Bowling: Shayna makes Queens finals in US

Finally, the fortunes of Singapore's bowlers in the United States have taken a turn for the better.

Shayna Ng is seeded second in the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Queens Championships step-ladder finals, which will take place at the Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center in Nevada this morning (Singapore time).

The reigning AMF World Cup champion finished the 15-game qualification round as the top kegler, but completed the match-play phase in second place after losing to Diana Zavjalova 688-628 in the final round of that stage.

As such, the Latvian will be the top seed in this morning's finals. Five players qualified for the step-ladder finals in the US$103,500 ($130,000) tournament.

The other three are Americans Leanne Hulsenberg, Jennifer Higgins and Lynda Barnes.

Jazreel Tan missed out on the knockout phase when she finished sixth, with compatriot Geraldine Ng two places behind.

Daphne Tan (21st), Cherie Tan (36th), Bernice Lim (47th), Jasmine Yeong-Nathan (55th) and Kristel Oh (102nd) also competed in the tournament.

Ng's showing at the Queens will come as some consolation for the Republic's women's team, who did not fare well at the World Championships at the same location, which ended last Saturday.

While the women's team clinched a silver at the World Women's Championships in Hong Kong two years ago, they managed only a seventh-place finish at the World Championships. In contrast, Malaysia clinched a joint-bronze in the same event, which was won by South Korea.

Lim, 21, also finished seventh in the women's all-events, while Tan, 23, finished seventh in the women's masters.

Said Ng, who turns 24 next month: "We've tried our best at the Worlds last week and it didn't really turn out that well, so this week everyone is putting in her best to make this trip worthwhile.

"This is my second time bowling in the Queens, so if I could win, it would be a good thing for me and everyone at home."

But the Singaporean will be up against an in-form Zavjalova, USBC Hall of Famers Hulsenberg and Barnes, as well as former Team USA kegler Higgins.

Zavjalova said: "I struggled at the start of the week, but I figured it out by the time match-play started, and that was the perfect time.

"Once I found my look and started winning matches, my confidence was through the roof."

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