Eight national champions were crowned Saturday as one of the biggest bowling events in the world - the Junior Gold Championships - concluded at Cedarvale Lanes in Minnesota.
Nearly 3,500 young bowlers competed across 10 centers in the Greater Minneapolis area, with titles decided in boys’ and girls’ U12, U14, U16 and U18 divisions.
The championship began with four four-game qualifying blocks from Monday through Thursday. Players who survived the first cut moved into additional Advancers Rounds before the leading bowlers reached double-elimination match play.
Each bracket match was decided by total pinfall over two games. The final three players in every division advanced to Saturday’s stepladder finals that aired live on BowlTV and on Bowling TV, where the top seed had to be defeated twice for the title.
Clayton Washington and Madison Smith Win U18 Titles
Clayton Washington of Midlothian, Virginia, won the U18 Boys national title after defeating Brett Biondo of Carpentersville, Illinois.
Biondo reached the title match by shooting 278 in a win over Will Winkelbauer. He then defeated Washington 236-214 in the opening championship game, forcing a second match.
The deciding game remained close until the final frames. Washington moved ahead with strikes in the eighth and ninth before closing out a 245-234 victory.
On the girls’ side, Madison Smith of Elmira, New York, defeated top seed Ashlin Teves of Machesney Park, Illinois, twice to claim the U18 Girls title.
Smith won the opening game 239-217 to force a deciding match. She trailed late in Game 2 but struck on her final three shots and finished with 209.
Teves needed a strike on her first shot in the 10th frame to win but left the 7-pin. Smith took the title 209-207.
Harper Burnett and Makayla Pressley Win U16 Titles
Harper Burnett of Jackson, Missouri, claimed the U16 Boys title after defeating Ryan Carmichael of South Bend, Indiana, 237-191 in the title match. The No. 1 seed Burnett struck six times through the opening eight frames and remained in control throughout the game.
Carmichael reached the final after defeating Lucas Drisdel 257-166.
Meanwhile, Makayla Pressley of Vale, North Carolina, won the first U16 Girls national title.
Candace Van Tine of Spokane, Washington, defeated Pressley 217-189 in the opening championship game, forcing a second match.
Pressley fell behind after two early open frames but recovered with four consecutive strikes from the sixth through ninth frames. She completed the comeback with a 202-173 victory.
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Arryn Odujebe and Averie Bourne Claim U14 Trophies
Arryn Odujebe of Manassas, Virginia, and Averie Bourne of Kansas City, Missouri, won the inaugural U14 titles.
On the boys’ side, Odujebe defeated top seed Treavor Mason of Mabank, Texas, twice. He won the opening game 245-224. He then started the deciding match with five strikes and held off Mason for a 220-187 victory.
Odujebe had earlier defeated Nehemiah Keefer 194-182 in the opening stepladder match.
In the girls’ event, Averie Bourne entered the stepladder as the No. 1 seed and defeated Gabby Jackson of Pittsburgh 172-140.
She remained clean through the first seven frames and took control after Jackson recorded two early open frames.
Gleason Garske and Stevie Newton Take U12 Titles
Gleason Garske of Spokane, Washington, won the U12 Boys title after a two-game final against Colin Park of San Jose, California.
Park won the opening game 199-191 to force a deciding match. Garske responded by building an early lead in Game 2 and sealed the championship with a strike in the 10th frame. The final score was 192-170.
Meanwhile, Stevie Newton of Hanover, Pennsylvania, made her second consecutive Junior Gold stepladder, but this time she went all the way by winning the U12 Girls national title.
Newton, who finished third in the division in 2025, entered this year’s final as the top seed. She opened the title match with six consecutive strikes and defeated Lila Bollman of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, 233-148.
Twenty-Two Athletes Selected for Team USA
The conclusion of the Junior Gold Championships also decided 22 athletes for Junior Team USA and Futures Team USA in 2027.
The Junior Team USA boys are Brett Biondo, Emmanuel Guevara, Braden McDonough, Spiros Schenk, Kai Strothers and Clayton Washington.
The Junior Team USA girls are Bella Castillo, Tori Franklin, Kyndallynn Hood, Taylor Kretz, Madison Smith and Ashlin Teves.
The Futures Team USA boys are Harper Burnett, Ryan Campbell, Ryan Carmichael, Miles Gordon and Jason Grothus of Bettendorf, Iowa.
The Futures Team USA girls are Emma Lester, Makayla Pressley, Autumn Strode, Laelah Tiquia and Candace Van Tine.
