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47 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, January 24, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 10, 2004 Pete Weber was a blur in his first-round match against Marshall Holman on Thursday. Weber defeated Holman, 4-0, in a best-of-seven pairing. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli Disappearing act Defending champ Pete Weber sweeps hometown favorite Marshall Holman in first-round match By TIM TROWER Mail Tribune There was no magic. Marshall Holman, whose sleight of hand had produced more than a few memorable bowling moments, saw his hopes of an upset in the Earl Anthony Medford Classic go poof! Thursday in the first round of match play at Lava Lanes. Defending champion Pete Weber swept the hometown favorite, 4-0, in a best-of-seven marquee pairing between Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Famers. Oh, there were near upsets aplenty — a record 14 round-of-64 matches went to seven games — it just didn’t happen in this one. Advertisement Kevin Croucher, the Grants Pass bowling center owner who competes on the Northwest Region tour, was responsible for the most dramatic match of the day, taking No. 3 seed Patrick Allen the distance before ultimately losing on a missed single-pin spare. And Shawn Copeland threatened to become the second amateur qualifier this season to knock off No. 1 Walter Ray Williams Jr., claiming the first two games before Williams roared back for a 4-2 victory. Other top players to move on to this morning’s round of 32 were Brad Angelo, Chris Barnes, Mika Koivuniemi, Tommy Jones, Brian Voss and Danny Wiseman. Holman, who received the commissioner’s exemption, and Weber clearly formed the match of choice at the outset. The good friends bantered throughout their contest, an anomaly in this mano a mano format. That might have changed had it gone longer and become more intense, but the opportunity didn’t arise. "Me and Marshall, I’ve known him since I was 12," said Weber, who was received warmly by the Holman partisans. "We’ve had close matches, and we’ve had real blowout matches. To me, it was no different tonight." The first two games didn’t go down to the wire, the last two did. In the opener, Holman, working on a strike, opened in the 10th frame and lost 229-206. He started the second game with three strikes, but three opens in a four-frame span did him in in a 225-186 defeat. There was more drama in the latter two games before Weber closed Holman out, 227-224 and 224-216, respectively. "It’s certainly not an embarrassment to lose to Pete Weber," said Holman. A one-league-a-week bowler now, the 22-time tour winner was philosophical. "You get out of life what you put into it," said Holman, "and in that regard, I got exactly what I deserved." What disappointed him was the way he finished. After Weber won the third game by three with three strikes in the 10th, Holman was in position to apply pressure in the final frame of Game 4. But, working on a strike, the ball came off his hand poorly and missed the head pin altogether, knifing through the right side and leaving a five-pin washout. "In my prime," said Holman in obvious incredulity, "I at least hit the pocket. "I play a shot where I really had to snap it, and it came off my hand really soft. It didn’t have any authority going into the pocket. It just hung there." Weber thought it was a good ball, too. "I was hoping he’d get it and prolong the match," said Weber. "It was an honor and a privilege to bowl Marshall in Medford." Croucher advanced through the pre-tournament qualifier on Wednesday and didn’t seem to present a threat to Allen. "I’ll tell you what," said Allen, "I thought he was the easiest draw of the five who made it yesterday. But he bowled well." Asked if he felt fortunate to win, Allen replied: "Very." Croucher won two of the first three games, 182-180 and 244-236, then took Game 4 in a roll-off after a 192-all tie. Allen recovered to win the next two and set up a tense Game 7. Croucher doubled in the sixth frame to take a 10-pin lead, then went spare, strike to remain in command. But in the ninth, he left a solid 10 pin, then missed it right for an open. He earlier missed two 10 pins to the left and corrected for it. "It caught up with me," he said. Had he picked it up, Croucher would have only needed a spare in the 10th to advance. "I missed a horrible spare earlier," said Allen. "His was just at a more critical time." Croucher still could win if he threw two strikes in the 10th. The first appeared to be just that, but the 9 pin refused to fall. Final score: 191-189. "I threw a great ball and it didn’t go down," said Croucher. "That’s the way it goes. You win some, you lose some." He earlier left "two solid corner pins. Otherwise, I win before it gets to the 10th. They were two great shots, they just didn’t pan out." His magic had run its course, too. Reach sports editor Tim Trower at 776-4479, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? 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