Prediction Records
Tyson Nelson: 95 - 57 - 0 / Previous Week: 4-4-0
Trevor Cook: 97 - 55 - 0 / Previous Week: 7-1-0
Match #1: Cousins vs. Stevenson
In this matchup we have two teams heading in opposite directions, with Team Stevenson charging up the standings on a 6-match winning streak and 22+ points in 4 of their last 5. Team Cousins are just 3-6 this half and have pretty much fallen out of A-side contention. In this matchup between two teams that are balanced throughout their lineups, Team Stevenson has a slight edge at every position and have to be the favourites here, especially with how well they've played as of late.
Key Matchup We've been watching for a breakout from Gillian LaMonica and if her team is going to win tonight, a strong performance in her leadoff matchup with Erik Stewart might be just the thing to get it going. If Erik puts up an advantage at the top for Team Stevenson, they should be able to keep it going throughout the lineup.
Tyson's pick: Team Stevenson
Trevor's pick: Team Stevenson
Match #2: Hurd vs. LaMonica That slow start to the first half is well behind Team LaMonica now as they've reeled off 6 wins in a row, never taking less than 18.5 points during that stretch. With a 24-7 loss last week, Team Hurd continues their rather impressive streakiness this season, as their season now looks like this: 6 straight wins, 7 straight losses, 6 straight wins, 5 straight losses. This is still a close match on paper, but I like the edge Team LaMonica has in the leadoff and anchor positions to give them a slight advantage.
Key Matchup In a battle between two bowlers who haven't had the seasons they wanted to yet, if either Sam Gelardi or Brett Hendrickson can put up a more customary big night in the anchor position, it could go a long way to picking a winner in this match.
Tyson's pick: Team Hurd
Trevor's pick: Team LaMonica
Match #3: Devenney vs. B. Jeffers Team Devenney's reprieve from their losing streak was short-lived as they followed up that win with a 25.5-5.5 loss to Team Stevenson last week. This week, they face Team B. Jeffers, winners of 4 of 5 and the 4th-place team in the aggregate. The big difference in these two lineups is that while Jennifer Devenney hasn't had her best year, Tyson Nelson has been excellent all season long and currently has a nine-pin lead on the next-highest average in the league. It'll be a tall order for Team Devenney in this one.
Key Matchup
We go back to the anchor position again here as Jennifer Devenney will need to keep up with Tyson Nelson to keep her team in this one. We know what she is capable of, it just hasn't always been there this year but on any given night, she can beat anyone.
Tyson's pick: Team B. Jeffers
Trevor's pick: Team B. Jeffers
Match #4: Enns vs. C. Jeffers Team Enns have had a bit of a rough half, but they're sticking around in the A-side race and could go a long way to helping those chances out if they can put up a big night here tonight. It's a key matchup for them as they take on Team C. Jeffers, who have been better but still not good in the second half. As Chris Jeffers and Al Bristow have started to bring their averages up a bit in the second half, it has given Team C. Jeffers a pretty solid top half actually and should make for an interesting match. It may be the third position that sways the tide.
Key Matchup
On paper, these teams are pretty close when you take the 1, 2, and 4 positions all together but Craig Enns boasts a 16-pin advantage on Tim Hooper in play so far this year. This match gets interesting in a hurry if Tim has a big night here.
Tyson's pick: Team Enns
Trevor's pick: Team Enns
Match #5: Cook vs. Lourenco Despite missing their anchor last week, Team Cook pulled off a 17-14 win against Team Orne for their first four-game winning streak of the season and managed to keep pace with Team King in an extremely tight battle for that last A-side spot. The story for Team Lourenco has been the same all year as they are always competitive but have trouble closing out matches and they now have back-to-back losses taking 29 total points. The sun may be setting on their chances of making it into the A-side, but they are going to put up a good fight against anyone.
Key Matchup
With Trevor in anchor and their 2-3 positions firing on all cylinders over the last 4 weeks, it is the leadoff position that Team Cook will hope for some stability from because if they get that, it'll be very difficult to beat them. On paper, though, Tabatha Gelardi has an almost 30-pin edge on Dave Priestley and Team Lourenco will need to take advantage of that.
Tyson's pick: Team Cook
Trevor's pick: Team Cook
Match #6: Bartram vs. Gelardi
With 79 points in the second half's 9 weeks thus far, the season seems to just get longer for Team Bartram and they go up against the league's 2nd overall team here this week. This is a matchup where Team Gelardi has the edge throughout the lineup and should show why they have been at the top of the standings all year long.
Key Matchup
Mark Goldsworthy in the third spot at least gives a somewhat-even matchup on paper for Team Bartram and Jeston Bartram, despite his average this year, is a quality bowler. With big nights out of those two, anything can happen but this is still quite a mountain to climb for Team Bartram.
Tyson's pick: Team Gelardi
Trevor's pick: Team Gelardi
Match #7: King vs. Orne In the midst of a tight A-side battle, Team King saw their closest competitors post a narrow 17-14 win against 3rd-ranked Team Orne last week and now they hope to andwer with a strong showing against of their own against one of the league's best teams. It was just the second loss of the second half for Team Orne, as they have been riding a strong overall lineup and a long run of very, very good play from second David Wastle. Those factors combine to give them the edge in this matchup, but it should be a close one especially with that A-side battle coming down to the wire.
Key Matchup
The key in this one is probably going to be how Patrick Walker handles David Wastle, who has been on an absolute surge and is actually pretty close to taking over the 3rd position from Linda Orne (sorry to anyone in second who might have to play Linda in the near future). Team King is pretty evenly matched at the bottom, but Team Orne's very strong 1-2 position has given them an edge in almost every match all year.
Tyson's pick: Team Orne
Trevor's pick: Team Orne
Match #8: Rodych vs. Youzwa Lexie Sutherland has been a real story this season for Team Rodych as she's come back from averaging around 205 the last time she was in the league to posting a 247.25 average and the league's highest winning percentage (70.0%) in her six week stint so far. She's been on fire and is a contributing factor to Team Rodych putting up back-to-back wins. Matt is starting to get his mojo back too and is a very scary 3rd. Team Youzwa, though, has the talent to match those two positions and a stronger top end. They have underachieved in the second half, and are starting to drop themselves into an A-side battle they didn't want to be in. They will need to be on their game in this one to prevent the upstart Team Rodych from pulling off an upset.
Key Matchup
As has been the case all season for Team Rodych, it's going to come down to what they can get out of their top two positions. Carter Schade and Hailey Roberts need to keep up with Mark Prystupa and Jenna Gillrie and if they do that, all bets are off especially with the strength of the bottom of their lineup right now.
Tyson's pick: Team Youzwa
Trevor's pick: Team Youzwa
