Rollie Poitras has quite the record at one of the top bowling tournaments in Canada.
“I have been very lucky,” says the St. Paul bowler. “I have represented Alberta at the (Master Bowlers Association of Canada National Five-Pin Championship) three times and I have won gold each time. There have been some people that qualify for this tournament that never come away with a medal.”
Poitras earned his third national gold medal as a member of Alberta’s senior team in Burlington. The tournament was hosted from June 27 to July 3.
Making the third particular victory special was that friend and fellow St. Paul bowler, Marie Yuschyshyn, also played on the championship team.
“I do not get to play with Marie a lot, but we have known each other forever,” said Poitras. “She was such an inspiration for all of our team.”
“Rollie is such a good bowler,” said Yuschyshyn, a first-time gold medalist that made her second appearance at nationals. “He is so much fun to be around. It was special to be on his team at this tournament.”
Both St. Paul bowlers said it was also a pleasurable experience to spend time with the other members of Team Alberta. Making up the rest of Team Alberta was Glen Christensen of Calgary, Garth Knight of Medicine Hat, and Greg Gigliuk of Red Deer. Brian Rossetti of Calgary served as head coach.
Yuschyshyn credits the good camaraderie the teammates shared with each other as a factor in the team finishing at the top.
Team Alberta had to play 21 matches — three each against teams from seven other provinces — but they had the gold medal locked up prior their 20th matchup.
“Our coach came up to us and told us that no matter what would happen in our last two draws, we would win the gold medal,” says Yuschyshyn. “That was a really great feeling. There was no pressure.”
Unlike team competitions in other sports where it is possible for one team member to put his teammates on his or her back, each individual played a major role in determining how many points the team would accumulate.
Each member of Team Alberta was matched up against an individual from another provincial team. They played those opponents three times. Whichever bowler would beat their pins-over-average (POA) by the greatest margin in each game would earn points for their team.
Coming into this tournament Yuschyshyn’s POA was 138. While she averaged slightly less at 136 during the tournament, she was able to rack up an impressive 18-3 record during her matchup, which included a 10-game winning streak.
While most of her opponents came into the tournament with higher POA scores, most of them lost to Yuschyshyn due to them posting marks that were significantly below their usual average. Thirteen of Yuschyshyn’s opponents posted a score that was at least 20 points lower than their POA.
Yuschyshyn credits her consistency as playing a big factor in her posting the record she did.
Poitras came into this tournament with a POA of 239 – the best on Team Alberta. He came close to matching that total at nationals, earning an average score of 231.
Poitras was the victor in nine of his 21 matchups. With a majority of his opponents entering this tournament with a POA significantly less than him, it was a much easier task for those opponents to exceed their average.
Singles Tournament
By virtue of being the highest scoring player at the Masters Senior Provincial tournament this past March, Poitras had an opportunity to represent Alberta in the seniors’ single competition.
Poitras ended up finishing sixth in the eight-team tournament with 18 points. For every win he earned two points. He won nine of his 21 matchups.
He did the team and singles competition at the same time. While his performance against one provincial opponent would determine whether he would earn a point for his team, his score against another player on that provincial team would determine if he would get two points in the individual competition.
“For me, the singles tournament provided me an opportunity to see how I match up against the rest of Canada,” said Poitras. “The team event was my primary focus. This was a nice bonus.”
Looking ahead
Both Poitras and Yuschyshyn are hoping to qualify for the 2016 national tournament in Surrey, B.C. Yuschyshyn made her other nationals appearance there in 2007.
The competitive bowling season begins again in September. Both players will have to first qualify for provincials by participating in at least three of the local Masters’ events.
“If you are over your average score after the third masters event, you automatically qualify for provincials,” explained Yuschyshyn. “If not, you have to post over your average in the fourth event to qualify.”
Until then, both of them will be taking a break from bowling.
“I am not going touch my bowling gear until September,” said Poitras. “It is good to take a break from it so you don’t get burnt out. I’ll be ready to go again in September to work towards hopefully qualifying for nationals.”
