They rolled through provincials with ease. A similar performance at nationals won't be easy, but six local ladies are going to give it their best shot.
Kim Thompson, Kelsy Hogh, Leigh Anne Paull, Mary Ann Sanders, Kayla Clark and Rhonda Meise will start play at the five-pin bowling national championship tournament Wednesday in Surrey. They'll compete as Team B.C. against nine other provinces and have every intention of bringing a medal back home with them.
Gold, of course, would be great.
"We're just going to have to do what we did in provincials," Sanders said. "We all cheered loud and bowled well."
At provincials, held in Prince George in April, Thompson and her teammates finished in first place after a 12-game, match play qualifying round. They advanced to the four-team stepladder playoffs as the top seed, which gave them a bye to the final match. With a berth in nationals on the line, they beat the second-seeded Lower Mainland 1,272-1,034.
The Canadian finals will be held at Scottsdale Lanes and Willowbrook Lanes. Again using a match play format, an 18-game qualifying round will unfold over the course of three days. Four of the 10 teams will move on to Saturday's stepladder playoffs, which will start with the fourth seed taking on the third seed. The winner will advance to play the second seed, and the winner of that match will earn a spot in the final against the No. 1 finisher in qualifying.
"Our goal is to make the stepladder and then we'll go from there," said coach Ed Stepski. "It's going to be a long week."
Based on past experience, Stepski expects Quebec to be strong.
"But, when you get to that level, everyone is tough," he said.
At provincials, Thompson and Hogh were the team leaders. Thompson's tournament average was 251, while Hogh's was 249. Paull finished at 233, Sanders came in at 221 and Clark posted an average of 213. Meise wasn't on the team but, for nationals, will fill in for Darci Shelke, who can't make the trip to Surrey because of family commitments.
Meise has fit in seamlessly.
"They're all getting along and bowling well together," Stepski said. "The chemistry seems really good and I think they're going to do great."
Clark said she's excited about the chance to throw for a national title. Back in 2002, she had the same opportunity as a youth bowler. That year, in Hull, Que., she was part of a team -- coached by Stepski -- that narrowly missed a three-way playoff for gold.
Clark is the daughter of local bowling legend Kim Chadwick. Clark said her mom has been with her "every step of the way" in her bowling career, and Chadwick will be at the lanes this week in Surrey to offer moral support and assistance in any way she can.
"She's coming down to watch -- or to babysit," Clark said with a chuckle. "She has watched me since I was young so she knows when I'm doing something wrong and it's easy for her to help out. She is always supportive -- she's never negative or anything so it's pretty easy to bowl in front of her and I know that she's there if I do need some extra help."
