In the PBA Jr. Hawaii West Regional, the first PBA Jr. event held in Hawaii, HJBC’s Ryder Baisac overtook three fellow HJBC bowlers to claim the U15 title.
Ryder initially qualified 6th averaging 189.4 on the O’Neill and Tackett patterns after 10 games, and defeated 3rd seed Koby Shinogi-Ling (HJBC; 193.1) after splitting points in the two-game single-elimination and winning the 9th and 10th frame roll-off. Ryder then defeated Kaz Yamada (7th seed; HJBC; 184.2) in the semifinals by winning both games, and defeated TJ Ichimura (5th seed; HJBC; 189.9) in the Finals. Ryder won the first game, then was forced to do a single-ball roll off after tying the second game at 213 (8-9), then won the final 9th and 10th frame roll-off by one pin.
In the first round, TJ Ichimura defeated another HJBC bowler, Louis Cloud (4th seed; 191.9) after a 9th and 10th frame roll-off. In all, HJBC qualified 5 bowlers in the U15 division.
Elsewhere, Mae Bishop qualified 7th (149.0) after enduring a tough Saturday shift, and lost her first round match to eventual runner-up Haydyn Ideue in the U18 Girls division. In the U18 Boys division, HJBC’s highest placer was Dylan Terada at 9th (177.8), missing the match play cut by twenty pins.
Final standings for PBA cashers:
U15 Division
(1) Ryder Baisac – $600
(2) TJ Ichimura – $300
(T3-4) Kaz Yamada – $200
(T5-8) Louis Cloud – $140
(T5-8) Koby Shinogi-Ling – $140*
*Koby also earned a free RecruitUS event entry for shooting the highest game (279) during qualifying. RecruitUS is a partner with the PBA Jr. program, connecting youth athletes with college athletic programs.
U18 Girls Division
(T5-8) Mae Bishop – $75
Dylan Terada (9th) in the U18 Boys Division and Kyson Yoshimoto (12th) in the U15 Division will also receive scholarships courtesy of the Oahu USBC, who donated an additional $2,000 to the prize fund.
Full tournament results can be viewed using the “Game-by-game scoring” links for each division on this page: https://www.pba.com/tournaments/2023/pba-jr-hawaii-west-regional
PBA West Region Tour Manager Josh Blanchard also posted his own write-up on Facebook, which includes the cover photo:
Mahalo to the PBA West Region and PBA Jr. for coming down, Darrell Pojas for hosting the PBA, and Chad Pojas for advocating for the youth to get a PBA Jr. event here! Mahalo also to the Oahu USBC for the increased prize fund, and to Fort Shafter Bowling Center for hosting the event.
See you next year!
Hickam Junior Bowling Club 