Local bowlers get crack at provincials

It was somewhat of a dark weekend for Sunset Country bowlers, but five locals tried their best to put a good spin on the situation.
Jon Wood, Andrew Stamarski, Ashley LaFreniere, and sisters Cristy and Courtney Beadle were part of the Sunset Country team that finished last out of six zones competing at the 2004 Northern Ontario Youth Challenge in Sudbury.
But while Sunset Country’s 16 points overall had them trailing the pack (North of Superior won the event with 74), the Fort Frances quintet put forth some fairly noteworthy efforts.
Wood and Stamarski helped the men’s team to second place in their division with 22.5 points, just behind North of Superior (25).
Wood’s 220.2 average—with a high single of 230—over five games was second best out of six players on the Sunset Country men’s crew, and put him 24th overall among the 47 male bowlers competing there.
Stamarski surpassed his Plaza Lanes colleague with a high single of 235, but his average of 212.2 was third on the team and 29th overall.
In the ladies’ division, Cristy Beadle had an excellent tournament to finish ninth overall out of 43 bowlers with an average of 222.6—the best on the Sunset Country squad.
She book-ended her five games with singles of 280 and 288 (the sixth best single by a female in the entire tournament).
Courtney Beadle was not quite as accurate, managing a 168.2 average for 38th overall but still good enough for fourth out of seven on her team. She did well to finish up strong with a 238 single for her best score of the weekend.
The Sunset Country ladies’ team were off their game as a group, finishing last in the division with nine points—well back of the winning North of Superior squad (26).
LaFreniere was part of the Sunset Country mixed squad, and used a high single of 265 in her opening game to finish with a 204.6 average—18th best among the female bowlers.
Her performance—second best on the team—was good enough to help Sunset Country secure fourth place in the division with 21 points. Nickel District captured top honours with 31.