Aug/Sep 2017 -
43
U15 Winners Crowned At 2017 Junior Gold Championships
(From page 42)
"Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd bowl 299 and 550 on TV," Salama said.
"I think one of the reasons I bowled so well is because I was bowling with Anthony.
He's such a good friend of mine and we've shared a lot of history together, so it
really took a lot of the pressure off. I'm kind of overwhelmed by everything right now.
I felt like I had something to prove this week, and to be here again against such a
strong field with so many great bowlers is very special."
Loredo was down by 30 pins after the opening game against Sanes, 219-189, but
showed her resilience by making a slight adjustment to put herself back in the
match.
"My dad told me to move a board to the left, because I was leaving 7 pins and
coming in light," said Loredo, who made her third Junior Gold appearance in 2017.
"I made the move and relaxed my swing a little bit more, and I was able to make
some good shots."
After an open frame to start Game 2, Loredo rolled strikes on five of her next six
deliveries to capture the lead as Sanes opened in the third, fifth and sixth frames.
Stepping up in the 10th frame, Loredo needed a mark to complete the comeback,
and the left-hander connected for a strike on her first offering to claim the title.
"This is pretty exciting because I know a lot of people would like to be in this spot,"
Loredo said. "I'm really grateful for where I'm at today. I had everyone from my fam-
ily and California help me get here, so I'd like to thank them a lot."
Sanes finished second at Junior Gold for the third time in the past four years. She
was runner-up last year in the U15 division and took second in the U12 division at
the 2014 event.
Salama and Loredo also earned spots on the 2018 Junior Team USA U15 Devel-
opmental Team for their wins, and they are joined on the team by Spencer Robarge
of Springfield, Missouri, and Amanda Naujokas of Ronkonkoma, New York.
Robarge and Naujokas earned their spots by leading qualifying in their respective
divisions. Both captured wins at the 2015 Junior Gold Championships, claiming the
U12 boys and girls titles.
The U15 division of the 2017 Junior Gold Championships featured 602 boys and
327 girls, who each rolled 16 games across four bowling centers, before the top 86
boys and top 47 girls moved on to a five-game advancers round.
The top 48 boys and top 32 girls advanced to the final advancers round, with 26-
game pinfall totals determining the top 16 to advance in each division to double-
elimination match play, which also featured two-game matches with total pinfall de-
termining the winner.
The Junior Gold Championships features the top youth bowlers in the country
seeking national titles in three divisions - 12-and-under, 15-and-under and 20-and-
under - and spots on Junior Team USA. The 2017 tournament was held in seven
Cleveland-area bowling centers, featured a $320,000 scholarship fund, and more
than 3,500 entries, both tournament records.
