HEIDELBERG, Germany — Four American teenagers rolled themselves into trips to Dallas in Thursday’s finals of the European Zone Youth Bowling Championships at the Heidelberg Bowl.
Heidelberg senior Josh Shackett, 18; Kaiserslautern junior Jamie Culbreath, 17, and 13-year-old eighth-graders LeShawn Adams of Menwith Hill and Lauren Crocker of AFNORTH earned trips to the Young Americans Bowling Association International Finals in July by winning their respective divisions at the European finals.
“I’m nervous,” said Schakett, who began bowling at age 4 and hopes to become a professional, about attending his first international championhip meet, “but it will be good experience for me.”
Shackett, a 199 bowler and who averaged 207.13 during the tournament, won the boys’ 12-and-older scratch division by 34 pins Thursday over Ryan Dumas of Spangdahlem. Derrek Hamilton of Stutgartt was another 150 pins behind Dumas in third place. Shackett rolled the division final's high game of 278. Dumas, who averaged 205.65, registered a high game of 268, and Hamilton a 264, but both of those scores trailed the high game of 274 posted by Karl Gleason of Ramstein. Gleason finished fourth overall.
The international finals will be nothing new for Culbreath, who has reached that level the past two years. She won her third straight trip Thursday by 278 pins over her Vogelweh teammate, Lacey Smith.
“I’m excited,” said Culbreath, who took up the game eight years ago. Carrying a 171 average going into the Europeans, Culbreath, who hopes to attend one of the 150-200 colleges which sponsor bowling teams, averaged over 185 en route to her victory.
Third was Suzi Smith of Vogelweh, four pins behind her sister. High game for the division finals came from Ramstein's Lindsey Dunn, a 235.
Adams and Crocker each won 12-and-older handicap division titles for less-experienced bowlers.
Adams, who carries an 88 handicap after two years of bowling, took his crown by nine pins over Heidelberg’s William Dawson, a 46-handicapper who rolled a 245 Thursday in his pursuit of Adams. Third was Kenneth Mackenthun of Vogleweh, a 63-handicapper who finished 35 pins behind Adams.
High game of the division went to Jacob Chapman of Fairford, who rolled a 279 game that became a better-than-perfect 324 when his 45 handicap was added to the total.
Third time was the charm for Crocker, who won after placing 16th and sixth her previous two tries here. In just her third year of bowling, Crocker, who carries a 76 handicap, won her crown by 99 pins over runner-up Sarah Uchwal of Fairford, an 81-handicapper.
Crocker expects her first trip to the internationals will contain more pleasure than pressure.
“It’s going to be fun,” she said.
