ROHNERT PARK, Calif. - Most players on the Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour travel with diverse equipment arsenals and a wealth of knowledge and support, but Danielle McEwan of Stony Point, New York, found patience to be her most effective tool on the way to the top of the standings Friday at the 2016 Nationwide PWBA Sonoma County Open.
McEwan said she didn't initially see what she needed to see in order to successfully navigate the 37-foot oil pattern at Double Decker Lanes, but when it finally clicked, she was able to take advantage. The 24-year-old right-hander averaged more than 226 over 12 games to lead the 76-player field with a 2,719 total.
"This morning started off pretty rough, and I really wasn't throwing very good shots," said McEwan, who won the 2015 season-ending Smithfield PWBA Tour Championship for her first PWBA Tour title. "But, I was able to keep my head clear and grind until something finally clicked. Then, I just ran with it."
Latvia's Diana Zavjalova, the 2013 United States Bowling Congress Queens champion, never fell below second place after opening the day with the tournament's only perfect game, and she finished qualifying just behind McEwan with a 2,694 total.
Zavjalova was followed by PWBA Tour rookie Jennifer Higgins of Westerville, Ohio (2,688), and the Singaporean duo of Hui Fen New (2,678) and Jazreel Tan (2,669).
The final spot in the cashers' round went to Kristina Wendell of Kingston, New York, who finished Friday's 12 games with a 2,346 total, a 195.5 average.
McEwan will lead the top 32 players into Saturday's cashers' round, which begins at 11:30 a.m. Eastern. Competition will conclude Saturday evening with a group stepladder final starting at 8 p.m. Eastern. All rounds leading up to the stepladder finals are being broadcast live on Xtra Frame.
The head start is good for confidence and momentum, but McEwan is well aware of how much tournament is left, a lesson she took from last week's PWBA Las Vegas Open, where she finished ninth.
"There's still a lot of games left, and I know things still can move around quickly," McEwan said. "As the leader today, it means I did some things right, but I still need to remember what I did and make the right moves and ball choices again tomorrow."
Six additional games, with pinfall carrying over, will determine the 12 players who will advance to the round-robin match-play portion of the Nationwide PWBA Sonoma County Open. The match-play finalists will be split into two groups, each featuring six players. Each group will bowl six games of match play, including a final position round.
At the end of the match play, the top qualifier in each group will earn an automatic spot in the stepladder finals, with seeding being determined by total pins. The second, third and fourth qualifiers in each group will advance to a group stepladder final. The winner of each group stepladder final will advance to the televised stepladder finals.
The finals of the Nationwide PWBA Sonoma County Open will air Tuesday, June 14 on CBS Sports Network.
To subscribe to watch the action on Xtra Frame, visit XtraFrame.TV.
