Team USA earns top seed for team semifinals finals at 2019 World Women's Championships
August 28, 2019
Results
LAS VEGAS - Two years ago, a heartbreaking two pins kept the Team USA women from a chance at repeating as world champions in the five-player event at the World Bowling World Championships.
Their run at redemption got underway Tuesday at the South Point Bowling Plaza, and they're now one step closer to their goal after locking up the top seed for the team semifinals at the 2019 World Women's Championships.
The quintet got there in record-tying fashion, averaging 225 as a team over Tuesday's six qualifying games. The team's 6,750 total was 379 pins ahead of the field and matched the all-time mark set by Germany in 2011, but the team members know the job is far from done.
The first thing standing between Team USA and the top of the podium is a talented Colombia team that earned the No. 4 seed with a 6,341 total. Mexico finished behind the United States and secured the No. 2 spot with a 6,371 effort, and Sweden finished third with 6,353.
Defending champion Malaysia finished eighth.
"We came in today with a game plan of just focusing on us and not anyone around us, and we did that, plus our communication today was fantastic," said 15-time Team USA member Stefanie Johnson, who has been to every World Championships since her 2005 Team USA debut. "We certainly have some great momentum, but the real tournament starts on Friday when we have to bowl our match."
Competition now will shift from traditional team games to a best-of-three Baker format, where each of the five players bowls just two frames. The leadoff bowler bowls the first and sixth frames, the second bowler takes the second and seventh frames and so on.
The team semifinals and final will be part of a two-day television extravaganza and will be aired live Friday on CBS Sports Network, beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern.
The two semifinal winners will battle for the gold medal, and the semifinal losers each will receive bronze medals.
"When we missed by just a little in 2017, we were heartbroken," Johnson said. "You can find a couple pins anywhere in those 30 games. But, we left 2017 in 2017. We have a new team this year and came in with a fresh, clear mind and looking to control what we could control, and here we are. We're definitely looking forward to the next step in this process."
Shannon O'Keefe led the way for Team USA on Tuesday with a 1,404 six-game total, and she was joined by Johnson (1,387), Missy Parkin (1,341), Danielle McEwan (1,309), Jordan Richard (675) and Liz Kuhlkin (634).
O'Keefe, Johnson and McEwan all were part of the team's gold-medal run in 2015 and the agonizing close call in 2017. In a combined 38 years of Team USA experience, they have collected 15 gold medals at the adult World Championships and have been very focused on adding more in 2019 - particularly in the team event.
Parkin, Richard and Kuhlkin all are looking for their first wins at the adult World Championships, and the three will have at least two chances. They also made the medal round in trios, while O'Keefe and McEwan advanced in singles.
Masters competition will take place throughout the day Wednesday, with four players advancing to the semifinals.
"I personally had a slow start to the week, for no specific reason, and went through some different balls and surfaces to get the right look," Johnson said. "But, the team event is what we thrive off of, and I felt like everything was clicking for me today. Your arm swing can get a little looser when you know you have a team behind you helping you every step of the way, and I attribute my personal success to all of them as well."
The conclusion of team qualifying Tuesday also wrapped up the all-events race at the 2019 World Women's Championships. Colombia's Maria José Rodriguez earned the gold medal with a 24-game total of 5,488, a 228.67 average.
Joline Planefors of Sweden claimed the silver medal with a 5,425 total, and O'Keefe took the bronze with 5,422.
All players this week bowled qualifying games in singles, doubles, trios and team (six games each).
The top 24 players in the all-events standings now advance to Masters match play, which will get underway Wednesday at noon Eastern.
The top eight players each will receive a first-round bye, and the No. 9-24 qualifiers will be seeded into a traditional bracket. All matches will feature a best-of-three format, and the eight leaders will be added to the mix starting in Step 2.
Parkin (sixth), McEwan (seventh) and Johnson (13th) also qualified for match play. Kuhlkin finished 29th overall, and Richard was 39th.
Singapore's Bernice Lim and Jung Dawun of Korea tied for the final spot in the bracket with a 5,132 total, a 213.83 average.
Team USA's preparation for the 2019 World Women's Championships actually began immediately after leaving the 60-lane venue two years ago, and the process involved evaluating what went right, what could've gone better and how to potentially adjust the training process for maximum success.
"We're always assessing our training procedures and preparation because the world's always getting better," Team USA head coach Rod Ross said. "I think our performance shows that our training is effective, along with the PWBA (Professional Women's Bowling Association) Tour helping to keep them sharp."
This week, the teammates have worked tirelessly with Ross and Team USA assistant coach Mark Baker to solidify their strategy and backup plans for attacking the 39-foot World Bowling Seoul oil pattern being used this week.
The United States entered this year's event as the defending champion in trios (McEwan, O'Keefe and United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer Kelly Kulick) and all-events (McEwan), and having a chance at wins in singles, trios, team and Masters this week is clear result of the team's dedication and hard work.
"The players and coaches watched and learned all week and came up with a very good system for the bowling balls and the sequence they'd be used, and it worked out well with some patience," Ross said. "It was kind of cool watching today and seeing the team come together and pull ahead the way they did. Overall, it has been a successful week against some of the best women in the world, and we're looking forward to finishing just as strong."
The 2019 World Women's Championships started with 176 competitors from 34 countries, who competed for medals in singles, doubles, trios, team, all-events and Masters competition.
The Masters semifinals and final are scheduled for Friday as well.
Las Vegas and South Point also hosted the World Championships in 2017. That was a combined event featuring men and women - something that happens every four years.
The 34 countries that participated this year were: Australia, Bahamas, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Colombia, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States, Ukraine and Venezuela.
For more information on the 2019 World Women's Championships, visit WorldBowling.org.
LAS VEGAS - Two years ago, a heartbreaking two pins kept the Team USA women from a chance at repeating as world champions in the five-player event at the World Bowling World Championships.
Their run at redemption got underway Tuesday at the South Point Bowling Plaza, and they're now one step closer to their goal after locking up the top seed for the team semifinals at the 2019 World Women's Championships.
The quintet got there in record-tying fashion, averaging 225 as a team over Tuesday's six qualifying games. The team's 6,750 total was 379 pins ahead of the field and matched the all-time mark set by Germany in 2011, but the team members know the job is far from done.
The first thing standing between Team USA and the top of the podium is a talented Colombia team that earned the No. 4 seed with a 6,341 total. Mexico finished behind the United States and secured the No. 2 spot with a 6,371 effort, and Sweden finished third with 6,353.
Defending champion Malaysia finished eighth.
"We came in today with a game plan of just focusing on us and not anyone around us, and we did that, plus our communication today was fantastic," said 15-time Team USA member Stefanie Johnson, who has been to every World Championships since her 2005 Team USA debut. "We certainly have some great momentum, but the real tournament starts on Friday when we have to bowl our match."
Competition now will shift from traditional team games to a best-of-three Baker format, where each of the five players bowls just two frames. The leadoff bowler bowls the first and sixth frames, the second bowler takes the second and seventh frames and so on.
The team semifinals and final will be part of a two-day television extravaganza and will be aired live Friday on CBS Sports Network, beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern.
The two semifinal winners will battle for the gold medal, and the semifinal losers each will receive bronze medals.
"When we missed by just a little in 2017, we were heartbroken," Johnson said. "You can find a couple pins anywhere in those 30 games. But, we left 2017 in 2017. We have a new team this year and came in with a fresh, clear mind and looking to control what we could control, and here we are. We're definitely looking forward to the next step in this process."
Shannon O'Keefe led the way for Team USA on Tuesday with a 1,404 six-game total, and she was joined by Johnson (1,387), Missy Parkin (1,341), Danielle McEwan (1,309), Jordan Richard (675) and Liz Kuhlkin (634).
O'Keefe, Johnson and McEwan all were part of the team's gold-medal run in 2015 and the agonizing close call in 2017. In a combined 38 years of Team USA experience, they have collected 15 gold medals at the adult World Championships and have been very focused on adding more in 2019 - particularly in the team event.
Parkin, Richard and Kuhlkin all are looking for their first wins at the adult World Championships, and the three will have at least two chances. They also made the medal round in trios, while O'Keefe and McEwan advanced in singles.
Masters competition will take place throughout the day Wednesday, with four players advancing to the semifinals.
"I personally had a slow start to the week, for no specific reason, and went through some different balls and surfaces to get the right look," Johnson said. "But, the team event is what we thrive off of, and I felt like everything was clicking for me today. Your arm swing can get a little looser when you know you have a team behind you helping you every step of the way, and I attribute my personal success to all of them as well."
The conclusion of team qualifying Tuesday also wrapped up the all-events race at the 2019 World Women's Championships. Colombia's Maria José Rodriguez earned the gold medal with a 24-game total of 5,488, a 228.67 average.
Joline Planefors of Sweden claimed the silver medal with a 5,425 total, and O'Keefe took the bronze with 5,422.
All players this week bowled qualifying games in singles, doubles, trios and team (six games each).
The top 24 players in the all-events standings now advance to Masters match play, which will get underway Wednesday at noon Eastern.
The top eight players each will receive a first-round bye, and the No. 9-24 qualifiers will be seeded into a traditional bracket. All matches will feature a best-of-three format, and the eight leaders will be added to the mix starting in Step 2.
Parkin (sixth), McEwan (seventh) and Johnson (13th) also qualified for match play. Kuhlkin finished 29th overall, and Richard was 39th.
Singapore's Bernice Lim and Jung Dawun of Korea tied for the final spot in the bracket with a 5,132 total, a 213.83 average.
Team USA's preparation for the 2019 World Women's Championships actually began immediately after leaving the 60-lane venue two years ago, and the process involved evaluating what went right, what could've gone better and how to potentially adjust the training process for maximum success.
"We're always assessing our training procedures and preparation because the world's always getting better," Team USA head coach Rod Ross said. "I think our performance shows that our training is effective, along with the PWBA (Professional Women's Bowling Association) Tour helping to keep them sharp."
This week, the teammates have worked tirelessly with Ross and Team USA assistant coach Mark Baker to solidify their strategy and backup plans for attacking the 39-foot World Bowling Seoul oil pattern being used this week.
The United States entered this year's event as the defending champion in trios (McEwan, O'Keefe and United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer Kelly Kulick) and all-events (McEwan), and having a chance at wins in singles, trios, team and Masters this week is clear result of the team's dedication and hard work.
"The players and coaches watched and learned all week and came up with a very good system for the bowling balls and the sequence they'd be used, and it worked out well with some patience," Ross said. "It was kind of cool watching today and seeing the team come together and pull ahead the way they did. Overall, it has been a successful week against some of the best women in the world, and we're looking forward to finishing just as strong."
The 2019 World Women's Championships started with 176 competitors from 34 countries, who competed for medals in singles, doubles, trios, team, all-events and Masters competition.
The Masters semifinals and final are scheduled for Friday as well.
Las Vegas and South Point also hosted the World Championships in 2017. That was a combined event featuring men and women - something that happens every four years.
The 34 countries that participated this year were: Australia, Bahamas, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Colombia, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States, Ukraine and Venezuela.
For more information on the 2019 World Women's Championships, visit WorldBowling.org.