Breakthrough performances at City Bowling Tournament

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

CHARLES CITY — As the day progressed, Aaron Burns got more dangerous.

This was the first time Burns participated in the City Bowling Tournament at Comet Bowl. This is also the first year Burns has been a league bowler — Comet Bowl’s Wednesday 10-Pin — after he was shanghaied into joining a squad representing the Charles City Press, Burns’s employer.

As one might imagine, Burns’s game is a work in progress. But after feeling his way in the first game of the “B” division Doubles event on Sunday, Burns started to find the pocket with more regularity. And by the time the subsequent Singles competition started, Burns got into a rhythm of sorts.

“I never bowled a 200 before, and sadly I came up a little short,” Burns said of his career-high 199, the middle game of a 521 series — another personal best.

“When I came here, I didn’t think I had much of a chance of doing anything,” said Burns, who recorded a tournament high 785 series with handicap and won the “B” division Singles title. “I guess to my amazement I was wrong.”

Going into the tournament with a 108 average, Burns didn’t give fellow “B” division rollers much of a chance when he added nearly 200 pins to what he normally compiles in a three-game series.

Runner-up Scott Nolte gave it his best shot while bowling on the same pair of lanes with Burns.

Nolte, in essence, put on a bowling clinic while rolling 754 scratch series. He never threatened to bowl a perfect game as he started two of his games with spares. But he managed to string strikes through the foundation frames (9th frame) of all his games (247-248-259).

“I’ve only bowled one other 700,” Nolte said. “I felt like I was hitting a groove, today.

“I’ve been slowing my game down. And that’s helped.”

Scores in both the “A” and “B” divisions were remarkably high.

“In all the years of doing these tournaments, I don’t think we’ve ever had this many 700 scores shot,” said Tad Barry, who helped organize the tournament and tracked down the scores. “We had a guy bowl a 300 (Darin Crooks), and our “A” division Singles champ (Dr. Tom Slinger) bowled the highest series so far this season.”

Slinger shot a 782 (249-256-277). Unofficially, he was ahead of Justin McIntire (764) and Crooks (750).

During the final Doubles and Singles rounds on Sunday — there were also rounds on Saturday and the weekend before  — there were for the most part three bowlers to a lane. Most of the competitors regularly bowl on 5-man teams in leagues.

“I don’t think that had much to do with it,” Nolte said when asked if the shorter rotation may have assisted in finding a rhythm or groove. “If you bowl with three guys or if you bowl with five guys, it shouldn’t matter. You’ve just got to be ready to roll.”

Nolte has finished second at the City Tournament two other times: one other in Singles and once the Team event.

“I thought I had a good chance with this one,” Nolte said, “but the kid bowled well and just had too much handicap.”

Barry, who entered the tournament late to fill some spots, was the unofficial All-Events “A” division leader after the final event.