MATCH 1: Lourenco vs. Cook
For both of these teams, it’s been a rough go lately. Team Cook has three straight losses while Team Lourenco has five and for most players on both teams they have to feel like they’ve been underachieving. Both teams have similarly structured lineups and have been relying on their 3 and 4 spots so far.
Key Matchup Only Team Orne (62) have more points from their bottom two bowlers than Team Cook has from Alyssa Campbell and Trevor Cook so far (52), and if Team Cook is going to win tonight they will need it to be more of the same with the top of their lineup struggling.
Tyson’s pick: Team Cook
Trevor’s pick: Team Cook
MATCH 2: Stevenson vs. Cousins
In a battle of teams hanging out in the middle of the pack, expect a close match here. While Team Stevenson has the edge on paper based on averages so far, it becomes a closer matchup when you consider Cindy Cousins’ recent play. She has regained her anchor position and is bowling much better lately - averaging 240 over the past 4 weeks - which definitely helps her team out in matchups with Char McIvor being a strong 3rd as well.
Key Matchup
It’ll be important for Cindy to continue playing like she has been as of late for her team to take this one. If she can continue to maintain that recent 240 average level of play, that will make the anchor matchup a good one and keep things quite evenly matched. Tyler Reynolds has been a force at the top of the lineup (37-8) for Team Stevenson and has a matchup with Shannon Pruden tonight that will also play a big factor in the outcome of the match.
Tyson’s pick: Team Stevenson
Trevor’s pick: Team Cousins
MATCH 3: Youzwa vs. Rodych
Colton Youzwa was the star of last Friday night with a 403 single and 1200 quad, catapulting him up to the #2 spot in the season’s average rankings. That helped his team grab a fourth straight win as they moved up to a tie for 6th in the league. Matt and Amanda continue to carry the load for Team Rodych - they, like Trevor and Alyssa from Team Cook, have 52 points from their 3 and 4 spots which is second in the league.
Key Matchup
Team Rodych continues to need more production out of their top two spots as they’re 16-74 in those positions so far this season. Hailey Roberts has shown some signs of turning it around lately and they will need that to happen to compete with Mark Prystupa and Jenna Gillrie atop Team Youzwa’s lineup this week.
Tyson’s pick: Team Youzwa
Trevor’s pick: Team Youzwa
MATCH 4: Gelardi vs. Bartram Team Gelardi continues to put up points and they currently sit atop the league after scoring 23 points last week, coming into a match against 12th-place Team Bartram. The Bartram team has been inconsistent this year and don’t have any bowlers sitting over .500 on the year - the Gelardi team, on the other hand, has three bowlers at .675 or better. Gelardi has the advantage up and down the lineup and will be big favourites in this one.
Key Matchup
Between Mitch Dubell, Wayne Wolanski, and Robbie Hendrickson the Gelardi team has a trio of bowlers that makes them very strong in the 1 and 2 spots but weaker at the 3 spot. Wayne is bowling 3 this week against Cordell Galbecka. Cordell is only averaging 215 this season but we know him as a solid 240+ average so if he can break out this week, that will be Team Bartram’s best shot at grabbing some points in this one.
Tyson’s pick: Team Gelardi
Trevor’s pick: Team Gelardi
MATCH 5: Orne vs. King
Team Orne has recovered nicely from a mini losing streak a few weeks ago, having picked up their third straight win last week (21 points) to move to 6-3 on the season and back up to 3rd in the league. They continue to be strong up and down the lineup with no weak spots, and although Linda lost for the first time all year last week, she still has the second-best win percentage in the league in a competitive 3rd position.
Key Matchup
It’ll be fun to watch the matchup in third this week with Linda Orne taking on her friend Karen Armstrong (who a lot of people expected Linda to draft with her first pick). Team King has a good bottom two, but they are going to lose ground at the top of the lineup with Team Orne possessing one of the better 1-2 punches in the league in Jennifer Duncan and David Wastle.
Tyson’s pick: Team Orne
Trevor’s pick: Team Orne
MATCH 6: LaMonica vs. Hurd
It wasn’t long ago that these were the two titans of the league, but Team Hurd has dropped 3 straight weeks picking up 24 points in that span and have fallen to 5th. Team LaMonica, meanwhile, continues to play well and they owe a lot of that success to a 1-2 punch of Cyndie Barnett and Jeff Bradshaw that has been excellent all year long, with a 59.5-30.5 record between them. This should be a good match, but give a slight edge to Team LaMonica based on recent play.
Key Matchup
In the third spot here, we have a matchup of two anchor-calibre bowlers and high draft picks that have not played as well as they’re capable of so far. Sam Gelardi and Brett Hendrickson are each averaging 231 but on paper, should be an excellent match. In second, we have another good match with Jeff Bradshaw and Chad Hurd both solid 2nds, though both moving in opposite directions right now. Jeff is 18-2 with a 237 average in the past 4 weeks while Chad is 6-14 with a 201 average.
Tyson’s pick: Team LaMonica
Trevor’s pick: Team LaMonica
MATCH 7: B. Jeffers vs. Devenney This is set to be a great match, with one of the most consistent teams in the league in Team B. Jeffers (6 of 9 weeks between 13 and 19 points, 7-2 record overall) taking on an upstart Devenney team that has five straight wins with 96.5 points in that span. Team B. Jeffers does have the advantage average-wise, but Team Devenney is on a roll and have good chemistry that will always give them a chance, plus are scoring better recently than their full season averages indicate. They have been motivated as of late and moved themselves up to 8th in the league.
Key Matchup
Two matches to keep an eye on here will be captain Ben Jeffers moving up to second to play against Neil Stewart and league high average Tyson Nelson taking on Jennifer Devenney in anchor. Neil is 29-16 on the season but gets a tough draw in Ben, and Tyson has a significant edge in average on Jennifer but we all know she is capable of a big week at any time.
Tyson’s pick: Team Devenney
Trevor’s pick: Team B. Jeffers
MATCH 8: C. Jeffers vs. Enns We have seen some signs of life from the C. Jeffers team in the past couple weeks, but there’s still a long way to go from them as they match up against 9th-place Team Enns. The all-around balance and consistency of Team Enns gives them an edge here against a struggling team even though they haven’t put up massive scores themselves.
Key Matchup
The 3 spot here will be 200-average Tim Hooper against 223-average Craig Enns who also sports a 24-11 record on the season. Tim did put up 908 and 836 back-to-back before having an off week last time out but is showing some progress. Still, Craig will be a tough draw and one that C. Jeffers will need him to keep it close in.
Tyson’s pick: Team Enns
Trevor’s pick: Team Enns
Prediction Records
Tyson: 17-23-0 (last week: 3-5-0)
Trevor: 19-21-0 (last week: 3-5-0)
