From wire reports
MINNEAPOLIS – Pressure mounted Wednesday in the Twin Cities as nearly 3,500 of the nation’s top youth bowlers completed Round 3 of qualifying at the 2026 Junior Gold Championships.
Now, competitors in four age-based divisions (U12, U14, U16 and U18) have just one four-game block left to secure their spots before each field undergoes its first major cut.
U18 BOYS
Hunter Wyszynski of New Boston, Mich., not only finished as the Round 3 overall leader, but he also set a new U18 Boys scoring record with a 12-game total of 2,800 (a 233.3 average) – Keaton Ostrowski of Rochester, N.Y., held the old record at 2,799, which he established at the 2024 Junior Gold Championships in Detroit.
Wyszynski tallied an 890 block total during Round 3, which featured high games of 245, 267 and 209.
Brett Biondo of Carpentersville, Ill., and Elijah Pipkin of Lakeland, Tenn., remained Wyszynski’s closest pursuers, ending the third round in second and third place, respectively, with marks of 2,716 and 2,697.
Spiros Schenk of Newnan, Ga. (2,685), and Devin McKiski of Marshfield, Wis., are the bowlers hanging onto the final two spots in the top five.
Caleb Reaves of Chesapeake, Va.; Dylan Kuhns of Salem, Ill.; and Miken Habegger of Bluffton, Ind., all posted three-day marks of 2,414. That score is good enough for a tie for 131st place, which will represent the U18 Boys division’s cut line at the end of Round 4 of qualifying Thursday.
Among Northeast Ohio players, Cleveland’s Zachery Smeal (29th, 2,549) and Akron’s Wade Allen (30th, 2,548) shot 894 and 902, respectively, to put themselves solidly inside the cut.
Others in the running include Ashland’s Max Oeken (56th, 2,498); Elyria’s Aiden Salkiewicz (88th, 2,457); New Franklin’s Aiden Jensen (116th, 2,428); and North Ridgeville’s Kevin Pete Jr. (117th, 2,423)
U18 GIRLS
Three qualifying blocks have been contested, and Taylor Kretz of Erie, Pa., has been the U18 Girls leader at the end of each and every one.
During Round 3 on Wednesday, Kretz authored games of 216, 222, 191 and 216 for a four-game block total of 845. That effort helped Kretz push her three-day mark to 2,608 (a 217.3 average), which is the fourth-highest 12-game total in U18 Girls history.
Bellefontaine’s Kyndallynn Hood sits in second place with 2,525, while defending champion Elena Weinstok of Costa Rica (2,500), Trishna Desai of Nesconset, N.Y. (2,457), and 2023 U15 Girls winner Larielle Tharps of Orlando, Fla. (2,453), also reside in the overall top five.
A total of 52 U18 Girls will punch tickets to the Advancers’ Round at the end of Round 4 on Thursday. Right now, Allison Stackewicz of Pocono Summit, Pa., is the athlete in line to claim that spot; she sits in 52nd place with a three-day mark of 2,188.
Among Northeast Ohio players, Sandusky’s Olivia Lizzi (33rd, 2,260) is within the cut.
U16 BOYS
Ryan Carmichael of South Bend, Ind., maintained his status as U16 Boys overall leader after firing 926 for his four games (258, 220, 204 and 244) on Wednesday to push his three-day total to 2,795 (a 232.9 average).
Harper Burnett of Jackson, Mo., moved up to second place, firing 947 during Round 3 to run his three-day mark to 2,734. Cameron Bennett of Essex, Md. (2,686), Dawson Kohl of Dyersville, Iowa (2,679), and Donaven Kline of Manasquan, N.J. (2,676), round out the current U16 Boys top five.
A three-way tie currently exists for the 101st and final berth to the division’s Advancers’ Round. The three athletes sharing that position with matching totals of 2,418 are Eddie Margarucci of Wayne, N.J.; Gavin Fernandez of Henderson, Nev.; and Tyler Hagg of Olathe, Kan.. Each will try to use Thursday’s final four-game qualifying block to improve their position and move further inside the cut line.
Northeast Ohioans within the cut is Parma’s Zachary Mayne (2,569), who shot 917 Wednesday.
U16 GIRLS
Emma Lester of Daleville, Ala., kept her bid to be the wire-to-wire U16 Girls qualifying leader alive, finishing in first place for the third day in a row. Lester recorded games of 205, 192, 178 and 221 for a 796 series on Wednesday, which pushed her three-day, 12-game score to 2,482 (a 206.8 average).
Makayla Pressley of Vale, N.C., used an 897 set during Round 3 to move up to second place in the overall standings with 2,437. Briar Graham of Norton Shores, Mich. (2,409), Laelah Tiquia of Auburn, Wash. (2,386), and Ava Mazza of Utica, Mich. (2,379), hold the remaining spots in the U16 Girls top five.
The spot under the closest scrutiny as cut day approaches, however, is 47th place. That’s because that’s as low in the standings as any athlete can be at the end of Round 4 on Thursday if they want a berth in the division’s Advancers’ Round.
With four games remaining, Alayla Johnson of Rhome, Texas, and Jade Mazenis of Streamwood, Ill., are tied for the final advancing position with matching three-round totals of 2,096.
A Northeast Ohioan still in the running is Boardman’s Brooklyn Bailey (64th, 2,061).
U14 BOYS
Thomas Carter of Attleboro, Mass., put up a big number during Round 3, using scores of 235, 191, 244 and 226 to post 896 for the round, which pushed his three-day, 12-game total to 2,512 (a 209.3 average). That mark was enough to put Carter at the top of the U14 Boys standings heading into Thursday’s final qualifying block.
Nehemiah Keefer of Bellwood, Ill., sits in second place at 2,480, which included 881 on Wednesday thanks to games of 197, 245, 243 and 196.
The final three spots in the top five currently are occupied by Thomas Nagy of Depew, N.Y. (2,405), Andrew Crook of Yakima, Wash. (2,402), and Treavor Mason of Mabank, Texas (2,397).
Juan Diaz Gonzalez of Puerto Rico and Lorain’s Owen Burich presently are tied for the final advancing berth in the division’s Advancers’ Round, sharing 55th place with matching three-day marks of 2,156.
Other Northeast Ohioans in the running are Wooster’s Chase Kauffman (12th, 2,306)
U14 GIRLS
Olivia Titus of St. Charles, Mo., moved into the overall lead with a three-day, 12-game total of 2,182 (a 181.8 average). Titus rolled games of 199, 188, 180 and 192 on Wednesday for a Round 3 block total of 759.
Alyssa Randisi of Brooklyn, N.Y., held onto second place for the second day in a row. Randisi ended competition on Wednesday with a 12-game mark of 2,149.
Third place currently is held by Caitlin Stahl of Mankato, Minn. (2,143); meanwhile, the final two positions in the U14 Girls top five belong to Daisy Newton of Hanover, Pa. (2,133), and Averie Bourne of Kansas City, Mo. (2,127).
The last spot in the division’s Advancers’ Round currently rests with Megan Bosma of Sartell, Minn., who resides in 26th place with a 1,966 total.
There are no Ohioans inside the cut.
U12 BOYS
Colin Park of San Jose, Calif., remained in first place thanks to a Round 3 mark of 766, which he arrived at by posting scores of 235, 183, 176 and 172 on Wednesday. That effort pushed Park’s grand total for 12 games to 2,382 (a 198.5 average).
Gleason Garske of Spokane, Wash., landed in second place for the second day in a row after leading the U12 Boys division during opening-round action on Monday. Garske’s three-day total stands at 2,338.
The final three places in the top five are occupied by Cooper Powell of Allen, Texas (2,284), Josh Worley of Denver, Pa. (2,265), and Christian Forry of Fairfield, Conn. (2,227).
Brenner Schmidt of Phoenix currently occupies 34th place with 2,028. Should he remain in 34th position at the end of Round 4 of qualifying on Thursday, he would be the last U12 Boys competitor through to the Advancers’ Round.
Columbus’ Aaron Cabiness is sixth (2,221).
U12 GIRLS
Stevie Newton of Hanover, Pa., and Taylor Morgan of Murfreesboro, Tenn., switched spots Wednesday with Newton using a Round 3 set of 741 (172, 174, 216 and 179) to take the U12 Girls overall lead with a 12-game total of 2,186 (a 182.2 average). Morgan, who held the lead after Round 2, finished third-round action in second place at 2,146.
Hannah Black of Butte, Mont. (2,121), moved from fifth place up to third while Jade Campbell of Valdosta, Ga.(2,062), and Braelyn Monnette of Elizabethtown, Ky. (2,050), ended the third round in fourth and fifth place, respectively.
Rylie Uyeno of Honolulu finished Wednesday’s action in 17th place at 1,918. All U12 Girls competitors will have that spot in the standings in their sights during Thursday’s final four-game qualifying block as that is the position they’ll have to get to or inside of in order to make the cut to the Advancers’ Round.
HONOR SCORES ABOUND ON DAY 3 OF QUALIFYING
While several impressive games and series were recorded during the first two days of competition at the 2026 Junior Gold Championships, nobody was able to break through and achieve perfection.
That all changed on Wednesday, however, when seven 300 games and an 800 series were authored during Day 3 of qualifying in and around Minneapolis.
Elijah Klenklen of Lee’s Summit, Mo; Thomas Onodera of Kaneohe, Hawaii; Caleb Reaves of Chesapeake, Va.; and TJ Yarnell of Panama City, Fla., each managed to string 12 strikes in a row during third-round action in the U18 Boys division.
Onodera narrowly missed out on an 800 series as well, shooting 793 for his first three games Wednesday thanks to scores of 269, 224 and 300.
U16 Boys athlete Trenton Ichimura Jr. of Waipahu, Hawaii, did get over the hump, putting up scores of 300, 267 and 248 for an 815 series on the way to a 1,040 total for Round 3.
Jackson Wordekemper of Omaha, Neb., and Michael Keylon Jr. of Broken Arrow, Okla., also achieved notched perfect games during the third round of U16 Boys qualifying.
GARCIA GARNERS TWO MILESTONES AT LUCKY STRIKE BROOKLYN PARK
Each athlete’s bowling bucket list is a little different, but two accomplishments just about all keglers hope to check off one day are making a run at perfection and picking up the sport’s most-feared split, the dreaded 7-10.
While many bowlers go a lifetime without accomplishing either feat, William “Misael” Garcia Jr. of Fairfax, Va., nearly pulled both off during Round 3 of U18 Boys qualifying on Wednesday.
Garcia’s first wow-worthy moment of the day came during Game 2 when he converted the 7-10 split for the first time in his career. Two games later, he had the crowd at Lucky Strike Brooklyn Park in a tizzy once again when he began his final game of the day with 11 strikes in a row to move just one shot away from recording the first 300 game of the 2026 Junior Gold Championships.
Perfection wasn’t in the cards for the 17-year-old on this day, however, as Garcia’s final shot hit the pocket but left the 10-pin standing, forcing him to settle for 299.
Garcia was optimistic heading into Round 3; nevertheless, his performance on Wednesday even exceeded his own lofty expectations.
“Coming in, I felt pretty confident and knew it was going to be a good day but not as good as this,” Garcia said. “I’m just speechless right now.”
Despite being somewhat unsure of what to say, Garcia had no trouble explaining what he plans to do during Round 4 on Thursday.
“I feel really confident,” Garcia said. “During practice, I felt good, so I’m going to try to make another run for it tomorrow and see what happens.”
U12 advancers will bowl another four-game block before the top eight head into match play, while U14, U16 and U18 advancers will bowl a five-game block. A second cut is made for U14, U16 and U18 for the final Advancers’ Rounds with an additional five games before the top 16 in each division advance to match play.
Match play will be a double-elimination bracket, with each match being two games and highest pinfall determining who advances. The final two in the Winners Bracket in each division will bowl for the No. 1 seed in the stepladder finals, while the winner in the Elimination Bracket will be the No. 3 seed on the show.
The stepladder finals at the 2026 Junior Gold Championships will be streamed live on BowlTV and on Bowling TV, the new 24-hour channel dedicated entirely to bowling, which can be found on Prime Video, LG Channels, Xumo Play, DISH TV, Bonusview, Sling Freestream, Plex, Free Live Sports and Bowling TV’s Roku app.
This year’s live Junior Gold streams will take place on Saturday at noon Eastern (U12), 3 p.m. Eastern (U14), 6 p.m. Eastern (U16) and 9 p.m. Eastern (U18).
Because the stepladder finals will not be under live national television time constraints, each top seed will have to be beaten twice during stepladder competition in order to be denied their division’s title.
See complete Junior Gold results here: https://bowl.com/youth/youth-tournaments/junior-gold-championships/2026-results