Kamron Doyle, Shannon Pluhowsky claim Team USA Trials Titles

LAS VEGAS – Kamron Doyle of Brentwood, Tennessee, became the youngest United States Bowling Congress Team USA Trials champion in history Wednesday, while Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio, won the women’s crown for a record fifth time.

Doyle, who is 16, defeated Marshall Kent of Yakima, Washington, 234-206 to claim the men’s title, while Pluhowsky defeated two-time champion Danielle McEwan of Stony Point, New York, 246-222, at The Orleans Bowling Center.

2015 Doyle Pluhowsky 250In addition to earning the titles, Doyle and Pluhowsky will now represent Team USA at the 51st QubicaAMF World Cup at a location and date to be determined later this year.

Doyle built a 31-pin lead midway through the championship match and never looked back in defeating Kent, who held the previous record as youngest champion at 19 in 2012.

“It’s pretty cool to be 16 and come out on top against the professional bowlers and other great players in this field,” said Doyle, a four-time member of Junior Team USA. “It’s going to be a hard record to break, I think.”

[custom_frame_left shadow=”on”][/custom_frame_left]Down by 21 pins early in the women’s title match, Pluhowsky rallied with eight consecutive strikes to close out the victory.

“I’m very excited because it’s a big year ahead for Team USA with the World Championships in December, and I just wanted to be a part of it again,” said Pluhowsky, who won the Team USA Trials in 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2011. “Last year, I led and lost in the final, and this year I just wanted to come in and make good shots.”

In the semifinals, Doyle defeated AJ Chapman of Wichita, Kansas, 236-189, while Pluhowsky took down Liz Johnson of Cheektowaga, New York, 234-214.

All of the players who advanced to the stepladder finals earned automatic spots on Team USA in 2015 by surviving a grueling five-day, 30-game format that awarded points based on the position in which they finished each day.

The National Selection Committee also announced the remainder of the Team USA roster, which was made up of two men and two women based solely on their performance at the Team USA Trials and five men and five women who met eligibility requirements, submitted resumes for consideration and also based on Trials performance.

The men’s selections based on resumes and Trials performance were Bill O’Neill, John Janawicz, Sean Rash, John Szczerbinski and Chris Barnes, while Devin Bidwell and Tommy Jones were selected based on their Trials performance. Joining the women’s team as selections from resumes and Trials performance were Brittni Hamilton, Missy Parkin, Josie Earnest, Kelly Kulick and Stefanie Johnson, while Bryanna Caldwell and Erin McCarthy were picked based on Trials performance.

There were also four spots on Junior Team USA awarded Wednesday with the top two age-eligible finishers for the boys and girls earning automatic spots. The selection committee also added two boys and two girls.

Joining Junior Team USA were Matthew Farber, Greg Young, Dallas Leong and Kenneth Ryan on the boys side, while Jadee Scott-Jones, Gazmine Mason, Sydney Brummett and Mary Wells made it on the girls side.

For more information on the Team USA Trials, visit BOWL.com/TeamUSATrials.

2015 USBC TEAM USA TRIALS
At The Orleans Bowling Center, Las Vegas

STEPLADDER FINALS

MEN

Semifinal
Kamron Doyle, Brentwood, Tenn., def. AJ Chapman, Wichita, Kan., 236-189

Championship
Doyle def. Marshall Kent, Yakima, Wash., 234-206

WOMEN

Semifinal
Shannon Pluhowsky, Dayton, Ohio, def. Liz Johnson, Cheektowaga, N.Y., 234-214

Championship
Pluhowsky def. Danielle McEwan, Stony Point, N.Y., 246-222

Lucas Wiseman
USBC Communications