By BILL SNIER
ALLIANCE — To call Sunday’s second annual Alliance Masters a grind would be an understatement.
Consider:
- The event was bowled at three separate centers — two with wood lanes, one with synthetics.
- Bowlers bowled nine games just to get to the single-game match-play round of eight.
- The first two centers — Christopher Columbus Lanes (12-lane wood surface center) and Elks Lanes (six-lane synthetic surfaces) were bowled on house oil patterns, though different from each other.
- The final two games and match play was bowled on a 50-foot flat oil pattern at Al Leasure Lanes inside the American Legion (four wood-surface lanes), using new pins.
- The tourney began at 9 a.m., with the final balls being thrown at the third center at 9 p.m. — 12 hours later.
Two game scores reflected the big differences between house and the American Legion oil patterns: it took 651 for three games to qualify out of the Elks for the final 16; high two-game series at Al Leasure Lanes was 370, with a low of 265.
And the two finalists in the championship match — 25-year-old Alliance right-hander Kevin Schott and 45-year-old Alliance right-hander Richard Stoffer — also had their own stories to tell.
Schott, who defeated Stoffer 204-166 for the win after finishing second a year ago, was hit with food poisoning and felt miserable from Game 2 of the opening four-game round at “The Christopher” through the title match.
“I was dealing with the flu all day. I had chills at the Elks and I’m just drenched with sweat here,” said Schott, who was hit after eating breakfast. “In the second game of the first round I noticed I wasn’t feeling so hot.”
Stoffer was bowling his first tournament since being seriously hurt in a work accident in October when he suffered ankle, elbow and shoulder injuries and had six stitches put in his head — all on the right side.
“I was down for a couple of months,” Stoffer said. “To grind like this and get to second is an accomplishment in itself. I’m really surprised how far I went.”
But Stoffer knew he faced a major hill to climb against Schott.
“The young guys just have more power and, on a shot like this, he has the power and I don’t,” Stoffer said. “On a shot like this it comes down to power.”
Stoffer almost didn’t make it to the final. In a semifinal battle against Louisville two-hander Chase Barstow, he opened the door in the 10th frame by failing to convert a 2-pin spare. Faced with needing high count, spare and nine pins, Barstow also failed to convert a 6-10 spare in the 10th as Stoffer advanced with a 174-164 win.
Schott faced Plain Township two-handed righty Jordan Norris in a semifinal that was close throughout. But the former threw a double late, both on Brooklyn strikes, as he emerged with a 205-204 win when the latter left a 10-pin on his final ball with a chance to tie.
TITLE MATCH
Schott had a definite plan when he came to the American Legion after being the two-time winner of the four lanes, four oil patterns tourney held at the center.
“I knew the plan coming in was to throw hard and straight and keep it in the middle of the lane,” said Schott, who used a Track Archetype in the title match.
“I wasn’t intentionally trying to throw Brooklyn, but when you throw hard and straight like that, you never know where the ball is going.”
He had an easier time at the other two centers.
“I always bowl well at the Christopher. But the shot at the Elks is always tough for me. Last year, I struggled to find a ball that hooked there,” added Schott, who used a Track Paragon Pearl at the other two centers. “This year, it wasn’t too bad for me.”
Stoffer also knew what he had to do. The problem is, he just plain ran out of gas.
“You can’t put a lot on the ball because it won’t recover and the spares are super tough,” Stoffer said. “In the last game, you got a little wrinkle on it and you could get inside a little, but you still had to be firm and say on your line. If you didn’t, it just wouldn’t go.”
Schott had a three-strike string early, including a pair of crossover hits, but missed a 7-pin spare in the sixth for his only open frame.
Stoffer had a double early, but ran into trouble late when he failed to convert a pair of 1-2-6-8 spares and a 3-9 in the eighth.
“I didn’t honestly think I would get through. I thought I would be OK at the Christoper, but after that, I didn’t think I would make it out of the Elks, but I did,” Stoffer said. “After that, it was just a grind. I just had nothing left to beat Kevin.
“But he deserves this after finishing second last year. I’m extremely tired and my arm is sore. I’m just done.”
After his runner-up finish to Eric Long a year ago, Schott called the victory “very sweet … especially with the condition they put out here at the last house.”
“I was complaining all day and just making cuts, but then coming out with the win after last year is sweet.”
Asked if he ever considered pulling out due to the illness, Schott said he considered it at one point.
“But there was no way I was doing it. It crosses your mind, but I’m glad I didn’t,” Schott added. “TJ Charles was pushing me through the whole time.”
Schott wrapped it up with a double in the eighth and ninth frames.
“I wasn’t expecting to go Brooklyn, and I don’t like doing that to an opponent in that situation,” Schott said. “I’ve known Rich all my life and it was really nice to bowl against him and come out with a win.”
EARLIER ROUNDS
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS: Coming out of “The Christopher,” Brett McCourry was dominating the 42-player field, shooting 1,004 for his opening four games, with a high of 279 in Game 4. Stoffer was next with 900, followed by Josh Haddad (893), Mike Bugara (887), Tony Varn (879), Schott (878), Charles (875) and Norris (872). The cut came at 719 to reach the top 32 to advance to the next round.
ELKS: With bonus pins added — ranging from 60 pins to the top seed out of “The Christopher” to four pins for the No. 8 seed — McCourry remained on top following the three games at the Elks with 755, followed by Matt Bertolette (721), Joe Bugara (716), Haddad (713), Charles (711) and defending champion Long (700). The cut to advance among the final 16 players to the last stop at the American Legion was 651.
AMERICAN LEGION: Norris had the high series of 370 during the two remaining qualifying games at Al Leasure Lanes, with the cut for match play being at 313 for the top eight. High game of the round was 202 by Norris, with 120 being the low game. Norris, Stoffer, Schott and Barstow, with a high game of 246 at the center, won their opening matches to reach the semifinals.
ALLIANCE MASTERS
(Sunday, at Christopher Columbus Lanes, Elks Lanes, Al Leasure Lanes at American Legion, Alliance)
Round of 16
(at Al Leasure Lanes, American Legion)
(Places nine through 16 earned $120)
Two-game totals: 1, Jordan Norris 370; 2, Josh Haddad 343; 3, Tony Varn 342; 4, Chase Barstow 341; 5, TJ Charles 323; 6, (tie) Kevin Schott, Rich Stoffer 321; 8, Roger Webb 313; 9, Matt Bertolette 310; 10, Alex McCourry 307; 11 (tie), Joe Bugara and Dave McLaughlin 303; 13, MIke Bugara 297; 14, Matt Frock 287; 15, Brett McCourry 284; 16, Eric Long 265
Round of 8
(Single-game match play)
Norris d. Webb 213-135; Stoffer d. Varn 168-139; Schott d. Haddad 200-179; Barstow d. Charles 246-180.
Final standings: 5, Charles 180, $170 earning; 6, Haddad 174, $120; 7, Varn 139, $120; 8, Webb 135, $120
Semifinals
(Single-game match play)
Stoffer d. Barstow 174-164; Schott d. Norris 205-204
Final standings: 3, Norris 204, $320 earnings; 4, Barstow 164, $210.
Championship
Schott d. Stoffer 204-166; Schott earns $750, Stoffer earns $530.
