Sports

The display at the USBC Open Championships in Las Vegas recognizing Joe Mortellaro as a 50-year tournament participant. Mortellaro will be honored when he competes next week.

The year was 1956 and Joe Mortellaro, a 19-year-old Batavian with loads of bowling potential, competed in his first American Bowling Congress Tournament, a national showcase of keglers from throughout the United States.

That tournament was held in Rochester and, since then, “Joe Mort” has traveled all over the country to be a part of the tournament, which usually runs from early March through early July.

The tournament is now called the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships due to the merger of the ABC, Women’s International Bowling Congress, Young American Bowling Alliance and USA Bowling in 2005.

Fast forward to 2019 and Mortellaro, a Corfu resident for several decades, is about to reach a milestone he never really thought too much about until recent years – participating in his 50^th USBC Open Championships.

 “I never had that in mind (making it to 50 years),” said Mortellaro, now 82 and battling through some serious health issues. “I have to give credit to the guys (his teammates) who keep pushing me.”

Mortellaro, nine other Batavia-area bowlers and several of his family members will converge upon South Point Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas next week to celebrate the achievement.

Joe, owner of Joe's Pro Shop for many years prior to his retirement, is the leadoff man on a squad with nephew Mark McVay, nephew Todd Mortellaro, Gregg Wolff and Paul Spiotta, team captain. The companion team consists of Jim Pursel, Geoff Harloff, Brian Green, nephew Rich Mortellaro and Nathan Cordes.

The group bowls its Team event at 7 p.m. Friday, April 26, and its Doubles & Singles events at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 27. In between the two events, Mortellaro will spend three hours at a Henderson, Nev., dialysis center as part of his three-times-per-week therapy.

“I haven’t bowled much in league lately (due to fatigue), but I bowled a couple games on Sunday and Tuesday of this week at Mancuso’s, and it felt pretty good,” he said.

Family members that will be there cheering him on include his sister, Millie McVay, and her daughter, Jeannie; nephew, Fred McVay, and his wife, Donna; and sister-in-law, Charlene Tiede.

Additionally, Joe Trigilio, Mortellaro’s teammate for many years, is planning to travel to Vegas with his wife, Kathy, to witness the accomplishment. Trigilio is unable to bowl this year due to his fight against brain cancer.

Everyone is rooting for Joe to complete the nine games, and add to his 49-year pinfall of 79,911 for 429 games, which is good for a 186.2 average on extremely difficult lane conditions. He said his best performance was 1,800-plus for All-Events (nine games) but he wasn’t sure of the year.

According to Spiotta, who has 26 USBC Open Championships under his belt, Mortellaro only has to bowl the Team event to qualify for the 50^th year award.

Spiotta said being able to hang with Mortellaro for the past 25 years is one of his greatest thrills as a bowler.

“I have the utmost respect for Joe Mortellaro, not only as one of the greatest bowlers I’ve ever seen but also one of the finest people I have ever known,” Spiotta said.

Spiotta recalled that he “accepted without hesitation” an invitation from Mortellaro to join his USBC Open Championships’ traveling team in 1995, and is excited to be a part of the 50^th year festivities.

“If Joe hadn’t been ill or injured on two occasions over the past 25 years, he would have already reached this milestone,” Spiotta said. “However, I am extremely proud that I will be there to witness this honored moment for him on April 26^th in Las Vegas.”

FOUR TO ENTER GENESEE REGION USBC HALL OF FAME

Genesee Region USBC directors are meeting this Saturday to review the annual Association Tournament and finalize plans for the Annual Banquet on May 11 at Batavia Downs Gaming.

Prize checks from the Association Tournament that took place the last two weeks in March at Oak Orchard Bowl and Medina Lanes are expected to go out the beginning of next week.

To see the complete unofficial results, go to the Genesee Region USBC website – www.bowlgr.com.

The Annual Banquet will include the induction of four people into the GRUSBC Hall of Fame -- James Foss of Medina in the Achievement Regular category, Robert Hodgson of Medina and Al Vlietstra of Geneseo in the Achievement Veteran category, and Eunice Englert of Nunda in the Meritorious Service category.

Foss, 56, has been a standout bowler for the past 20 years, compiling more than 15 300 games and six 800 series and averaging over 200 for most of those year – with a high of 235.

In 2007-08, he earned national recognition for have the high trio series of 2,295 (two men and one woman).

The head mechanic at Medina Lanes and league officer for several leagues, he has cashed in numerous local tournaments in the Medina, Lockport and Genesee Region associations.

He finished second to Rich Wagner in the GRUSBC Masters in 2017, averaging 206 while winning six of eight matches in the final en route to a $325 prize. He also has been a finalist on multiple occasions in the GRUSBC Senior Masters.

Hodgson, 71, a retired school teacher, has 13 perfect game and seven 800 series while averaging in the 215-plus range for the past several years.

His tournament success includes victories in the GRUSBC Doubles event with his son and the Tommy Kress 60-and-Over scratch singles tour.

A certified bowling coach, he assists with the Saturday morning youth program at Medina and consistently competes in GRUSBC tournaments.

Vlietstra, 70, has done well in tournaments at the local and state level.

He is a two-time Singles champion, with 762 in the Perry Association in 1997 and 860 (752 scratch) in the GRUSBC in 2017. He placed first in the 2009 GRUSBC Senior Masters at Letchworth Pines and rolled his high game of 299 in an Amateur Bowlers Tour event.

Vlietstra, who owns a masonry business, is a four-time NYS USBC tournament champion:

-- As a member of the Turnbull Heating team in the 2010 NYS Open Championships in Niagara Falls (he rolled 661);
-- Handicap Singles (843) in the 2014 NYS Open Championships in Rochester;
-- Six-Game Combine (1,483) in the 2014 NYS Open Senior Championships in Cortland;
-- Handicap Doubles (801 with handicap) in the 2015 NYS Open Championships in Buffalo.

His personal best series of 788 came in the New York State Firemen’s Tournament in Newburgh in the mid-2000’s.  A league bowler since 1987, he posted his high league average of 203 in 2004-05 at Perry Bowling Center.

Englert has been bowling for more than 50 years and has served the sport as a league secretary, Genesee Valley Women’s Bowling Association director and tournament coordinator for almost as long.

Her induction comes on the heels of her husband’s (Dennis) enshrinement last year. The couple was a fixture at Letchworth Pines, running the bowling center and taking care of the leagues for 30 years.

SPARE SHOTS FROM AROUND THE GENESEE REGION

-- Albion’s Paige Snook (photo at right) continued her fine season last weekend when she captured the Youth Bowlers Tour handicap division crown at AMF Empire Lanes.

Paige, who will be competing in the Junior Gold Championships in July in Detroit, qualified in 11^th place before winning all four of her matches for her first title.

Previously, Paige rolled her first USBC-certified 700 series in the youth bowling program at Oak Orchard Bowl. Her games were 255-212-233 for 700 right on the mark.

-- The GRUSBC West team defeated the GRUSBC East squad, 69.5-18.5 at Scopano’s Lanes last Saturday to even their annual series at two wins apiece.

The West won all but two Doubles and Singles matches – posting a 13-2 record – and then went on two win both Baker-style team matches.

Scott Gibson led the way with a 3-0 record and 224 average while Bruce Kraus, Paul Spiotta, Bob Hodgson, Jackie Jurinich, Mike Johnson and Gregg Wolff also won all three of their matches.

Rounding out the West team were Roger Stone, Jerry Currier and Scott Shields.

For the East team, Jerry Davis and Al Vlietstra combined for a Doubles victory and Dana Freeman posted a Singles win.

Other members of the East team were Kevin Gray Sr., Augie Dale, Tim Fonte, Eric Galton, John LaGeorge, Dan Santini and John Wood.

-- Batavia’s Rich Wagner, who set a GRUSBC record with a 246 league average this season, put his stamp on the USBC Open Championships in Las Vegas earlier this week with a sparkling 1,859 All-Events score.

The national tournament is bowled on a Sport condition, which makes Wagner’s total even more impressive. The left-hander had 587 in the Team event, 608 in Doubles and 664 in Singles. He should get back a decent prize check for the 664.

He bowled for the Toyota of Batavia team along with Josh Elliott, Jeremy Vallance, Leon Hurd and Jason Gallo.

Two familiar names on the local bowling scene put their stamp on the 13^th annual Genesee Region USBC Association Tournament that concluded last Sunday at Oak Orchard Bowl in Albion (Team event) and Medina Lanes (Doubles & Singles events).

Rich Wagner of Batavia placed first in Open Singles with a 741 total while Curtis Foss of Medina placed first in Open All-Events with a 2,209 nine-game total and teamed with Robbie Hanks of Albion to win the Open Doubles event with a 1,484 score.

Both Wagner and Foss sported league averages north of 240 this season, with Wagner setting a GRUSBC-record of 246 in the Toyota of Batavia Thursday League at Mancuso Bowling Center.

In the Open Team event, Team Johnson of Batavia took top honors with 2,668 (2,620 scratch) as captain Mike Johnson rolled 694, Matt Balduf 678, Gregg Wolff 642 and Mike Lambert 606.

Game On, also a Batavia-based team, placed second with 2,652 while Oak Orchard Bowl finished in third place with 2,647.

In the Women’s Division, only three teams competed with PinNaction, out of Albion, placing first with 2,379. Team members are Rebecca Hughson, Kay Ecker, Estelle Webb and Laurie Cole, 

Roxanne Clar and Dawn Johnson of Geneseo won the Women’s Doubles with 1,268; Terri Loessl of Albion won the Women’s Singles with 752 and Rachel Van Duser of Perry won the Women’s All-Events with 1,845.

Nathan Cordes of Batavia had the tournament's high game of 299, while Foss shot 288 and six bowlers -- Foss, Steve Krna, Wagner, Reid Cole, Randy Hanks and Scott Allis -- each posted a 279 game.

Thirty-five teams competed in the two divisions (Open and Women), the same number as last year, but Doubles went up from 39 to 58 and Singles increased from 85 to 115.

Complete unofficial results can be found on the Genesee Region USBC website – www.bowlgr.com.

CANADIAN ROCKER TO SPEAK AT GRUSBC BANQUET

Legendary Canadian rock musician Carl Dixon will share the inspirational story of his miraculous recovery from a horrific car accident as the keynote speaker at the Genesee Region USBC's Annual Banquet on May 11 at Batavia Downs Gaming on Park Road. The event will begin at 6 p.m. sharp.

Tickets for the banquet are $30 and can be obtained by calling 585-343-3736 or sending an email to mikep@bowlgr.com.

For more information about tickets for the event go to the Genesee Region USBC website.

Four new members to the Genesee Region USBC Hall of Fame will be enshrined at the May 11 banquet.

They are James Foss of Medina in the Achievement Regular category, Robert Hodgson of Medina and Al Vlietstra of Geneseo in the Achievement Veteran category, and Eunice Englert of Nunda in the Meritorious Service category.

Watch for more about the inductees in a future Pin Points column.

Dixon, a Sault Sainte Marie, Northern Ontario native, was signed to his first international record deal at just 22-years old with his break through band, Coney Hatch

He toured North America -- opening for Iron Maiden for 40 shows and Judas Priest for 27 shows, and went on to tour with some of the biggest names in North American music. He became lead singer of The Guess Who after Burton Cummings left the iconic Canadian band. Carl held that position for eight years until his head-on car accident in Australia.

According to his press release:

It was 2008 when Carl took leave from The Guess Who to sort out family issues in Australia but the stress took its toll. Distracted and worried while driving at night Carl was involved in a horrific head on car collision in rural Victoria. He sustained 52 injuries including traumatic brain injury, crushed legs and crushed internal organs. Trapped in the mangled car for one hour and forty-five minutes there seemed little hope.

Remarkably, ten years on, Carl Dixon is walking tall. His rescue by dedicated volunteers and emergency surgeons and staff in Australia is the stuff of legends. His unlikely survival was followed by family and business difficulty. When the dust settled his business was in tatters and he was left with a mountain of debt.

Doggedly Carl returned to doing what he loves: music. His injuries caused him to rethink his approach and Carl became an author and inspirational speaker sharing his survival story.

Ten years on from his accident Carl sings better than ever, he's re-branded his business to six figure success; he’s a published author, had a triumphant return to The Guess Who as a special guest and returned to touring with Coney Hatch.

JAKOB BUTTURFF WINS 2019 USBC MASTERS

Jakob Butturff of Tempe, Ariz., has finally made it to the winner’s circle of a PBA major championship.

The double-jointed lefty captured his first career major championship by winning the 2019 United States Bowling Congress Masters on Monday in Las Vegas.

He beat fellow southpaw Mykel Holliman of Collierville, Tennessee, 228-196, for his sixth PBA title and the $30,000 first prize. Holliman earned $25,000.

Butturff had finished second in his three previous appearances on television in major championships – losing as the top seed at both the 2017 and 2018 U.S. Open and to Australia’s Jason Belmonte, 236-227, in the title match of the 2019 PBA World Championship in March.

Belmonte’s victory was his record 11^th PBA major title, breaking a tie with PBA Hall of Famers Earl Anthony and Pete Weber for most major titles. He now has 21 PBA tour titles.

Fox Sports (FS1) will be airing the PBA Playoffs from Portland, Maine, beginning this Monday (April 8) with a live telecast, and then on a tape-delayed basis on Monday nights through the end of May.

The semifinal and final rounds will be televised live on FOX on June 1-2.  The winner will earn $100,000.

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Update March 21, 12:45 p.m. -- In the section about the potential sale of Scopano's Lanes, the content has been corrected to reflect that Cory Paris' auto business will remain open.

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Chris Bardol had one heck of a bowling season over the past two weeks.

On March 9^th, the 31-year-old right-hander teamed with his girlfriend, Caycee Landers, to win the annual King & Queen Mixed Doubles Handicap Tournament at Mancuso Bowling Center and, a day later, he placed second in the prestigious Super Bud Bowl at Lighthouse Lanes in Oswego

At Mancuso’s, Bardol and Landers each came through with strikes in the 10^th frame of the championship match against the father-daughter team of Mario and Kara Mangiola of Rochester to win, 466-451, and claim the $500 first prize.

Landers rolled 237 and Bardol 229 to offset a 224 by Mario and 227 by Kara, who was stopped by a solid 8-pin in the 10^th frame.

The victory was especially sweet for Landers, a former touring pro.

“He’s (Chris) is used to winning all the time, so for me it’s a little bit better,” she said.

The Mangiolas earned $300 for placing second.

Two other Rochester teams -- Traci Spanitz/Rob Gustke and Sara Germano/Steve Meyer -- made it to the semifinals and won $200 apiece.

Quarterfinalists ($150 each) were Naomi Hyde/Shayne Herold, Le Roy; Selina and Tom McJury, Batavia; Sarah Cassidy, Albion/Rob Stefani, Batavia; and Kelsey Ayers, Leicester/Brady Weber, Perry.

Other local cashers ($100 each) were Karisa Schuster/Brian Weber, Perry; Dawn Johnston, Livonia/John LaGeorge, Retsof; and Christine Thompson, Mumford/Dean Cadieux Sr., Byron.

Jeremy Vallance of Warsaw had the tournament’s high game – 298.

The next day, March 10^th, Bardol traveled to Oswego for the Super Bud Bowl and – 11 games later – he drove back home with the runner-up check of $2,750.

Finishing second in the Bud Bowl is quite an accomplishment – considering that the weeklong tournament attracts more than 1,000 entries.

The 31-year-old right-hander rolled 846 for four games of qualifying on a challenging oil pattern and then went on to win five matches to reach the three-person step-ladder finals. In four of the matches he needed at least the first strike in the 10th frame to advance. Now that’s coming through in the clutch.

In the stepladder finals, he bowled 247 to win his first match before dropping a 247-192 decision to Zach Wilkins of Canada in the championship match.

Honorable mention goes out to Matt Slocum of Perry for placing in the top six and to Kevin Gray Jr. of Warsaw who also made it to the 96-bowler finals.

POTENTIAL BUYER OF SCOPANO’S LANES IN OAKFIELD SURFACES  

After a year and a half of speculation over the future of Scopano’s Paradise Lanes and the Oakfield Hotel, it looks as though Cory Paris, a lifelong Genesee County resident, is on track to become the next owner of the South Pearl Street establishment.

“We’re moving in a positive direction … we have a closing date next month,” Paris said on Tuesday.

Paris, 53, said his Batavia-area car repair shop/dealership will continue to operate as he also focuses his attention to the restaurant, bar and bowling business.

Acknowledging that the lanes currently are underutilized, Paris said that he – along with son, Robert, and daughter, Taylor – are determined to do what needs to be done to attract bowlers back to the 12-lane center.

“I grew up at Scopano’s Lanes, having lived in Oakfield until about age 12 or 13,” he said. “We know that it has great potential.”

He said he already has contacted the Village of Oakfield zoning department to see what upgrades are required (making it handicapped accessible, for example) and is close to getting his liquor license.

“We’re going to update the bathrooms and kitchen as we go,” he said, “and I don’t think I’ll have any problems (maintaining the pinsetters).”

Paris did not say how much he paid for the business, citing a confidentiality agreement with the Scopano family.

John “Jonesy” Scopano said the deal is “99.9 percent” certain and that his family – wife, Lois, and sister, Judy -- are looking forward to retirement after a more than 50-year career.

Jonesy’s father, John, bought the Oakfield Hotel from the Monachino family in the early 1960s, and they built the lanes in 1972.

Jonesy, Lois and Judy primarily handled the bar/restaurant side of the operation while brother, Sam, who passed away in January 2016, ran the bowling business.

Scopano’s Lanes has been a fixture in the Batavia Bowling Association and, now, Genesee Region USBC, and the site of countless memorable achievements.

A well-deserved “thank you” to the Scopano family and best wishes upon retirement.

‘SUPER’ MARIO CAPTURES T.F. BROWN’S TOURNEY TITLE

Rochester’s Mario Mangiola has found a home away from home at Mancuso Bowling Center.

Mangiola (pictured at right with Mark Brown, tournament director, recorded a pair of 279 in the finals, including a front nine-strike gem in the title match to defeat Brian Hall of Canandaigua, who shot 240; George Szczublewski of West Seneca (191) and Carl Kinyon of Lockport (158).

“I had to dig deep for that,” said Mangiola, who usually travels to watch Kara compete in scratch events. “I was trying to get a lot of loft on the ball and play the track area … kept it high and tight.”

He displayed much emotion -- running out several shots -- as he progressed through the eliminator finals (where half the field on each pair advances) with games of 192, 215, 279, 214 and 279.

Hall earned $750 for placing second while Szczublewski won $500 and Kinyon $400.

Three Genesee Region bowlers cashed – Chris Huntz of Perry ($130), Nathan Cordes of Batavia ($160) and Scott Allis of Medina ($190). The tournament drew 90 entrants.

GRUSBC ASSOCIATION TOURNEY STARTS ON SATURDAY

Plenty of spots remain for the 13^th annual Genesee Region USBC Association Tournament that gets under way this weekend at Oak Orchard Bowl in Albion (Team event) and Medina Lanes (Doubles & Singles events).

Team squads are at noon and 3 p.m. on March 23 and March 31 and at 3 p.m. on March 24 and March 30. Doubles & Singles squads are set for 11:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. on all four days.

Competition will take place in Open and Women’s divisions, with handicap based on 90 percent of the difference in the bowler’s highest average from the past three seasons and 215.

The entry fee is $30 per person per event, with optional All-Events priced at $10.

The tournament is open to current GRUSBC members who have bowled at least 21 games in at least one league during the 2017-18 or 2018-19 season.

For more information or to sign up for a squad, send an email to mikep@bowlgr.com.

Entry forms can be downloaded from the GRUSBC website – www.bowlgr.com.

ROSE GARDEN II TEAM WINS GR YOUTH TRAVEL LEAGUE

The Rose Garden II team of Evan Phillips, Sawyer Zinter, Megan Jarkiewicz and Brendan Pimm placed first in the Genesee Region Youth Travel League that concluded its regular season on March 10 at Legion Lanes in Le Roy.

The winning team posted a 149-67 record to outdistance second-place Perry Bowling Center by 16 points. Oak Orchard I placed third another 4.5 points back.

In final week action, Aaron Leone of Le Roy Legion Lanes led the way with a 245 game and 614 series while Devon Zinter of Rose Garden I had 237—543 and Dallas Ecker of Oak Orchard I had 213—526.

Individually, Dennis Van Duser of Perry had the high average for boys with 196 and also had the high scratch game of 257 and high scratch series of 706.

Samantha Hyde of Le Roy led the girls with a 174 average, 223 scratch game and 594 scratch series.

Van Duser also had the high series with handicap (781) while Pimm had the high game with handicap (289).  Jarkiewicz had high game with handicap for girls (274) and Paige Snook of Oak Orchard II had the high series with handicap for girls (731).

The league wraps up with a no-tap tournament and banquet at 1 p.m. this Sunday at Rose Garden Bowl in Bergen.

For complete standings and statistics, go to www.bowlgr.com and click on the Jr. Travel League tab at the top of the home page.

MEDINA UNIFIED BOWLING SQUAD REPEATS AS CHAMPION

The Medina Central School Mustangs team in the Unified Bowling league went undefeated for the second straight year and won the sectional division championship for the second year in a row.

Coached by Rob Dennis, the program consists of special education students bowling with general education students. The league consisted of 15 schools.

Members of the Medina team this year were Juliana Allis, Gracelin Mahnke, Gracie Cogovan, Zachary Fike, Morgan Crossett, Emma Carson, Bobby Vidovich, Arian Cayea, Steven Secore, Jackson Touhey, Joe Biaselli and Tom Biaselli.

Dennis said that each of the students were able to get their own bowling ball with the support of Eric Greenlief, Tom Allis and Jim Foss of Medina Lanes.

“A special thanks to Athletic Director Eric Valley his help in starting this program in our school district,” Dennis said. “This enables these kids to grow together and feel the sense of working together as a team -- and seeing the results of hard work and dedication.”