The hand we were dealt in Las Vegas wasn’t all that tricky.
As one of eight teams from Auburn competing in the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships last weekend, everything seemed on schedule. My fivesome included Lou Tabone, Steve Crozier, Ed DeTomaso and Dennis O’Donnell.
Already in Las Vegas, we almost busted when we heard that bad weather canceled O’Donnell’s flight out of Rochester on Friday. He couldn’t get here in time for the team event, so we suddenly found ourselves in need of another shooter.
Fortunately, the USBC makes this sort of problem manageable. I simply posted my name and cell phone number on a bulletin board at the Cashman Field Center, gently requesting a 200-average bowler for Saturday at 8:30 p.m.
Within a couple of hours, I was talking to an enthusiastic Dustin Toth, born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisc. He was looking to hook up with a team after his previous plans fell through.
See, Dustin’s third tour of duty in Iraq ended in late February. He had hoped to bowl in the nationals last weekend with his buddies, but with his status unclear they needed to move on without him. Clearly, their loss was our gain, even if it didn’t translate into good scoring.
Dustin, a left-hander with a 223 average and outgoing personality, fit right in with our group. He cheered us on, but he was obviously thrown into a tough situation. He pressed a bit. Still, he took it all in stride, as one might expect.
An Army sergeant, Dustin, 27, was a Humvee mechanic supervising 30 people in Iraq. Missions were dangerous, he said, and he was glad to be back home.
“Over there, you take things for granted,” he said. “Freedom is priceless. I know where I was last year at this time — getting shot at.”
He was disappointed in his bowling performance, but he never let it get him down. The next morning, he thanked me in a text message for the opportunity to bowl, and I responded that we hoped to get together again with him for another tournament.
Crozier fired a 630 while DeTomaso added a 605 as our team totaled 2,782.
A second Auburn team, paced by Jeff Matty’s 649, which included a 280 game, and Dan Pilat’s 611, rolled 2,845. That was just the start of a great tournament for Pilat.
The 35-year-old owner of a graphic design business has been bothered by a sore knee for the past year. But he was all smiles Sunday. He fired a 626 series, including a 289 game, in the doubles event, and then followed it up with a 684 in the singles. His all-events total was 1,921.
“I’m absolutely thrilled,” he said. “I have to give credit to my teammates, because they remind me to keep my feet slow. I just need to stay under control on the approaches.”
Steve Suslik fired a 715 in the doubles event and was helped by partner Benny Appleby’s 613, boosting their total to 1,328. The duo shot 523 the last game, earning them a silver medal for achievement.
O’Donnell arrived in time to match up with Tabone in the doubles. They had 1,210, as Tabone fired 648. In the singles event, O’Donnell had 621 while Crozier posted a 606.
Already in Las Vegas, we almost busted when we heard that bad weather canceled O’Donnell’s flight out of Rochester on Friday. He couldn’t get here in time for the team event, so we suddenly found ourselves in need of another shooter.
Fortunately, the USBC makes this sort of problem manageable. I simply posted my name and cell phone number on a bulletin board at the Cashman Field Center, gently requesting a 200-average bowler for Saturday at 8:30 p.m.
Within a couple of hours, I was talking to an enthusiastic Dustin Toth, born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisc. He was looking to hook up with a team after his previous plans fell through.
See, Dustin’s third tour of duty in Iraq ended in late February. He had hoped to bowl in the nationals last weekend with his buddies, but with his status unclear they needed to move on without him. Clearly, their loss was our gain, even if it didn’t translate into good scoring.
Dustin, a left-hander with a 223 average and outgoing personality, fit right in with our group. He cheered us on, but he was obviously thrown into a tough situation. He pressed a bit. Still, he took it all in stride, as one might expect.
An Army sergeant, Dustin, 27, was a Humvee mechanic supervising 30 people in Iraq. Missions were dangerous, he said, and he was glad to be back home.
“Over there, you take things for granted,” he said. “Freedom is priceless. I know where I was last year at this time — getting shot at.”
He was disappointed in his bowling performance, but he never let it get him down. The next morning, he thanked me in a text message for the opportunity to bowl, and I responded that we hoped to get together again with him for another tournament.
Crozier fired a 630 while DeTomaso added a 605 as our team totaled 2,782.
A second Auburn team, paced by Jeff Matty’s 649, which included a 280 game, and Dan Pilat’s 611, rolled 2,845. That was just the start of a great tournament for Pilat.
The 35-year-old owner of a graphic design business has been bothered by a sore knee for the past year. But he was all smiles Sunday. He fired a 626 series, including a 289 game, in the doubles event, and then followed it up with a 684 in the singles. His all-events total was 1,921.
“I’m absolutely thrilled,” he said. “I have to give credit to my teammates, because they remind me to keep my feet slow. I just need to stay under control on the approaches.”
Steve Suslik fired a 715 in the doubles event and was helped by partner Benny Appleby’s 613, boosting their total to 1,328. The duo shot 523 the last game, earning them a silver medal for achievement.
O’Donnell arrived in time to match up with Tabone in the doubles. They had 1,210, as Tabone fired 648. In the singles event, O’Donnell had 621 while Crozier posted a 606.
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