By BILL SNIER
PARMA HEIGHTS — Shocking. Surreal moment.
So many adjectives come to mind when describing what 22-year-old Stow right-hander Jillian Martin accomplished Tuesday night at Yorktown Lanes.
Martin, who just graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in May, captured the Professional Women’s Bowling Association Tour Championship with a 247-221 win over Birgit Noreiks.
What did it mean for the four-time, first-team All-American and Team USA member? The list is long:
- It marked her third major title overall, joining the U.S. Women’s Open she won earlier this year plus the 2024 USBC Queens.
- It extended her winning streak in stepladder finals matches to 10 straight.
- At just 22 years and 24 days old, she becomes the youngest winner of the PWBA’s modern Triple Crown since the relaunch in 2015 (U.S. Open, USBC Queens, Tour Championship). Other past Triple Crown winners included Wendy Macpherson (22 years, nine months, 20 days) and Aleta Sill (22 years, eight months, two days).
- She becomes eligible for the PWBA Hall of Fame with five overall titles and at least two majors — at the age of 40.
- She becomes the only two-time winner on the PWBA Tour this season. Until this event, there had not been a two-time winner for the first time since 1963.
“I am shocked honestly … I didn’t think I would do this. It just a surreal moment right now,” Martin said. “I had to commit to my process to making good shots the whole time.”
Martin knew the implications of this win heading into Tuesday’s finals as the No. 1 seed.
“It’s one of those things where I’m just so stuck in the moment that I don’t really think about that stuff,” Martin said. “I know it’s a possibility. It’s more like I’m going to bowl the best that I can and whatever happens, happens.
“I’ve never really labeled it as these are my goals and these are what I want to do because you kind of get stuck in what happens after the goals. My constant goal is to be the best version of myself every single day and every time I step out on the lanes. And I want to have fun … that is actually the key thing for me honestly.”
EARLY RUN
It actually was No. 4 seed Lauren Russo who had the upper hand to begin the stepladder finals.
The 29-year-old O’Fallon, Mo., right-hander and Marysville (Tenn.) University women’s bowling coach struck on six of her first eight shots in the opening match against No. 5 seed Stefanie Johnson, a 42-year-old McKinney, Texas, right-hander.
Russo, seeking her second career title and first major after finishing fourth in the 2025 Tour Championship in Rochester, N.Y., stayed clean en route to a 236-202 win.
Johnson, who had her own Hall of Fame aspirations in seeking her second major title to go along with six career wins, struck only once through the first five frames and left a 4-6-7-10 split in the second.
The striking continued for Russo in the quarterfinal match against No. 3 seed Diana Zavjalova, a 34-year-old Latvia right-hander who was seeking her sixth career title and third major. Zavjalova, who injured the quad muscle in her left leg during Monday’s second match-play round, wore a pressure wrap around the leg during the match.
Russo started with the front five strikes before leaving a solid 2-pin spare in the sixth. She then added three strikes en route to a 258-166 win. Zavjalova had three splits by the seventh frame, including a pair of the 2-8-10 variety, and then failed to covert a 3-6 spare in the eighth.
Then in the semifinal against No. 2 seed No. 2 seed Noreiks, Russo again started with three strikes before her first open frame — leaving a 4-6-7-10 split.
Noreiks, a 40-year-old German right-hander, stayed clean throughout the game, adding three doubles and finishing with seven strikes en route to a 227-220 win. Russo, with the opportunity to pull out the win in the 10th frame by striking out after a double in the eighth and nine, struck on her first shot but left a 2-pin spare on her second ball to fall short.
FINAL SHOWDOWN
Martin was aware of the scoring pace on the title pair of Lanes 23 and 24.
“I felt like the lanes were going to play farther too the left, which I liked to see all week. But I knew it was probably going to be a high-scoring match, which meant I had to commit to my process,” Martin said.
Noreiks came out on fire, starting with the first five strikes before leaving a 10-pin spare in the sixth frame.
“I kind of did what I did in the final round (of match play) and I was hoping it would work,” Noreiks said. “It looked good so I tried to do the same thing.”
Meanwhile, Martin started the title match with a pair of 10-pin spares.
“There’s always a little bit of nerves, but no more than in the rest of the game,” Martin said of the opening shots. “I was a little fast on both of those shots and I knew that. I just really had to get back to making the best shots possible.
“I had to stay within myself even when it felt like she was pulling away in the match there. I just had to come back, ground myself and make good shots.”
Martin then went on a four-strike run before leaving a solid 7-pin spare in the seventh while Noreiks left a pair of 10-pin spares around another strike in the seventh.
The turning point came in the ninth frame for Noreiks, who left a 3-6-10 spare.
“I kind of missed it at the bottom … it was not a good shot,” sand Noreiks, who was seeking her fourth overall title and second major. “The right lane … I really don’t know what happened. I moved on the first 10-pin and left another one. I threw good shots, but the pins just didn’t fall my way.”
Martin, after a pair of strikes in the eighth and ninth, had the opportunity to close out the match by striking out in the 10th frame. Her first shot came in light, but a messenger pin came off the left sidewall and rolled over to take out the 10-pin barely for the key strike.
“I was a little bit fast again on that shot, but I saw the pin come flying. I was feeling, ‘Ahh, I don’t think it’s going to get there with enough energy,’ ” Martin said. “But it kept going and I was like maybe and then it connected. It was like, ‘Wow.’ ”
But the task was not yet complete.
On her second shot in the 10th frame, Martin then left a 7-pin spare. She needed to cover the spare to shut out Noreiks, but a miss would produce a tie. She converted — barely — to the inside.
“There was 100 percent nerves on that spare shot. I thought I missed it actually,” Martin said. “I stood up a little on the shot and it definitely was not the best executed spare shot.
“But I had to remind myself you can’t lose the match right now. The only think you have is to gain, either we’re going to win or we’re going to tie. Just go out there and execute.”
With nothing on the line, Norieks left a 2-4-10 split on her final shot.
“That last shot I just kind of threw it because it really didn’t matter,” said Noreiks, who earned $15,000 for second place after being the last qualifier into the 24-player Tour Championship field. “It’s disappointing because you want to win.
“Of course, I’m happy with second place. It’s still a good position, but I’m still frustrated tonight about that one bad shot. But it is what it is.”
After covering the 7-pin spare, and hearing shouts of “boom” for her strikes and shouts of “O-H” followed by “I-O” from her partisan crowd, Martin admitted that the victory so close to home meant a lot.
“I definitely had more nerves tonight, knowing how many people were behind me and supporting me,” said Martin, who earned $30,000 for the win to take her season earnings up to over $96,000 despite missing two of the 11 events. “I just like making them proud while wanting to bowl my best.”
Martin heads to Korea for an event at the end of August, then joins Team USA in October and prepares to “do it all again” in May on the PWBA Tour. In between, she begins her three-year masters program in clinical mental health at Bradley (Ill.) University.
“I just want to have some fun,” Martin said, “and try to be me.”
Which is all she has been to this point in a very young professional career.
NOTEBOOK: This marks the end of the PWBA Tour season, with regional events dominating the calendar for the remainder of 2026. That includes kicking off Aug. 30 in Wichita. Cleveland will be a regional site Oct. 24 at Rebman Recreation in Lorain. … As the alternate for the 24-player field, Sydney Brummett also received a $1,000 check.