CAMACHO, AGUILAR LEAD QUALIFYING ROUNDS

PRESS RELEASE – Duane Camacho and Erwin Aguilar claimed pole position during the qualifying rounds of the Budweiser King and Prince of the Lanes Grand Finals held at the Central Lanes Bowling Center.

Duane Camacho and David Esplana pose with their bowling winnings. (courtesy photo)

Camacho, Keith Guerrero and JD Castro occupied the top post for most of the qualifying rounds. After six hours of bowling and twelve games Camacho averaged 221 pins per game along with 100 bonus points for a 2752 total, 53 pins ahead of second-place Keith Guerrero who registered a total of 2699 pins including 70 bonus points. JD Castro landed in third place with 2655 pins winning seven of twelve matches for 70 bonus points while Jay Leon Guerrero occupied fourth on 2626 pins with 110 bonus points. Ricky Duenas and Dante Godoy rounded off the top six finalists with totals of 2558 and 2465 respectively edging out Many Tagle by four pins.

In the Prince division Erwin Aguilar held off Paul Kaneshiro with 1706 total pinfall to 1681. Lisa Duenas and the Amber San Augustin tied for third place with 1622 pins while Edward Sabedra edged out David Esplana 1609 to 1607 to round off the top six who proceeded to the elimination matches.

In the first elimination round of the King division, Dante Godoy mustered a late rally to upset third-seeded JD Castro 234 to 181. Fourth seed Jay Leon Guerrero held off a late rally by fifth seed Ricky Duenas to advance to the semi final round 222 to 187.

David Esplana ousted defending champion Lisa Duenas 180 +11 pins handicap to 135+23 handicap while Edward Sabedra and Amber San Agustin went extra frames as Sabedra eliminated San Agustin by one pin 216 to 215 to advance to the Prince of the Lanes semi final round.

David Esplana continued his winning ways in the semi-final round as he knocked off top seed Erwin Aguilar two games to one 198+11 to 162+15 and 188+11 to 165+15 to move into the final match. Second seed Paul Kaneshiro advance to the semi final round with a 189+26 to 162+29 route over fifth-seed Edward Sabedra.

Both lower seed in the King of the lane division forced a second game against the higher seeded opponent in the semi-final round. Dante Godoy edged out top seed Duane Camacho 209-200 while Jay Leon Guerrero slipped past second seed Keith Guerrero 241-237. Camacho returned the favor in the second game pounding the lanes to finally oust Godoy 222-189 while Leon Guerrero purged Guerrero 196 to 173 to set up the final match.

Second seed Paul Kaneshiro took advantage of missed opportunities by sixth seed Dave Esplana along with a fifteen pin handicap advantage to claim the first game of the championship match 164+26 to 171+11. David Esplana came back in the second game from an early deficit as he put together a turkey in the final frames to force a deciding game. Kaneshiro opened from the eighth frame until the final stanza which cost him the game against the lower seed 148+26 to 191+11. David Esplana controlled the rubber match from the get go as Kaneshiro’s sparing woes continued. Leading by 22 pins going into the second half of the match Kaneshiro cut into the lead with strikes on the sixth and seventh frames. Esplana kept his cool until the seventh frame then unleased the closing statement of the match with a three bagger to claim the Prince of the Lanes 2012 title 203+11 to 152+26.

The island’s premiere keglers battled for the first place cash prize, trophy and crown in a rematch of last year’s championship. Leon Guerrero got out to a fast start but encountered difficulties mid game as Camacho took a six pin lead after six frames. A 4-9-10 split by Camacho opened the door for Leon Guerrero in the ninth frame, but a pocket 7-10 split cost him the opportunity as he finished with a 193 game. Camacho took advantage of the opening as he struck out on the tenth frame to claim a 1-0 match advantage with a 207 game. In the second game, Leon Guerrero built a 32 pin lead going into the sixth frame, but another error in the ninth frame saw his lead dissipate as Camacho came from behind with a five bagger to seal the game, claim the 2012 championship crown and become the first back to back champion of the 12 year event.