Oklahoma Team Shoots 3,720, Shatters 111 Year Old USBC Open Record

1,255 – 1,188 – 1,277 = 3,720
USBC Open Championship
Team Record

RENO, Nev. – Even with a half game to go, there was little doubt Artistic Expressions 1 of Oklahoma City was going to finish the day atop the standings at the 2014 United States Bowling Congress Open Championships with the highest score in 111 years of tournament history.

The only question being asked at the National Bowling Stadium was how high the bar would be raised. The group answered with a 1,277 final game and 3,720 team tally, 159 pins better than Motion Plus Lanes of Cudahy, Wis., which previously held the lead and top spot in the record books with 3,561.

[custom_frame_right shadow=”on”][/custom_frame_right]Artistic Expressions 1 started Monday’s team event with games of 1,255 and 1,188 before closing with the sixth-highest game in USBC Open Championships competition. Team Turbo Grips of Fort Wayne, Ind., owns the single-game record of 1,318, rolled just three days ago.

“We knew that if we worked together, eventually this was going to happen,” said Pete Thomas, who is the veteran of the team with 16 tournament appearances. “We practiced on the shot this morning, we practiced a few times during the week and we put in the work. We made some good decisions and great ball choices. Before we started, I told them it was an honor to bowl with them. I knew it would be something special. But this special? No one could have predicted that.”

Ted Pritts led the way for Artistic Expressions 1 on Monday with a 768 series and was followed by Thomas (758), Xeno Garcia (752), Jimmy McMartin (736) and Anthony Lavery-Spahr (706).

“It’s just an amazing feeling,” Pritts said. “To be a part of something so special is a testament to my teammates and the things we were able to do. For it all to come together for us is incredible. If somebody beats it, we’ll all fly out here and shake their hands.”

The group will return to the lanes at the NBS across two squads Tuesday, with McMartin and Garcia bowling doubles and singles at 2 p.m. EDT and Lavery-Spahr, Pritts and Thomas hoping for a chance to complete a Team All-Events run at 1:30 a.m. Eastern/10:30 p.m. PDT.

Janz H.I. of Beaver Dam, Wis., leads Team All-Events this year with a 10,363 total, while Pollard’s Bowl of Versailles, Ind., has held the Team All-Events record of 10,425 since the 1996 event in Salt Lake City.

“It’s like a dream come true,” Thomas said. “To know that we’ve done something that no other team has done at Nationals, and by more than 100 pins, is beyond belief. We’re excited for what the future holds. This team will be together for a long time, will continue to be humble about it and be excited for what’s going to happen in the next few weeks.”

Matt Cannizzaro and Aaron Smith
USBC Communications