant the teammates would have plenty of support on the lanes, but before a single ball was thrown for score at the Open Championships, they were able to take in a moment of recognition for last year’s performance as part of an on-lane presentation before their team event at the Bowling Plaza.
They received the Earl Anthony trophy, championship watches and were introduced as tournament champions for the first time in their young careers at the event.
“It really didn’t hit me personally until we were here,” Pate said. “You look up and see the giant banner, the anticipation builds up in the squad room and the presentation was really cool. To see all the people and our group cheering for us really was a cool experience.”
The team gained momentum through each game after the presentation, rolling scores of 1,019, 1,057 and 1,155 to get to 10th place in Regular Team with 3,231 (now in 12th place).
Pate powered the way in the final game, rolling 299, to pace K and J Finishing 1 with a 761 series. Kruml followed with 642, Woelfel had 614, Greenwood rolled 609 and Wiley finished with 605.
“They’re a little tricky in team, and we were getting our feet wet and struggled a little bit,” said Pate, a member of the USBC board of directors. “But, we were able to come back to make the top 10. It’s a quick turnaround from the presentation, and you need to be ready.”
The strong start to their 2024 appearance put the team in position for another run at Team All-Events, which currently sits at 10,087 by the members of Top Score Bowling of Whitestown, Indiana.
They continued their pace toward the top spot in doubles, posting a 3,440 total. Pate (715 series) and Brandon Mooney of Roscoe, Illinois (719), moved into fifth place in Regular Doubles with a 1,434 total, while Wiley (722) and Kruml (696) tied for 10th place with 1,418 (now tied for 11th place).
The team needed to average nearly 228 as a unit in singles to return to the lead, but ultimately finished at a clip of nearly 218 to get to 3,265 in singles for a 9,936 final score to move into fifth place.
“We probably shot ourselves in the foot trying to figure out what we needed,” Pate said. “It was like 684 a guy per set, which is doable, but the lanes you draw matters, the way you break them down matters and it’s tough to defend. A couple of bad shots here and there really take away from that. We missed a lot of spares, too, but besides that, it’s just tough to defend.”
The last time a group successfully defended the Team All-Events title at the Open Championships was in 1998, when Lodge Lanes collected the victory for the second consecutive year.
Pate led the team at South Point and moved into 10th in Regular All-Events with 2,158 (now in 11th place).
Although Kruml was unable to return to the top of the standings in Regular All-Events, he put together another strong showing with 2,023. He’s now recorded an all-events score of 2,000 or higher in each of his last six appearances at the Open Championships.
Wiley finished with 2,003, Greenwood had 1,893 and Woelfel posted 1,859.
K and J Finishing 1 is in position to keep its current streak of top 10s in Team All-Events intact at the Open Championships.
This group of five first bowled together at the tournament in 2021, which resulted in a runner-up finish. They followed with a ninth-place finish in 2022 before earning the victory in 2023.
The bond the team has built started through collegiate bowling, with Kruml, Woelfel, Greenwood and Wiley competing together at Wisconsin-Whitewater while Pate often faced the Warhawks during his time at Midland.
Now, it’s about continuing to build on their spot as a perennial contender at the Open Championships.
“We come from all different areas of the country, and when we get here, it’s one of those things – it’s a brotherhood,” Pate said. “I think that really helps. All of the good teams that have multiple Eagles have that brotherhood and have continued that brotherhood for many, many years. We can credit college bowling for that, Shawn Wochner for that, Kruml and I for meshing a group together, Kris Beach for bringing eight teams together. It’s something that’s really cool to see.”
The 2024 Open Championships got underway Feb. 23 and will run through July 29 at the South Point Bowling Plaza. The tournament is scheduled to feature more than 11,000 teams and 55,000 bowlers making their way to compete in Las Vegas.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open Championships page.
Although the teammates were unable to make another stop at the top of the standings during their appearance at the South Point Bowling Plaza, they showcased the talent and chemistry that will keep the group on everyone’s radar for years to come by working their way to several top 10s at the 2024 event.
At the 2023 event in Reno, Nevada, the team – comprised of Ryne Greenwood, Christopher Wiley, Zachary Woelfel, Nick Pate and Nick Kruml – recorded the victory in Team All-Events by 376 pins, posting a final 45-game tally of 10,394.
Kruml led the way for K and J Finishing 1 at the National Bowling Stadium to also collect the win in Regular All-Events with a 2,242 total.
Greenwood placed fourth in all-events with 2,162, Wiley was sixth with 2,134, and Pate and Woelfel added 1,969 and 1,887, respectively, to the seventh-highest Team All-Events score in tournament history.
Kruml also left Reno with the lead in Regular Doubles with Wiley (1,438) and Regular Singles (795), but both scores were passed in the final month of the 2023 tournament to add a pair of runner-up finishes to the group’s 2023 collection.
K and J Finishing 1 also placed third in Regular Team (3,433), while Wiley (fifth with 762) and Greenwood (eighth with 757) added two additional top 10s in Regular Singles.
Along with the success at the Open Championships, the group also collected several top 10s and a win at the Bowlers Journal Championships, which also was held at the National Bowling Stadium in 2023.
Wiley and Jim Schroeder of Waukesha, Wisconsin, earned the victory in Open Doubles at the Bowlers Journal, posting a 1,507 score.
Returning to the tournament in 2024 as part of an eight-team group meant the teammates would have plenty of support on the lanes, but before a single ball was thrown for score at the Open Championships, they were able to take in a moment of recognition for last year’s performance as part of an on-lane presentation before their team event at the Bowling Plaza.
They received the Earl Anthony trophy, championship watches and were introduced as tournament champions for the first time in their young careers at the event.
“It really didn’t hit me personally until we were here,” Pate said. “You look up and see the giant banner, the anticipation builds up in the squad room and the presentation was really cool. To see all the people and our group cheering for us really was a cool experience.”
The team gained momentum through each game after the presentation, rolling scores of 1,019, 1,057 and 1,155 to get to 10th place in Regular Team with 3,231 (now in 12th place).
Pate powered the way in the final game, rolling 299, to pace K and J Finishing 1 with a 761 series. Kruml followed with 642, Woelfel had 614, Greenwood rolled 609 and Wiley finished with 605.
“They’re a little tricky in team, and we were getting our feet wet and struggled a little bit,” said Pate, a member of the USBC board of directors. “But, we were able to come back to make the top 10. It’s a quick turnaround from the presentation, and you need to be ready.”
The strong start to their 2024 appearance put the team in position for another run at Team All-Events, which currently sits at 10,087 by the members of Top Score Bowling of Whitestown, Indiana.
They continued their pace toward the top spot in doubles, posting a 3,440 total. Pate (715 series) and Brandon Mooney of Roscoe, Illinois (719), moved into fifth place in Regular Doubles with a 1,434 total, while Wiley (722) and Kruml (696) tied for 10th place with 1,418 (now tied for 11th place).
The team needed to average nearly 228 as a unit in singles to return to the lead, but ultimately finished at a clip of nearly 218 to get to 3,265 in singles for a 9,936 final score to move into fifth place.
“We probably shot ourselves in the foot trying to figure out what we needed,” Pate said. “It was like 684 a guy per set, which is doable, but the lanes you draw matters, the way you break them down matters and it’s tough to defend. A couple of bad shots here and there really take away from that. We missed a lot of spares, too, but besides that, it’s just tough to defend.”
The last time a group successfully defended the Team All-Events title at the Open Championships was in 1998, when Lodge Lanes collected the victory for the second consecutive year.
Pate led the team at South Point and moved into 10th in Regular All-Events with 2,158 (now in 11th place).
Although Kruml was unable to return to the top of the standings in Regular All-Events, he put together another strong showing with 2,023. He’s now recorded an all-events score of 2,000 or higher in each of his last six appearances at the Open Championships.
Wiley finished with 2,003, Greenwood had 1,893 and Woelfel posted 1,859.
K and J Finishing 1 is in position to keep its current streak of top 10s in Team All-Events intact at the Open Championships.
This group of five first bowled together at the tournament in 2021, which resulted in a runner-up finish. They followed with a ninth-place finish in 2022 before earning the victory in 2023.
The bond the team has built started through collegiate bowling, with Kruml, Woelfel, Greenwood and Wiley competing together at Wisconsin-Whitewater while Pate often faced the Warhawks during his time at Midland.
Now, it’s about continuing to build on their spot as a perennial contender at the Open Championships.
“We come from all different areas of the country, and when we get here, it’s one of those things – it’s a brotherhood,” Pate said. “I think that really helps. All of the good teams that have multiple Eagles have that brotherhood and have continued that brotherhood for many, many years. We can credit college bowling for that, Shawn Wochner for that, Kruml and I for meshing a group together, Kris Beach for bringing eight teams together. It’s something that’s really cool to see.”
The 2024 Open Championships got underway Feb. 23 and will run through July 29 at the South Point Bowling Plaza. The tournament is scheduled to feature more than 11,000 teams and 55,000 bowlers making their way to compete in Las Vegas.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open Championships page.