A net win against “Bowling Stones” moved “Pinfall Wizards” into a second-place tie in points with “Bottoms Up!”, just a point behind “Dee’s Boys II.” My team’s opponents will be “The 5 G’s” this week.

My Week 22 bowling, frame-by-frame (Linked to BowlSK sheet)

I’ve had some bad starts this year, and my BowlingTracker.com sheet will bear that out: I’m averaging 2 pins lower than my overall average in the first game. The second game was more promising for a good finish, but I was reduced to grinding out my spares in the last game. I did, however, make another clutch spare in the 10th frame third game to save the net win. I was really hoping for more after yesterday’s practice, though.

Result: 146-185-155=486
Average (66 games): 173
Average for last 9 games: 171
Next week’s AVG+1 score: 553

I mentioned the net win, and both Berta and Brian were solid tonight, particularly in the two games we won.

“Diamond Flush” won just the first game against “Mooseknuckles,” but, again, the win turned out to be enough to win total as well, as the other two games were very close. My virtual team remains at the bottom of the standings, but is now tied with “Dark Side 2.0” in points, nine points behind “Ordinary Average Guys,” who lead “2-bit Bandits” by a point.

“Pinfall Wizards” fell out of a tie for first place after last week, but are a only a point behind in third place, tied with “The Mustangs.” Our opponents last week, “Dee’s Boys II,” now share the lead in points with “Deadwood.” “Bowling Stones” are this week’s opponents.

Individually, Berta had the high series with handicap for the women last week.

My Week 21 bowling, frame-by-frame (Linked to BowlSK sheet)

I’m thinking now that if I can just get everything together, I could make a run, but I’m still too inconsistent. The game I bowled well (except for the missed 7) was the third game. It’s fortunate I’m due back in tomorrow for another lesson. 🙂

Result: 148-164-201=513
Average (63 games): 174
Average for last 9 games: 173
Next week’s AVG+1 score: 583

If Berta didn’t have an under-average second game, she may have been able to make another run at 500 tonight. Team only won one point, mostly thanks to Jim, our league president, throwing a 729 at us, which is as well as I’ve ever seen him bowl.

“Diamond Flush” had a one-point net loss to “Got Wood?” in Week 2, and the match could’ve easily been tilted one way or another…my team only won total by 20, and handicap was a factor in the first two games, with my team losing the first game by only two pins. We remain in last place, with “2-bit Bandits” the top team after Week 2, two points ahead of Team 10 and “Ordinary Average Guys.”

Splitting the points against “Outta Da Guttah” didn’t turn out to be that harmful for my team, “Pinfall Wizards,” because there is now a three-way tie in points at the top between us, “Deadwood,” and “The Mustangs,” with “Deadwood” having the pinfall advantage over my team and the latter team with less pinfall than us.

“Dee’s Boys II” provides the opposition for my team this week.

My Week 20 bowling, frame-by-frame (Linked to BowlSK sheet)

I usually don’t get off to good starts, and I was clean through 12 frames tonight, but with the spare misses after that point, I definitely left some pins on the deck.

Result: 216-154-177=547
Average (60 games): 174
Average for last 9 games: 178
Next week’s AVG+1 score: 571

It was a good night for Brian, who was over 400 for the first time in my memory, but the team only managed to split the points after our opponents ran away with the second game.

“Diamond Flush” lost all seven points to “Presto” in Week 1. Since my team was the only team to lose all of the points last week, we are dead last and the latter team leads the league. “Mooseknuckles,” “Ordinary Average Guys,” and Team 2 were the other teams to win at least five points on the week.

“Pinfall Wizards” won four points last week, as did “The Mustangs.” My team has the pinfall advantage, so my team is technically in first place for the moment. The round robin cycle starts again this week with “Outta Da Guttah.”

My Week 19 bowling, frame-by-frame (Linked to BowlSK sheet)

It was not my best night (and possibly excusable because I’m also dealing with the loss of a fairly close friend), but the pressure was on in the 10th in both Games 2 and 3, and I delivered, the second game to win the point, and the third game to shut my opponent out.

Result: 136-168-199=503
Average (57 games): 173
Average for last 9 games: 186
Next week’s AVG+1 score: 533

The team started the second half by taking all four against the first half winners, and Carl and Berta were the biggest reasons for it: Both shot close to 500, Carl missing by just a single stick.

Just a couple of notes as my second half of the season is about to get underway:

• My real team is scheduled to bowl against the defending champions and first-half winners, “The Incredibowls,” tomorrow.
• My winter virtual league season also gets underway this week, and I’m on a team with “Cryssen,” “jbungard,” “slaterracing,” and “trekguy.” Our team name will be “Diamond Flush,” arrived at by the fact that diamonds are a form of carbon, which has the atomic number of 6 (our team number), and that a poker hand of five diamonds is a flush (while also suggesting the “flush pocket hit” term in bowling).

“Pinfall Wizards” could make no position headway despite taking three points from “The Mustangs,” remaining in 5th place going into this week’s position round. Our opponents will be “The 5 G’s,” who are three points behind us. The next team is “Dee’s Boys II,” five points behind us, so we’re guaranteed no worse a finish for the first half than 6th. We are just a point behind “Bottoms Up!” but 6.5 points behind “Outta Da Guttah,” so the best we can hope for is 4th place. “The Mustangs” lead “The Incredibowls” by a point and “Outta Da Guttah” by 2.5 points, so there could be a three-way tie for first if the latter team sweeps “Bottoms Up!” and the first place match splits 2.5-1.5 in favor of “The Incredibowls.”

Individually, I had the second high series with handicap (687) for the men last week.

As I do every season around this time, I take a look at who had the high averages and scores at Westgate Lanes for both the men and women at the unofficial midway point of the season. As always, this is based on the most recent standings sheets (listed on this page), with averages being based on a minimum of 36 games, and those leagues having four-game series (Tuesday Scratch Sportsmen and B.B.I.S.) having the first three games counted for consideration for high series. Youth bowlers were included if they qualified for their gender.

Men

Average: 232; Kevin Thibeault (Saturday Seniors {youth})
Series: 836; Carl Nordstrom (Thursday Hcp. Doubles)
Game: 300; Greg Rand (Boston Rhythm & Bowling), Jim Donaher (Brockton Ten Pin), Dave Chalifoux, Danny Khuu (Coke Classic), Sean Richard (His & Hers), Rob Roy, Mike Trent, Jay Krushas (Thursday Night Patriots), Donie Corneau (Tuesday Scratch Sportsmen), John Kunan (Westgate Mixed)

Women

Average: 213; Shirley Major (Thursday Hcp. Doubles)
Series: 720; Chris Major (Boston Rhythm & Bowling)
Game: 279; Tina Gannon (Coke Classic)

Good luck to everyone in the second half! 😀

My Week 17 bowling, frame-by-frame (Linked to BowlSK sheet)

Much better except for spares tonight, and I credit most of the night to recognizing early that I needed a ball change and actually making the change. The result was my high series to date. 😀

Result: 183-221-214=618
Average (51 games): 173
Average for last 9 games: 181
Next week’s AVG+1 score: 550

My team got strong nights from both Berta and Brian, and we helped some teams get closer to the lead going into next week’s position week, as the team took three of four from the team in first place.

After taking all four points from “Bottoms Up!” last week, “Pinfall Wizards” now trail that team by just a point in 5th place, and are 11 points behind the leaders, “The Mustangs” (our opponents this week), who are three points ahead of “The Incredibowls” with one week to go before the position week for the first half. “The Incredibowls” face “The 5 G’s” this week, and “Outta Da Guttah” aren’t out of it 4.5 points behind the lead and bowling “Deadwood” this week.

My Week 16 bowling, frame-by-frame (Linked to BowlSK sheet)

It was a mixed bag, but, in the big picture, I left the lanes feeling better about my bowling than I have recently. My start was promising, but then many of my shots were bad until I thought to make a speed adjustment midway through Game 3. My spare game was spotty, but I did make a pressure spare in the 10th frame of Game 2 to win the point for my team.

Result: 182-175-177=534
Average (48 games): 171
Average for last 9 games: 169
Next week’s AVG+1 score: 544

Everyone contributed at some point to a total win (taking all 4 points), but Berta helped us win the third game comfortably with her new league high of 179.

“JaMMeRs” had an immediate rematch against Team 13 in Week 14, and again took all 7 points, enabling my virtual team to finish the league in 9th place. “Bipolar Rollers,” consisting of “Joe Bowler,” “slaterracing,” “TominNJ,” and “Upriser,” won all 7 points from Team 12 to take the league championship. “Upriser” is on a championship team for a second time, the first virtual league participant to have done so.

“Rocket 5,” consisting of “Doogie,” “jbungard,” “mkhawk21,” and “Rocket,” set a league record four-man series in the last week.