Benoit reaches finals; state bowling to change

One Kansan finished among the top 16 at the U.S. Bowling Congress (USBC) Junior Gold Championships this month at Indianapolis.

Kenny Benoit, who will be a senior at Topeka Seaman, advanced from semifinal action to compete in match play. He finished 15th among the boys, who started the week with 982 contenders.

Kenny completed his junior season in 16th place at the Class 5-1A state tournament. His Topeka Seaman team finished second to Kansas City Washington.

The state bowling tournament in March 2011 will feature a few changes. Last year, boys battled Thursday, March 4, for state titles in two classifications: 6A and 5-1A. State girls bowling for both classes took place the following day, Friday, March 5.

In 2011, Class 5-1A girls will compete on a Thursday morning, followed by 5-1A boys in the afternoon. The 6A bowlers will take to the lanes the following Friday. Schools favor that setup due to travel costs.

In addition, team scores will be tallied differently for the postseason. In the past, an athlete bowled three games to emerge with a series score. Each school’s top four series scores were added to determine the team score.

Now, team scores will be figured after each of the three games, which will give more bowlers a chance to contribute to overall team scores.

For instance, the Wichita Heights girls won the 6A championship last year with a team score of 2,403. The Falcons’ top four series scores – Emerald Weaver’s 628, Katelyn Carlson’s 625, Juliahna Stockham’s 594 and Kasey Anderson’s 556 – generated the team total. Autumn Weaver’s series score of 539 did not count as part of the team score.

However, Autumn’s first-game score of 179 was higher than Kasey’s first-game total of 120. In addition, Autumn’s 214 in the second game was better than Emerald’s 203 and Juliahna’s 197. Autumn trailed the other four girls in the third game, but her scores in Game 1 and Game 2 would be relevant under the new rules.