Recordpub.com - New format will crown four teams at today's tourney

By Susan Jenior

Record-Courier correspondent

It has been a season to remember for Portage Trail Conference bowling.

Now, with the regular season over, four divisions and 19 teams will convene at Bill White’s Akron Lanes today to not only crown four tournament champions, but to ultimately decide the PTC championships in the Metro and County Divisions for both the boys and girls.

This regular season concluded with Kent Roosevelt at the top of the Metro boys and girls divisions, and Garfield holding down first place in both the County boys and girls divisions.

But, as in previous years, anything can happen in the tournament.

Outstanding scores by individuals have been the norm this season.

Harry Illner demonstrated perfection when he rolled a 300-game for the Crestwood Red Devils.

But Illner isn’t the only one to receive recognition for his excellent games.

Both Chelsi Moore and Kelly Russomanno, members of the Garfield G-Men, are on the Ohio High School Bowling state honor roll, each for their 269-games.

Liz Persuhn of Kent Roosevelt also made the state’s honor list when she rolled a 265-game, as did Rough Riders boys team member Jon Miller, who rolled an outstanding 288-game during the season.

It will be an interesting afternoon as the schools in the PTC, for the first time, are divided by not only girls and boys, but also by Metro and County Divisions.

The overall PTC champion will be crowned by combining their regular-season finish and the tournament finish.

County Division

It’s not surprising that the G-Men are at the top of the County Division standings.

Garfield has been the premier program in the conference for years, racking up victory after victory.

This year has been no different, with the Garfield girls at the top of the standings with a perfect 8-0 record.

In second place is the newest team in the conference, the Woodridge Bulldogs, finishing the regular season with a 6-2 record.

Woodridge may have been the surprise of the conference. The first-year team gave several teams a scare and beat long-established teams to work its way into the runner-up spot.

The East Canton girls are in third place with a 3-5 record, but are unable to compete in the tournament, leaving Windham at 2-6 and Rootstown at 1-7 as the remaining teams seeking the tournament title.

While the Garfield girls are celebrating another successful season, the Garfield boys team is at the top of the County Division with a 7-1 record.

Garfield has made Sky Lanes more than its home — it has been unbeatable in Garrettsville.

The team’s only loss this season was to Woodridge, in its first year as a member of the PTC. Woodridge defeated the G-Men at the Bulldogs’ home of Legend Lanes.

Today, the two teams meet on neutral territory.

The East Canton boys tied for second place with Woodridge with a 5-3 record and now also seek an opportunity to move up in the standings with its very young team.

Rootstown (3-5) and Windham (0-8) round out the County Division teams.

Metro Division

The Rough Rider boys have been a team that everyone has chased since the inception of PTC bowling.

This year, the Rough Riders have another premier team, with a solid lineup that can beat opponents by a wide margin.

However, the Rough Riders (7-1) hit a bump in the road at the beginning of the season when they lost to the Crestwood Red Devils at Sky Lanes in their first match of the year.

Crestwood now stands in second place with a 5-3 record, and its goal is certainly to upset Roosevelt again with a chance at a share or possible outright win of the Metro Division championship.

Rounding out the Metro Division are Springfield (4-4), Coventry (3-5) and Ravenna (1-7).

For the girls in the Metro Division, the Rough Riders have been the team to beat all season. Not one team in the Metro accomplished that task, with Roosevelt finishing the regular season at 8-0.

Three teams are tied for second place: Ravenna, Coventry and Crestwood, all with 4-4 records, while Springfield is in fifth place with an 0-8 record.

Today’s event

The PTC Tournament begins today at 12:45 p.m., with warmups and announcements before action gets under way at 1 p.m.

Spectators are welcome. Admission fee is $5 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens. Preschoolers are admitted free.

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Contact Susan Jenior at sjenior@recordpub.com