By BILL SNIER
AKRON — Frank Testa knew he had flushed the critical shot.
“I wouldn’t trade that shot for anything,” the 42-year-old Massillon right-hander and Ten Back Pro Shop owner-operator said. “I would throw that shot over and over again.”
But it just didn’t strike — which proved critical during the semifinals of the Akron Open scratch singles Sunday at Station 300.
South Carolina right-hander Zack McSwain, the No. 1 seed, stopped No. 2 seed Bryce Frantz 235-223 to claim the seventh edition of the reincarnated event.
Testa, the No. 3 seed entering the stepladder finals — the first time he has gone that far through three years at the original Akron Open at Colonial Village and the fourth since its rebirth — rolled past No. 4 seed Tuna Boncu 280-243 during the quarterfinals.
After leaving a 10-pin spare in the second frame, Testa struck on his next 10 shots for the win.
In the semifinals against overall qualifying leader Frantz, Testa started with a strike, but left a 9-pin spare in the second frame. He then left a 6-pin spare in the fourth.
Frantz came out strong, running the first six strikes before leaving a 2-pin spare. That’s when his problems began as he followed by leaving a 2-6-7-10 split (which he converted) and a 3-6 spare in the ninth.
Testa, after throwing his third strike of the match on the right lane (Lanes 29-30), made an adjustment in the sixth on the left lane.
“With the urethane thrown on it (during the first to matches), I could feel it changing differently than the right,” Testa said of the left lane. “So I made a big move to the left.
“I was able to stay pretty much on the same spot on the right, but I knew something big had to change on the left to have a chance.”
The move resulted in Testa throwing five strikes in a row to set up his opportunity in the 10th frame.
Finishing first, he flushed his shot — and left a solid 9-pin. The veteran dropped to a knee in disbelief, knowing he was in trouble.
“I have no regrets in terms of the match. I made good shots, made the move on the left lane when I needed to and aced it off my hand,” Testa said. “When I got the double after the two spares, I thought I was going to win that match and out bowl my opponent.
“Bryce made a good shot in picking up that split to keep him in the match. But when he didn’t strike on the left lane, I just told myself to keep doing what you’re doing and the match will be yours. I did what I wanted to do, but the pins just didn’t fall my way.”
He shared a private moment with his wife, recent Ohio State USBC Hall of Fame enshrinee Mandi, following the loss.
“She basically said you made the shot you wanted to make. It would have been different if I made a bad shot,” Testa said. “It allows me to keep my head up a little higher but, at the same time, it still stings.
“The Akron Open only comes once a year. I don’t have a whole lot of years left to be super competitive against these young kids so I really wanted this one. Although this is devastating, it was still a great start for the season. Mentally, I’m in a really good spot right now and physically I’m getting sharper and trying to take some time away from the shop for a half-hour here and there.”
‘PROFITABLE WEEKEND’
One of those “kids” is 18-year-old Indiana Tech University sophomore Boncu, a two-handed righty who was making his first Akron appearance. The native of Turkey opened the stepladder by stopping fellow Fort Wayne, Ind., two-handed lefty Austin Robison 265-225, striking on nine of his shots.
In the quarterfinals, he started with a 2-4-5-8 bucket spare before running off five strikes in a row against Testa. But he also left a stoned-9 pin in the seventh frame to end the run.
“I can live with that, but it was kind of the beginning of the end for me,” Boncu said. “It got into my head a little bit. Frank was just striking and had a good look. It seemed like he wasn’t going to stop.”
In the eighth, Boncu then left a 4-7 spare and followed that with a 2-8 spare.
“On the right lane, it went a little and I just didn’t make the adjustment. I just kept throwing the same shot,” said Boncu, who added a double in the 10th. “The lane just kept transitioning as Frank bowled. It just picked up a little and went high when I left the 4-7. Having two misses in a row is a big opening for him, and he took advantage of it.”
Boncu, who stuck with his Black Hammer 78 urethane during the stepladder finals, reached the final five with a 279 in his final game of the Round of 24.
“I was keeping track of the standings and knew I was seventh going in, but I didn’t know how many I was out,” Boncu said. “I just tried to stay in my game and stay locked in to give myself the best chance to make the stepladder. I pulled out that game and was able to sneak in.”
But Boncu admitted the trip from Fort Wayne was “a very profitable weekend … I hope to come back.”
FAMILIAR FOES
Waiting for Boncu in the opening stepladder match was 26-year-old Fort Wayne two-handed lefty Austin Robison, who was very familiar with his young opponent.
“We’ve seen quite a bit of each other in leagues around Fort Wayne and bowled against each other in match play events at home,” Robison said.
After both had first-frame spares, Boncu was able to run four straight strikes, add a 7-pin spare, and then run off five more en route to a 265-225 win.
Robison had just one strike through five frames and finished with seven for the game — six on his final seven shots.
“It was the worst look I had all weekend. I made the right moves, but I should have made a ball change sooner. You can’t bowl well when you have bad ball reaction,” said Robison, who started with the Roto Grip Rock Star he had used for “95 percent” of the weekend, before moving to the Hammer Effect Tour.
“The Rock Star was always good on fresh unless I caught a pair with urethane,” Robison said. “It felt like that, but it was fresh oil.”
Robison and his wife are expecting their first child in the near future, which will curtail his bowling activities.
“I was trying to get all the bowling in I could before he arrives,” Robison said. “I was free this weekend so I had (tournament promotor) Jody (Boyd) put me on the waiting list and here we are.”
CASHERS’ ROUND
McSwain shot 300 his final game to lead the top 24 into the next round, shooting a five-game set of 1,326, including 815 for his final three games. The cut into the Round of 24 was at 2,570, with Dom Pugh taking that spot by just five pins. Jackson Township’s T.J. Charles struggled with carry and fell from fourth to 34th overall with 1,034. Also falling out of the top 24 were Patrick Adolph, Jimmy Cook and Brandon White. Johnny Priest was the first man out, shooting just 193 the final game to fall seven pins short along with Al Petrosino and Dan Higgins at 2,563. Michael Thewes, who shot 299 in Game 2, fell 14 pins short at 2,556, with Jalen Mosley and George Gohagan III another pin back. Two-time defending champion Cassidy Schaub shot 239 the final game to get to the next round in 20th at 2,581. The only other champion left in the field — Jacob Johnson — finished 48th. There were three 300 games shot during the shift by Lake High School graduate Zachary Abbott (seventh in his career), Robert Bumbarger and McSwain, with all making the cut to the top 24. There were three players on a pair. Of the survivors to the top 24, 16 were right-handers, including three two-handers, with eight lefties, including five two-handers.
ROUND OF 24
McSwain again was dominant, shooting the five-game session high of 1,228 en route to earning the No, 1 seed for the stepladder finals despite shooting 199 his final game. Boncu shot 279 the final game to leap into the top five from the seventh spot, while Dell Ray Jr. shot 224, but dropped to sixth to miss the cut by six pins. Josh Curtiss had the high game of the shift with 290 in Game 14 overall, but his charge ended with 220 and 214 his last two games. Abbott jumped up to ninth by going 266 and 233 his final two games. Schaub’s run for a third-straight Akron title ended with a 19th-place finish. Frantz shot just 1,136, but kept the No. 2 seed by 41 pins over Testa, who closed with 255. The round had just two players on each pair, with no re-oiling.
NOTEBOOK: The Akron Open will return for its eighth year next season, with dates to be announced, according to promotor Jody Boyd. … The title pair of Lanes 29 and 30 were re-oiled for the championship match, with the Station 300 house oil pattern used. … The tourney drew a full field of 276 players — 138 per squad. It was without PBA Central Region pros, who were competing in Coldwater during a regional this weekend. … The cut to reach the final 55 (top one-fifth of the field) for the Cashers’ Round was at 1,361, a six-game average of 226.8.
