September 25, 2021 Regional Director

Fitchburg, Wis. – Kyle Sherman of O’Fallon, Mo. defeated Tim Gruendler of St. Louis, Mo.. An all Missouri championship match was close, until an error by Gruendler in the ninth frame, opened the Gateway Arch for Sherman to close with a 196-165 victory on Saturday.

Sherman, who qualified in seventh place, posted a perfect 6-0 match play record. In the Semifinal Round, he defeated Ryan Lakota of Shorewood, Ill. with a clutch double in the tenth frame for the 219-215 victory. Gruendler was the second qualifier and had a 5-3-0 record. In the Semifinal Round, he defeated Russ Oviatt of Sioux Falls, S.D. with a 237-169 win.

This is Sherman’s fourth regional title, the first since 2017. That year he won the Southwest Regional event in Oklahoma City, Ok. The other two were in the hometown area of St. Charles, Mo. in 2014 and in Hoffman Estates, Ill. in 2015. The win earned Sherman $2,000 while Gruendler earned $1,100 as the runner-up.

PBA TEN PIN ALLEY OPEN
Ten Pin Alley, Fitchburg, WI, Saturday

Championship Round: Sherman defeated Gruendler, 196-165.

Semifinal Round (losers earned $800):
Sherman defeated Lakota, 219-215.
Gruendler defeated Oviatt, 237-169.

Round 2 (best of three games, losers eliminated and earned $675 each):
Russ Oviatt, Sioux Falls, S.D., defeated Kevin McCune, 2-1.
Tim Gruendler defeated S-Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., 2-1.
Ryan Lakota, Shorewood, Ill., defeated Jonathan Schalow, 2-1.
Sherman defeated Nick Kruml, Downers Grove, Ill., 2-0.

Top 4 qualifiers received a Round 1 bye

Round 1 (best of three games, losers eliminated and earned $575 each): Tim Gruendler, St. Louis, Mo., defeated Chris Hill, Franklin, Wis., 2-1.
Jonathan Schalow, Evansville, Wis., defeated Brad Miller, Lee’s Summit, Mo., 2-0.
Kyle Sherman, O’Fallon, Mo. defeated Shaun Taliaferro, Waunakee, Wis., 2-0.

Other Casher:
13th place – N-William Hibbard, Indianapolis, Ind., 1,449, $450
15th place – S-Chris Gibbons, Madison, Wis., 1,439, $275

S-designates senior entry
N-designates non-member entry

Editor’s Note: A photo of the winner has been posted in PBA's Media Gallery