June 13, 2024 Nolan Hughes

Seventeen-year-old Gianna boasts a bowling résumé that could put some touring pros to shame. She completed her latest triumph not far from her hometown of Channahon, Ill. as she sprinted out to a commanding lead in the Women’s Classic division of the PBA LBC National Championships.

Brandolino kicked off her jam-packed summer — her final summer as a high schooler — by firing 1,396 for her six-game series. With games of 257, 185, 216, 224, 235 and 279, she surpassed previous leader Natalie Dutton by 185 pins.

“You go in with a gameplan to get to the pocket every time, pick up your spares and hopefully strike a lot. It happened today,” Brandolino said in a post-tournament interview.

Brandolino competed on the second of seven weekends of the second annual PBA LBC National Championships. She said she opted to bowl in the Women’s Classic division instead of Girls Jr. Handicap division because she wanted to challenge herself more.

“It would be more beneficial to learn and grow when going against the women instead of the girls, so I decided to just throw myself out there, do what I do and hope for the best,” she said.

While the stars of the PWBA Tour, including last year’s Women’s Classic finalists Liz Johnson, Danielle McEwan and Verity Crawley, have yet to shoe up at Bowlero Mount Prospect, Brandolino has put herself in prime position to book a trip to Portland, Maine this fall.

The top-two finishers in the Women’s Classic division will advance to the PBA LBC National Championship Clash, which will take place at the iconic Bayside Bowl. 

If her score holds up, Brandolino sits in position to bring home the division’s guaranteed $5,000 first-place prize. Of course, the Jacksonville State University commit would accept the winnings via a SMART Scholarship.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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In addition to dominance across the Midwest— which includes five Illinois State Pepsi titles, 12 Storm Youth Championship titles and 20 Elite Youth Tour titles — Brandolino won the 2022 USA Bowling team national championship and the 2023 U18G Junior Gold Championships title.

Brandolino, a four-time PBA Junior Regional champion, finished as the runner-up in the PBA Junior Girls National Championships earlier this year. She earned the top seed and advanced to the televised championship by firing 290 in the position round.

Last Saturday, Brandolino displayed her signature clutch gene again as she closed her PBA LBC National Championships round with 279.

“I shot 230 the game before. It was a pretty good game; I just missed a spare in there — whoopsies,” she said. “We just kept the same gameplan, kept going and the pins fell.” 

Brandolino’s busy summer continues this week as she competes in the U.S. Women’s Open. In July, she will represent Junior Team USA in the International Bowling Federation World Youth Championships, which will be held in Incheon, Korea.

Elsewhere in the PBA LBC National Championships, Bobby Kunimura overtook the lead in the Men’s Handicap division with a score of 1,567 (1,447 scratch). Kunimura shot 287 in Game 5 with strikes on his first 10 shots.

Kris Prather averaged more than 254 to shoot 1,529 to seize the early pole position in the PBA Exempt division.

More information on the PBA LBC National Championship tournament is available here.

Complete standings are available here.

PBA LBC National Championship Clash — advancers as of June 9

Open Classic

  1. Matthew Mesecher, 1,436
  2. Michael Fitzgerald, 1,420

Women’s Classic

  1. Gianna Brandolino, 1,396
  2. Natalie Dutton, 1,211

PBA Exempt

  1. Kris Prather, 1,529
  2. Jason Sterner, 1,299

Senior Classic

  1. Dave Hedin, 1,280
  2. Mark Everly, 1,279 (top super senior)

Men’s Handicap

  1. Bobby Kunimura 1,567 (1,447 scratch)

Women’s Handicap

  1. Kahlen Ranson, 1,451 (1,121 scratch)

Boys Jr. Handicap

  1. Garrett Beyer, 1,461 (1,071 scratch)

Girls Jr. Handicap

  1. Brianna Merner, 1,347 (1,131 scratch)