Shake, Rattle, and Bowl at Cliff Castle Casino

champs Riley Dempsey & Nick Wade

     Riley Dempsey and Nick Wade were the ultimate survivors in exciting JBT Arizona Conference action at Cliff Castle Casino's Shake, Rattle, and Bowl.

    On a difficult sport pattern, bowlers who made the first cut then competed in do-or-die matches with the lowest score on each pair eliminated until only one remained.  The scratch division was eventually carved down to six bowlers, and in those matches Kyle King eliminated Mike Kremer 224-212, Allie Ijams ousted Matt Herbert 181-164, and Dempsey eliminated Eduardo Perez 213-151. 

    Down to three bowlers, a three way match saw King and Dempsey come up with big games of 256 and 233 respectively to oust Ijams, who enjoyed impressive back-to-back 3rd place finishes on the weekend.  Kyle and Riley then battled it out for the title, and the game came down to the tenth frame with both bowlers on doubles.  King, up first, threw a terrific shot, but left a solid-8 that left him distraught and helpless on the bench as Riley could now strike to win.  Dempsey got the strike, but on the brooklyn side, and the young man showed maturity beyond his years by feeling as bad for King as he did great for himself for capturing his second JBT title.  King was gracious in a brutal defeat as well, and moments like that shouldn't be lost in the extreme competitiveness of our events.  But the story shouldn't be how he got the win, but that the win capped off an awesome beginning to the season for the talented Dempsey, as the 1st and 2nd place finishes on the weekend will put him near the early points lead.

    Another story line that shouldn't be lost on this busy day was the clinic Cameron Smith put on in qualifying, firing a 300 game on a pattern where even a 200 game was a big number for most of the day, en route to a +255 5-game qualifying total when nobody else was even +100. Unfortunately for him, no lead is safe in Survivor, and he fell in the round of 12, but what an amazing performance until that point.

   The handicap division got whittled down to eight survivors, and in that round Travis Johnson beat Maura Swaim 209-185, Wade beat Derek Acuff 255-211, Lindsey Ailport beat Jake Childers 195-186, and previous day's champ Derek Iozzio beat Stacey Lamb 258-206.  Stacey had consistently enjoyed the biggest applause of the day, as at just 4 years old (and already an 85 average), became the youngest bowler to ever make a JBT cut, en route to a 7th place finish!

    Down to 4 bowlers, Ailport beat Iozzio 215-166, and Wade eliminated Johnson 273-172, setting up the title match.  Whereas many bowlers fear the sudden-death aspect of Survivor, Wade has stated he loves it, and therefore seems to thrive on it, and was in control for most of the title match.  However, two late opens gave Lindsey, who was looking to join sister Amanda in the JBT winner's circle, a chance to double for the win.  Unfortunately for Ailport she was unable to get the hits, and Wade finished off a 224-199 win, and his fifth title.  Wade thus picks up right where he left off, after a summer of practice and dominance, with the fifth title of his JBT career, a rare and terrific milestone for handicap division bowlers. 

    Thanks to the crew at Cliff Castle (and Johnny Rockets) for another great job hosting our Tour.  Special thanks to everyone for the surprises on Sunday as yours truly got a bit older in front of your eyes-- it's moments like that that you remember years later, not the bad things.  Over $2,000 in scholarships were awarded at the event- want in on all this fun and excitement for all averages and ages- even four?  Come on down to the next JBT event, it's as simple as that!