Junior Team USA advances to medal round at 2022 U21 World Championships

Aaron Smith

June 27, 2022

HELSINGBORG, Sweden - A day after missing out on the medal round in doubles at the 2022 International Bowling Federation U21 World Championships, Junior Team USA got back on track Monday to make an impact in team competition at Olympia Bowling.

Both the men's and women's team advanced to the semifinals, each finishing as the top seed in their match-play group.

On the men's side, Junior Team USA - Tyrell Ingalls, Alec Keplinger, Spencer Robarge and Julian Salinas - will face Australia in their semifinal match, with the winner in the best-of-three Baker format taking on the winner of Saudi Arabia and Czech Republic.

In the women's division, the team of Mabel Cummins, Jillian Martin, Paige Peters and Victoria Varano will go up against Sweden in the semifinals. The other match will feature Singapore against Korea.

Junior Team USA put on a dominating performance in match play in the men's division after qualifying in third place for its 10 Baker games Sunday out of 33 countries.

The quartet went undefeated in Group B competition, posting a 7-0 record and collecting 21 points. Czech Republic and Singapore tied for second place in Group B with 15 points, with Czech Republic advancing through a one-game roll-off, 226-220.

Saudi Arabia and Australia tied for the top spot in Group A for the men's division with 15 points. Saudi Arabia earned the top seed for Group A based on their qualifying position.

Pinfall dropped after qualifying, with the 16 teams being split into a pair of match-play groups based on their seeding. Each team bowled seven round-robin matches, with three points being awarded for a win, one point for a tie and zero points for a loss. The top two teams from each group advanced to the medal round.

The Junior Team USA women also finished qualifying in third place to advance and won their first five matches in Group B. Although they lost the final two games Monday, their 5-2 record was enough to maintain the top spot and finish in a tie with Korea at 15 points.

As the No. 3 seed in qualifying, Junior Team USA finished as the No. 1 seed in Group B to set up the match against Sweden.

In Group A, Singapore finished as the top team with a 5-1-1 record for 16 points. Sweden went 5-2, collecting 15 points to advance.

Tuesday's schedule at Olympia Bowling will consist of qualifying and match play for mixed team, before each medal round takes place Wednesday.

Competition at the 2022 IBF U21 World Championships consists of singles, doubles, team and mixed team events. For more information, visit Bowling.Sport.