By Michael 'Chip' Begg - Managing Editor - The TenPinExpress.Com
Director Mesa Metro Association
Mesa - - - Who will win the: team, doubles and singles, and all-events titles at the 60th annual Mesa Metropolitan (MMA) Women's Tournament in 2016? That will be a question that will be answered over the next two weekends.
The annual East Valley Women's Tournament, will take place this year at Mesa East Bowl in Mesa. The event will run during the weekends of February 6,7 and 13,14. Mesa East Bowl is a 32 lane Brunswick center that is located at 9260 East Broadway Road in Mesa. The center is owned by Tom and Nada Kristic.
AMF McRay Lanes in Chandler hosted last years tournament.
If Evolution Auto (team), Cindy Coor (singles), and Liz Kellogg and Ericka Berg (doubles), have any say in the matter. They hope to repeat as champions this year in their respective categories. Liz and Ericka bowled their singles and doubles event on lanes 29 and 30 at McRay last year. Ericka rolled a 761 series in doubles and sister Liz a 749 to post a team score of 1,663. Liz also claimed the top spot in all-events in Division A with a 2,048. Ericka was second at 1,993.
"It was an honor to win the Scratch All-Events title. I'm thankful for the opportunity to compete against other scratch women bowlers. It was the highlight of my bowling year," said Liz, on her performance. "Its a privileg being in the record books."
The sisters are used to winning tournaments together and separately. They are both graduates of Rockford East High School in Rockford, Il. Liz was the Northern Illinois Bowling Conference MVP in 1998 and 1999. She was also named to the Rockford Women's All-Star team in 2002. To this date, she is still the only female bowler to win back-to-back individual state titles in the Illinois High School Association. These titles came in 1998, 1999.
The sisters also captured the MMA Women's doubles title in 2014 at AMF Mesa Lanes with a score of 1,339. And a state doubles title in 2013 at Brunswick Kyrene with a score of 1,560.
"I always have fun bowling with team Seven - with Ericka, Kristen Cook, and Katie Burks. I never go into an event wanting to win. I enjoy bowling with friends and having fun," Liz said, of tournaments. "It helps when we are paired up together, and with other women bowlers who are competitive, but show good sportsmanship. I don't know what to expect at Mesa East when it comes to the shot. I've only practiced there."
Liz posted the highest average among the women in the MMA at the end of the 2013-2014 season at Brunswick Kyrene, at 219 in the Foxes and Hounds League. She rolled her first 800 series there on March 19, 2013. And rolled her first 300 game in the Arizona State USBC Tournament on May 11, 2012 at Golden Pin Lanes in Tucson.
"I switched bowling centers this year, and the shot is different than I'm used to. I'm not averaging as high as I was at Kyrene," Liz said, on bowling in a league in a new center. "I'm going into the Mesa City Tournament with no expectations. I just want to pick up my spares and throw the ball good."
Cindy Coor Singles Champ
If you had happened to be inside AMF McRay Lanes on Saturday March 7, 2015, and were watching the ladies bowl on the 1pm squad. You might have experienced a lot of electricity coming from lanes 25 and 26.
Cindy Coor of Mesa, had two very good reasons why she was supplying all of that energy on this afternoon. That's because by the end of this particular doubles and singles squad, the right-hander rolled a scratch series of 707. It was good enough to take home the Division A scratch singles title, and with her 860 handicap series, the women's singles handicap crown as well.
This was her second MMA women's title within the last six years. She won the 2010 handicap doubles titile (1,164 scratch score, and 1,493 with handicap), with daughter-in-law Haylee Coor. This event was held at Brunswick Kyrene.
"Adding a singles title to my bowling career was definitely at the top of my list. Bowling with my teammate Judy Gurney and Mary Douthat allow me to challenge myself and up my game," she said, of her singles title last year at McRay. "They are such great bowlers. Its hard to keep up!"
Mesa East is Cindy's home center, and hopes the home field advantage will be an advantage for her.
"I am a Mesa East bowler and really like the lanes. As with any tournament, the shot will be different, but I am hoping that its pretty similar. We have started a new ladies league on Monday night, and my focus has been there over the past several months," she said, on having the event in her home house. "I am really excited about how many teams we had for the first year. I'm looking forward to adding a few more to make the league complete."
Cindy also won the AZ state doubles title in 1999 with Emily Ornelas with a score of 1,623. And she also won an AZ state team title in 2002.
"Winning last years singles title was such a blessing, and having it in the record books is just icing on the cake. The exposure from the story really helped in getting this new lady's league going," she said, of the story we did on her last March. "I love the sport of bowling, and anything that I can do to promote women's bowling is one of the personal goals that I continue to commit to."
Evolution Auto
Evolution Auto was last years team champion at AMF McRay. Evolution Auto is a is a family owned auto repair facility in the Valley. Team members were: Michelle Dragon, Angela Wolf, Brandi Calderon, and Trinette Green
Squad times are at 9am, and 1pm on both weekend days.
Mesa Bowling News February 6, 2016