Week #10 is now in the history books and with it came a severe tightening of the league standings. With first place having been owned – with the exception of a quick flip-flop in Week #3 – by one team, the kegler collective has been slowly chipping away at the league leaders week after week. Now, with six weeks remaining, the gap has been narrowed to a single game. In a rematch of the 7th and 8th place position round battle, Sexual Chocolate and Ballz Out faced off once again. This time around, the Chocolates kept the Ballz in. With Jake Parrott and his 442 series, Sexual Chocolate narrowly missed completing a clean sweep over their opponents and ending up with a 3-1 matchup victory. Sub Bryan Mohr's 427 series was the highest output for Ballz Out, who came away with a 6-pin win in Game #2 to secure their lone win of the night. Sexual Chocolate hops one spot up into 7th while Ballz Out returns to 8th place.Oh, how the mighty have fallen...and continue to fall. At the midway mark, FTOP had secured a six game lead over the rest of the league and was looking to cruise in the second half to a title. Since then, however, they have been getting their asses handed to them and the lead has quickly evaporated. This week, the Mayan Apocalypse descended down upon them and came away with a 3-1 win. With lead off bowler Scott Murdock (yes, you read that correctly) leading the way with his 531 series, the Mayans also nearly came away with a sweep if not for a close finish in Game #2 that ended in a 6-pin victory for FTOP. The F's were led by David Codding and his 634 series. Despite the losses, FTOP remains in 1st while the Mayan Apocalypse climbs one spot into 3rd place.After bragging about a new bowling ball addition to the Pocket Pounders repertoire, it was Steve Kiernan's old ball – and his 605 series – that led the way to a 3-1 defeat of the reigning league champions. The Turkey Hunters, despite a Game #2 blowout over their opponents, were unable to carry that momentum into Game #3 and dropped one spot down into 4th place. Dennis "Pops" Laube put up the highest series for the Turkeys, ending his night with a 516 series in the losing effort. The Pocket Pounders remain in 2nd place and now sit a single game out of first.It's been a while someone has earned both the Most Valuable Bowler and the #1 Power Ranked bowler nods and walked off the lanes having lost the matchup but it happened to Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends' Seth Gunderson. After having dropped Games #1 and #2 to opponents Split It and Hit It – led once again by anchor Dennis Blake and his 515 series – Gunderson's 592 series kept The Belt from being blanked down on Lanes 47 & 48. Neither team moved in the league standings, with The Belt remaining in 5th and Split It and Hit It in 6th place.Bowlers watching Dennis "Pops" Laube demanding to be let into The 200 Club for being close enough with his 199 include: David Codding (202, 234), John Boren (216), Neil Rieger (209, 203), Ryan Doll (222), Scott Murdock (200), Seth Gunderson (236), and Steve Kiernan (204, 203).The Tournament of Champions kept the status quo this week with each division continuing to be lead by last week's leaders. Division #1 is all Carl Goetz's (19) with John Boren (13) behind him. Aubrey Moren (19) leads Division #2 with Phil Schroeder (10) still in second. Division #3 is all Andy McLeod's (20) but Dennis Blake (13) moves into the spot behind him while Division #4's Teresa Deterding (23) continues to keep ahead of Cliff Barendsen (20). What do you mean you haven't voted for this season's Hall of Fame nominees?!? Come on...what are you, lazy?!? Every day that you do not vote for a nominee, God kills a kitten. I'm just sayin'.See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Seth Gunderson Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Seth Gunderson Runner Up: Anita Osthoff	#1 H2H BOWLER Steve Kiernan Runner Up: Seth Gunderson
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "I can't tell a person's ethnicity at a distance." Scott Murdock, upon spying a blatantly obvious African American woman several lanes down that he mistook for Sabrina Gray.

With the position round in the rearview mirror and the league officially half over, everyone faced their Week #1 opponents Tuesday night as the schedule began anew. With only exception, each lower ranked team handed out an ass whoopin' to their higher ranked opponents as the league standings shuffled once again. Only ten games separate the eight teams – meaning anyone could still take the title this season over the remaining seven weeks. After being swept off the lanes last week, the Turkey Hunters regrouped in an effort to get back to their winning ways. Despite a 10th frame meltdown in which opponents Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends came away with an 18-pin victory in Game #1, the Turkeys reversed their own fortunes – compliments of this week's #1 Power Ranked bowler Aubrey Moren and his career-high 667 series – to win the showdown 3-1. The Belt's anchor Bill Krejci put up the second highest series of the night (606) but only managed the Game #1 win. With the victories, the Turkey Hunters climb two spots into 3rd while The Belt slips a notch down into 5th place.Word on the street was that Split It and Hit It's anchor Dennis Blake had the game figured out. Shooting his third career 200+ game to start off the night to easily take Game #1, Blake seemed to be the man to watch as he shot his 520 series. Yet, the Pocket Pounders had other plans. Down two bowlers, Ryan Doll and Rob Kaszuba combined to take the remaining games in a 3-1 matchup victory. Anchor Doll led the team with his 534 series. The wins were a welcome change for the Pounders, who remain in 2nd but have cut the gap from first by half. Split It and Hit It, still trying to regain their first half magic, remain in 6th place by total pins.While most of us know that the world will end in December according to the Mayan calendar, very few would have predicted that the 8th place team Sexual Chocolate would outright clobber the recently surging Mayan Apocalypse. With this weeks' Most Valuable Bowler Teresa Deterding leading the way with her 488 series, the Chocolates crushed their opponents in a clean 4-0 sweep. Carl Goetz led the Mayans with his 579 series but finds his team slipping one spot into 4th place. Despite the four victories, Sexual Chocolate remains put in 8th place.When your team is six games up over the entire league fresh out off the position round, generally you look to extend that lead. This simply wasn't in the cards for current league leaders FTOP. To celebrate absent bowler Dave Winger's birthday, Ballz Out decided to blow out FTOP like candles on a birthday cake. With en fuego roller Cliff Barendsen leading the way with his second consecutive impressive over-average series (shooting a 500 this week), Ballz Out took each game in the 10th frame and never let FTOP snatch a single come-from-behind victory. Lead off bowler John Boren led FTOP with a 596 series but received no help from the rest of his teammates. Despite the wins and losses, neither team moved spots in the standings with FTOP remaining at the top of the heap in 1st and Ballz Out staying put in 7th place.Bowlers ending better than the St. Louis Cardinals and hanging out at The 200 Club this week include: Angela Bradford (209), Aubrey Moren (223, 254), Bill Krejci (202, 213), Carl Goetz (202), Dennis Blake (203), John Boren (216, 201), and Pat Searcy (224).And speaking of Pat Searcy, he and five other bowlers – namely David Codding, Demond Robinson, Janelle (Laube) Lamar, Jason Carpio, and Seth Gunderson – would very much appreciate it if you would vote for them as they each try to make their way into the GutterAlley Hall of Fame. Voting is now open and will remain so until the end of Week #15, just before the Finals. What are you waiting for?!? Get in there and vote!The Tournament of Champions continues on without very little change in the current top seeds in any division. Carl Goetz (19) is still the top dog in Division #1, with John Boren (12) holding onto the second spot. Division #2 is still represented with the 1-2 punch of Aubrey Moren (19) and Phil Schroeder (10), respectively. Andy McLeod (20) remains atop Division #3 while AJ Hofmann (10) makes his move to tie Dennis Blake (10) in the second spot. Division #4's eternal leader Teresa Deterding (22) may soon find herself in second place as Cliff Barendsen (20) moves right on her tail.Remember, voting for this season's Hall of Fame inductees is now open. Please be sure to vote! It only takes a minute.And, lastly, if you are still feeling the sting from last night's battle, perhaps this shot of Jonathan Vigliaturo will cheer you up slightly:
See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Teresa Deterding Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Aubrey Moren Runner Up: Teresa Deterding	#1 H2H BOWLER Bill Krejci Runner Up: Aubrey Moren
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "So let me get this straight, to get nominated for the Hall of Fame you have to get swept by the 2nd to last place team?" Cliff Barendsen, after absolutely destroying David Codding and team.

Kicking off in the Spring 2011 season, our bowling community collectively cast its votes for the inaugural class of enshrinees to the GutterAlley Hall of Fame. These initial four bowlers were tasked with carrying on the Hall's enshrinement duties, promising that one new bowler would make his or her way to join them at the end of every season going forward. We are happy to say that the tradition is about to continue for a fourth time to welcome in the seventh inductee. The GutterAlley Hall of Fame Screening Committee is proud to announce the names of the six candidates up for enshrinement this season – David Codding, Demond Robinson, Janelle (Laube) Lamar, Jason Carpio, Pat Searcy, and Seth Gunderson.Each of these six bowlers, in his or her own way, has made an impact on the league over the years. It will now be up to you to cast your votes to send one person to join AB, Scoot, Freda, Ken, Carl, and – most recently – Bob in the Hall.Every member of the bowling community that has an active account on GutterAlley.com will be assessed a number of votes based upon his or her tenure within the league. Bowlers who have not yet completed a full season are ineligible to vote for the Hall of Fame candidates. Bowlers who have completed 1-2 full seasons are allowed one vote. Bowlers who have completed 3-4 season are allowed two votes. Bowlers who have completed 5+ seasons are allowed three votes. Hall of Famers are allowed four. Voters are not required to cast all of their available votes.Voting starts today and shall remain open until the week before the Finals (Week 15 - December 4th, 2012).For your convenience, we have prepared a page about each nominee so that you can get to know them better and see their influence on our league both on and off the lanes: Read the rest of this entry »

The Fall 2012 season is, without a doubt, the highest scoring session in GutterAlley history: we've seen our first perfect game, a 299, two 700+ series, two 690+ series, and the average average this season is the highest over the course of our twenty-six seasons (157.9). The position round was the best opportunity for teams to flex their muscles and try to edge in on the leads of their closest competitors. In the end, three teams came away with sweeps over their opponents just ahead of them in the league standings. The stage is set now for what will more than likely be an interesting second half. The battle between the top two teams in the standings started off with the Pocket Pounders taking Game #1 over the league leading FTOP, compliments of Steve Kiernan's 235 game. Kiernan would go on to lead the Pounders with a 635 series. Fortunately for FTOP, John Boren was able to put on his cape despite the absence of two of his teammates (some would argue his third teammate was absent as well) to get his team back on track with a Game #2 victory. The final game came down to the wire with FTOP pulling out an 18-pin charity win in Game #3 and a 3-pin total pins victory to extend their record to 24-8 – a full six games ahead of the rest of the league, thanks to Boren's team leading 573 series. The Pocket Pounders, with their one win, manage to hold onto 2nd place for another week.Lanes 43 & 44 hosted the matchup between the Turkey Hunters and Mayan Apocalypse. Fresh off his 299 game last week, the Mayans' Carl Goetz continued his quest for a perfect game by shooting a 279 to start off his night (he threw 11 strikes in the game, with a 9 and a spare in the 3rd frame – so, once again, just one pin away from a perfect game). Goetz would go on to shoot the 4th highest series in league history with his 728 en route to an absolute blow out of the Turkey Hunters. To add to the beat down, lead off bowler Scott "Scooter J" Murdock hoisted his first 600+ series (a 617!) to earn Most Valuable Bowler honors this week. The Turkey's Aubrey Moren led his team with a 594 series in the losing effort, dropping two spots into 5th place. Mayan Apocalypse continue to prophesy doom while climbing one spot into 3rd place.Continuing the domineering performances was Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends taking all four games from rivals Split It and Hit It. Despite the team pre-bowling, The Belt's scores held up as the night progressed. Led by lead off bowler Jonathan Vigliaturo and his 551 series – the highest across both teams – Bobby Belt easily took Games #1 and #2 before Split It decided to Hit it. With a chance to steal Game #3, the guys fell shy in the 10th frame – despite anchor Dennis Blake's 494 series – and ended the night without a single victory. With their first sweep all season, Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends ascend the standings two spots into 4th place. The Splits split from 5th to take over 6th place.Second only to the Finals, the position round is the best time to roll your all time high game and series. No one took this to heart moreso than the Ballz Out's very own Cliff Barendsen. Having spent the entire first half of the league in 8th place, Cliff's breakout performance came at just the right time as his 601 series – including a 241 and 207 – to lead his team to a clean sweep over opponents Sexual Chocolate and moving into 7th place. It goes without saying that Cliff was this week's #1 Power Ranked bowler. What makes it even more impressive is that his performance is the second best in league history. Congratulations, Cliff! Sexual Chocolate's Teresa Deterding led her team with a 475 series but it simply wasn't enough to even come close to derailing the Ballz march up the standings. Sexual Chocolate falls one spot into 8th place.Bowlers crowding The 200 Club this week include: Aubrey Moren (224), Carl Goetz (279, 256), Cliff Barendsen (241, 207), John Boren (213), Jonathan Vigliaturo (207), Pat Searcy (203, 213), Phil Schroeder (203), Ryan Doll (201), Scott Murdock (203, 200, 214), and Steve Kiernan (235, 210).The Tournament of Champions continues to heat up as the season progresses. Carl Goetz (19) continues to lead Division #1 with John Boren (12) chasing him. Aubrey Moren (13) and Phil Schroeder (10) lead Division #2, respectively. Division #3 is all but owned by Andy McLeod (19) with Dennis Blake and Anita Osthoff (7 each) battling it out for second place. Teresa Deterding (19) still controls the top spot in Division #4 but Cliff Barendsen (14) is gaining ground. Nominations for this season's Hall of Fame enshrinee are now closed. Voting will officially open next week. See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Scott Murdock Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Cliff Barendsen Runner Up: Carl Goetz	#1 H2H BOWLER Scott Murdock Runner Up: Cliff Barendsen
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Dammit, quit talking about me rubbing my balls!" Steve Kiernan, responding to John Boren's trash talk.

Before this season even began, it was blatantly apparent that some really heavy hitters were going to be participating in this session. Names that dominate the league records and the Top 25 lists were slated to lace up their shoes to and face one another over the course of 17 weeks. What have we seen so far? A perfect game. A near perfect game. A 700+ series. The best part? This season isn't even half way over. There's no telling what else is in store.The first matchup of the night pitted the Pocket Pounders against opponents Sexual Chocolate. Both teams put up a great fight with almost every game coming down to the 10th frame in a showdown, with the Pocket Pounders come away with the win each time. Putting up the biggest numbers for the Pounders this week was Neil Rieger, who ended his night with a 586 series to lead the team to a clean sweep and improving to a 17-11 record and rising into 2nd place. Despite Sexual Chocolate's high rolling Jason Carpio and his 627 series, the team simply couldn't put together a winning combination and remain in 7th place. Down on Lanes 43 & 44, FTOP's John Boren wanted to make sure that the rest of the league knew that his was the team to be most feared when going up against them. Setting a season high with a 715 series – behind games of 239, 255, and 221 – and earning #1 Power Ranked bowler honors, Boren took his team along for a 3-1 matchup victory over opponents Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends. The team remains in 1st place despite anchor Ken M. Wilson increasing his chances of overtaking his own below average slump league record and costing them the sweep. The Belt's Seth Gunderson put up the most fire power for his team, ending his evening with a 552 series but slips one spot down into 6th place.Teams tend to pick on Ballz Out each week. Split It and Hit It was no exception. After dropping Game #1 by a mere three pins to the Ballz, compliments of Cliff Barendsen's team-leading 429 series (and snappy hat!), Split It decided to hit it and hit it hard. Reversing their team's fortunes, the men stormed back for a 4-pin victory in Game #2 and then a blowout victory in Game #3 to take the night 3-1. Anchor Dennis Blake handily led the comeback with a 548 series including his first 200+ game, a 210. With the wins, Split It climbs one spot up into 5th while Ballz Out remains in 8th place. In their first matchup of the season, the Turkey Hunters sized up opponents Mayan Apocalypse and let 'er rip. With anchor Aubrey Moren returning to form from his past two seasons to lead the reigning champs with a demonic 666 series and Most Valuable Bowler honors to boot, the night seemed to belong entirely to the Turkey Hunters. That's when the Mayans' Carl Goetz decided to make another brush with league history. Rolling eleven consecutive strikes, Goetz stood on the cusp of joining David Codding in the rarest of feats by bowling a perfect game but fell a single pin shy to come away with the league's second 299 game. Naturally, Goetz led his team with a 698 series and brought the matchup to a 2-2 split. While the wins keep the Mayans in 4th, it did cause the Turkey Hunters to slip one spot into 3rd place and setting up a rematch in the position round next week.Here's the video of Carl's 10th frame...For those of you new to the league, the position round is the half way mark of the season in which the schedule is set to pit teams adjacent to one another in the league standings against their placement opponent. First place bowls second place, third takes on fourth, and so on. This season's matchups will be as follows:#1 FTOP (21-7) vs. #2 Pocket Pounders (17-11)#3 Turkey Hunters (16-12) vs. #4 Mayan Apocalypse (14-14)#5 Split It and Hit It (14-14) vs. #6 Bobby Belt and the Facebook Friends (13-15)#7 Sexual Chocolate (10-18) vs. #8 Ballz Out (7-21)Bowlers lamenting the lack of Octoberfest beer in The 200 Club this week include: Aubrey Moren (237, 240), Carl Goetz (202, 299), David Codding (269, 203), Dennis Blake (210), Jason Carpio (235, 200), John Boren (239, 255, 221), Neil Rieger (206), Ryan Doll (216), and Seth Gunderson (202). The Tournament of Champions continues with Carl Goetz (13 points) leading Division #1 with John Boren (9) in second. Division #2 find Aubrey Moren (13) in the lead with both Jason Carpio and Phil Schroeder (7) sharing second place. Despite a round two loss, Andy McLeod (16) continues to dominate Division #3 while Anita Osthoff (7) gains some ground. Even missing a week, Division #4's Teresa Deterding (18) continues to dominate Division #4 while Cliff Barendsen (8) steps up into second place.Get ready for the always volatile position round when anything can – and typically does – happen. To put things into perspective, here's what can come about next week: Read the rest of this entry »

With over 35,000 individual games rolled in our league's 13-year history, no one has ever walked away with a perfect game. That all changed Tuesday night as David Codding became the first person to string 12 consecutive strikes to walk off the lanes with a perfect 300. Here's video of the 12th strike that made league history:While Week #6 will forever be remembered as the week Codding shot a perfect game, other things did go down: several games were settled by just single digits, half the league changed places in the league standings, and the gaps in-between teams tightened up as the position round quickly approaches. After getting back on track last week with their first sweep of the season, the rollers on Mayan Apocalypse looked poised to double their number of sweeps while facing opponents Ballz Out. After taking Game #1 by a mere four pins and Game #2 by a huge margin, Game #3 seemed to be in the bag for the Mayans until all four Ballz Out bowlers rolled over average forcing a 10th frame showdown. End result? A single pin victory for the Ballz and a 3-1 matchup victory for Mayan Apocalypse. Cliff Barendsen had the highest output for Ballz Out, ending with a personal best 412 series while Pat Searcy's 600 led the way for the Mayans. Despite the wins, neither team moved from their respective positions – Mayan Apocalypse holds onto 4th while Ballz Out remains in 8th place.Typically when the predictions powered by ScooterMath™ call for the 2nd place team to drop three games to 7th place team, people scoff. But when Split It and Hit It turns it into a reality over reigning champs Turkey Hunters, you have to wonder why Scoot doesn't play the lottery. Game #1 went to Split it, 663-617. The predictions? Game #1 to Split It, 641-617. Game #2 went to the Turkey Hunters 689-632. The predictions? Turkey Hunters, 689-638. Game #3 and total pins went to Split It and Hit It, compliments of anchor Dennis Blake's 494 series and a #1 Power Ranked bowler performance from teammate Michael Smith. Game #3 was won 735-721, total pins by three. Predicted outcome? 670-642 and total pins by one. Amazing. Aubrey Moren led the Turkeys with a 553 series in the losing effort but remain in 2nd place. Split It and Hit It hop one spot up into 6th place.Sexual Chocolate had plans to take some games from the current 1st place FTOP and emphatically did just so in Game #1. With Jason Carpio leading the way with his 596 series – include a 246 to start his night off – the Chocolates easily took the first game of the matchup. FTOP, led by the man of the night David Codding and his 693 series, took Game #2 by four pins to even it at one game apiece. Game #3 ended up being the game that David Codding has chased his entire life, rolling a perfect 300 and winning the game but not by a margin large enough to overcome the total pins beat down from Game #1. The teams split the series at two games apiece. FTOP remains in first place, ahead now by a margin of four games, while Sexual Chocolate slip a spot into 7th place.Down on Lanes 47 & 48, the Pocket Pounders bounced back from their woes from last week to lay down the only sweep of the night against opponents Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends. With all four men raising their averages – led by Ryan Doll's 633 series and a Most Valuable Bowler performance from Neil Reiger – the Pounders took control early and never let any games even get close to being settled in the 10th frame. The Belt, led this week by Bill Krejci and his 527 series, just couldn't get into a rhythm and drop two spots in the league standings down into 5th place. The Pocket Pounders swap places with them and now sit in 3rd place. Bowlers telling Codding that he needs to go find The 300 Club down the street this week in The 200 Club include: Aubrey Moren (210), Carl Goetz (206), Dennis "Pops" Laube (202), Jason Carpio (246, 201), John Boren (212), Neil Rieger (206, 215), Pat Searcy (210), Ryan Doll (226, 204, 203), Seth Gunderson (204), and Steve Kiernan (213).Participants in the Tournament of Champions continue to add points to their totals. Carl Goetz continues to lead Division #1 with 7 points while John Boren and Pat Searcy chase him with 6 points. Division #2 still has Aubrey Moren out in front with 9 points but Phil Schroeder, Cory Chorpenning, and Seth Gunderson all sit three points behind him. Andy McLeod continues to crush the competition in Division #3 with his 15 points while Matt Bunyard sits in second at 6 points. Division #4 is pretty much owned by Teresa Deterding, who has won every week so far and maintains her first place perch with 18 points – Michael Smith is second with 5 points.Congratulations again to David Codding for being absolutely perfect in Game #3...a fitting game for a 300.See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Michael Smith Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Neil Rieger Runner Up: David Codding	#1 H2H BOWLER Ryan Doll Runner Up: Steve Kiernan
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Wait a minute. Seriously?!? Now, if I shot a 300 and didn't get a 700 series I'd be absolutely ashamed. I'm serious." Pat Searcy, upon discovering Codding ended the night with a 693 series despite his 300 game.

Week #5, with one exception, was a week of sweeps. Three powerhouse teams handed out perfect 4-0 beatdowns while two other teams engaged in a brutal battle of back and forth Tuesday night on the lanes of North Kansas City Pro Bowl. In the end, five of the eight teams exchanged places in the league standings and two bowlers rolled big series as the season marches toward its halfway point.After their collapse in Week #3, the men of FTOP have been on a mission to win, win, win. And win they did against their opponents for the night – Pocket Pounders. For the second week in a row, FTOP has gone 4-0 to maintain and extend their lead in first place. Led this week by David Codding and his 647 series, the acronymed-named rollers improved to 16-4 on the season. The Pounders' anchor Ryan Doll led his team with a 554 series but it simply wasn't enough to earn a single victory. The losses drop the Pocket Pounders two spots down into 5th place with a record of 9-11.With all four bowlers together for the first time this season, the men of Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends had planned to block Sexual Chocolate from any wins but the night did not go exactly as planned. With this week's Most Valuable Bowler leading the way, Teresa Deterding and her 451 series took Game #1 to start the matchup. The Belt struck back behind anchor Bill Krejci's 574 series to easily take Game #2 by a margin of 101 pins. Game #3 went to Sexual Chocolate in a 10th frame showdown but the gigantic Belt win in the second contest helped secure total pins for a 2-2 split. Bobby Belt slip a spot into 3rd place with a 12-8 record while Sexual Chocolate stays put in 6th at 8-12.After a surprisingly lackluster start, the Mayan Apocalypse finally found their stride against the streaking Split It and Hit It. With Carl Goetz shooting the highest series to date this season – a 652 – as well as earning #1 Power Ranked bowler honors this week, the Mayans swept their competition and rocketed three spots in the league standings to take over 4th place with their 9-11 record. Rumor has it that the Mayan calendar foresaw this team in the Finals vying for first place. Perhaps now the beginnings of this prophecy are starting to come true. Split It, led by anchor Dennis Blake and his 454 series, drop two spots back down into 7th place with a record of 8-12 after suffering their first winless week of the season. Down on Lanes 47 & 48, the reigning champion Turkey Hunters decided to take out their frustrations from last week's four losses by handily adding four victories at the expense of opponents Ballz Out (and unlocked the "Big Bully" achievement in the process, check your "Achievements" tab on your player profile page to see what you have unlocked this season). Led by anchor Aubrey Moren and his 548 series, the Hunters rebounded nicely with their 13-7 record to regain 2nd place. Ballz Out, led once again by Cliff Barendsen – this week with a 400 series – take their lumps – and a 6-game losing streak – to remain in 8th place with a record of 5-15.Bowlers rocking their Gangnam Style inside The 200 Club this week include: Bill Krejci (202, 202), Carl Goetz (237, 227), David Codding (247, 201), Jonathan Vigliaturo (201), Ryan Doll (201), Seth Gunderson (222), and Steve Kiernan (200).The leaders in the four Tournament of Champions divisions switched around quite a bit with Carl Goetz (7 points) now leading Division #1 with John Boren and Ryan Doll each trailing with 3 points apiece. Division #2 saw Aubrey Moren (9 points) piggy back over last week's leaders, Phil Schroeder and Seth Gunderson (6 points each). Andy McLeod (9 points) takes over the top spot in Division #3 with the absent Matt Bunyard sitting in 2nd place with 6 points. Division #4 continues to be dominated by Teresa Deterding who has a perfect 12 points over the past two weeks with Michael Smith holding the second spot in the division with four points. There is still plenty of time for all of this to switch as the season progresses.The mighty and mystical ScooterMath™ has the predictions claiming all kinds of interesting things for next week: the Mayan Apocalypse is slated to continue their winning ways against opponents Ballz Out, Split It and Hit It is predicted to win three against the Turkey Hunters, Sexual Chocolate is apparently going to end FTOP's win streak with a lone Game #2 victory, while the Pocket Pounders are to return with a 3-1 beatdown over Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends. Will any of this come true? We'll just have to wait until next week to find out.See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Teresa Deterding Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Carl Goetz Runner Up: Anita Osthoff	#1 H2H BOWLER Carl Goetz Runner Up: Andy McLeod
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "F&#k your Game #1! " Carl Goetz, snapping at David Codding as the two did battle in the Tournament of Champions.

In 1986, The Rolling Stones released a single called "Harlem Shuffle". Well, on Tuesday night, the GutterAlley bowling league released their own shuffle single as all but two teams shifted around in the standings. To top it off, the fourth 250+ game has been rolled this season – and it's only Week #4! Ready to get the lowdown? So are we...After missing the first three weeks of the season, Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends' very own Seth Gunderson finally made his debut this season in a big way. Leading his team with a 568 series, Gunderson – along with this week's Most Valuable Bowler performance by teammate Andy McLeod – The Belt pulled off a 3-1 matchup against opponents Mayan Apocalypse. Pat Searcy put up the best series for the Mayans with his 566 which was just in time to pull off an upset in Game #3...by a mere three pins. With the wins, The Belt moved up one spot into 2nd while the Apocalypse remain in 7th place. No doubt about it, Steve Kiernan had a big night. With the highest series of the night across the entire league – a 597 – Steve gave his Pocket Pounders a 3-1 matchup win over opponents Ballz Out. After a 3-pin victory by the Ballz in Game #2, compliments of a 439 series out of sub Bryan Mohr, Kiernan caught fire. Putting up a new season high game with his 259, Kiernan's heroics pushed the Pounders up one spot into 3rd while Ballz Out remains in 8th place.Long-time rivals FTOP met up with reigning champs Turkey Hunters for the first time this season down on Lanes 45 & 46. Earlier in the day, FTOP's lead off roller John Boren predicted that his team would come away with a clean sweep. Boren's call was spot on as he lead his team with a 590 series to a 4-0 win to reclaim first place. The Hunters, led by anchor Aubrey Moren and his 521 series, plummet three spots down into 4th place.Something is in the water with Split It and Hit It. In a repeat of their outcome of last week, Split It dropped Game #1 – this time to opponents Sexual Chocolate – before coming to life and taking every game after that. With anchor Dennis Blake's 499 series leading the charge and this week's #1 Power Ranked bowler Matt Bunyard adding to the damage, the men of Split It came back in a big way to end the night with a 3-1 matchup win. Teresa Deterding led Sexual Chocolate with her 440 series but it was only enough to secure a single victory. With the wins, Split It & Hit It climb one spot into 5th while Sexual Chocolate drops the mic and exits the stage in 6th place.Only four bowlers graced the halls of The 200 Club this week: John Boren (210, 202), Pat Search (210), Seth Gunderson (203, 203), and Steve Kiernan (259).The first week's results for this season's Tournament of Champions are in. Division #1 starts off being led by John Boren with 3 points with Carl Goetz just behind him with 1 point. Division #2 was handily won by Seth Gunderson (6 points) while Phil Schroeder and Jonathan Vigliaturo both start out with a point apiece. Matt Bunyard dominated Division #3 to win all 6 points while Andy McLeod trails him with 3 points. Division #4 finds teammates Teresa Deterding (6 points) and Jake Parrott (3 points) sharing first and second, respectively.Nominations for this season's induction into the GutterAlley Hall of Fame are now open. Get in there and make your picks now!See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Andy McLeod Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Matt Bunyard Runner Up: Andy McLeod	#1 H2H BOWLER Matt Bunyard Runner Up: John Boren
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Kiernan shot a 259? Huh. Did you know that the iPhone 5 still doesn't have global LTE or NFC?!?" Jason Carpio, while staying at home on Facebook rather than bowling.

Week #3 is now in the books and with it came some surprises across the league: the last place team upset the first place team; two bowlers shot over 250+ while another shot over 240; several seemingly-impossible splits were picked up; and, in the end, several games were settled by the slimmest of margins. Ahh, GutterAlley...bring me the scoop!The reigning champions Turkey Hunters started the night off by dropping Game #1 to Sexual Chocolate, who was led by anchor Jason Carpio and his 535 series. Battling back in a big way, the Turkeys' lead-off bowler Phil Schroeder brought a 571 series (including a 241!) to reverse their fortunes and take Game #2 by over 100 pins. Game #3 came down to the 10th frame with Sexual Chocolate holding on for the win only to end up losing total pins. The teams split their matchup 2-2 and both move up one spot each in the standings. The Turkey Hunters take over 1st while Sexual Chocolate hop up into 5th place.Things looked pretty damn good for the men of FTOP, who started out with a trouncing of opponents Split It and Hit It in Game #1 behind anchor – and this week's #1 Power Ranked bowler – Ken M. Wilson's 638 series...but that was the last time they would taste victory Tuesday night. Split It's lead-off bowler Michael Smith poured it on with this week's Most Valuable Bowler performance while anchor Dennis Blake's 441 team-leading series kicked in to take Games #2 and #3 including a total pins victory by a single pin to knock the league leaders off their perch and down into 2nd place. Split It & Hit It climbed up two spots into 6th place with their 3-1 matchup victory.Last week, two of the league's powerhouse teams – Pocket Pounders and Mayan Apocalypse – took it on the chin and both walked away the victims of being swept. This week, the two duked it out down on Lanes 45 & 46. With a 3-pin victory in Game #1, the Pocket Pounders set the pace of the night. They scored another victory in Game #2, with anchor Ryan Doll's 601 series leading the way. The Mayans' anchor Carl Goetz fought back with a 625 series to avoid getting blanked, handily winning Game #3 but dropping total pins by only 10 pins. The Pocket Pounders took it 3-1 and remain in 4th place. The Mayan Apocalypse experience more doom as they fall two spots into 7th place.Still having not yet fielded a full team at all this season, the men of Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends finally broke the .500 mark at the expense of opponents Ballz Out. With anchor Bill Krejci bringing the biggest numbers – a 563 series – The Belt took Games #1 and #2 before letting Game #3 slip away from them. Ballz Out's Cliff Barendsen's 407 series was what the team needed to come away with the win in Game #3 but not by enough to swing a total pins victory. The Belt's 3-1 matchup win keeps them in 3rd while Ballz Out slip one spot down into 8th place.Bowlers wondering when all the sandbaggers will finally show up in The 200 Club this week include: Bill Krejci (219), Carl Goetz (201, 232), David Codding (206), Ken M. Wilson (255, 235), Phil Schroeder (241), and Ryan Doll (256).The divisions for the Tournament of Champions are now set and, thanks to a couple of secret donations, every single person in the league has paid to join into the tournament. First place will find an additional $42 in his or her prize envelope at the end of the season while the runner-up will find $22 after all is said and done. Beginning next week, scoresheets to track your progress will be available around the lanes so get ready to have some fun.See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Michael Smith Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Ken Wilson Runner Up: Freda Schroeder	#1 H2H BOWLER Freda Schroeder Runner Up: Carl Goetz
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Jeez, my Game #2 score went down like I'd been hit by a terrorist's airplane." Ken, after bowling a score 107 pins below his previous game.

The ever-volatile Week #2 of any season is historically fraught with disasters. Many people who shot lights out in the the first week of this session are brought back down to reality while others who struggled or held back find themselves on the opposite side of the equation. This season's second week was no exception. In the end, two teams have started out with a near perfect 7-1 win record while the remainder of the league is batting .500 or less. In the lead off match of the evening, Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends looked to bounce back after their poor start last week. Making his first appearance on his new team this season, Bill Krejci lit up the lanes with a 563 series to lead The Belt to a 3-1 victory over opponents Split It and Hit It. Despite a great start to take Game #1, Dennis Blake's team-leading 482 series was just not enough to earn Split It more than their lone victory. With the wins, The Belt moves up two spots to 3rd while Split It and Hit It fall one place down to 8th place.On lanes 43 & 44, the Turkey Hunters' very own Freda Schroeder bowled over her 136 average all three games to earn not only Most Valuable Bowler honors but also came out as this week's #1 Power Ranked bowler in their matchup against the mighty Pocket Pounders. Dennis "Pops" Laube led the team once again, this week with a 524 series, as the team booked their first sweep of the season. The Pounders' anchor Ryan Doll shot a 567 series to lead his team in the losing effort. The Turkey Hunters gobble up two spots to find themselves in 2nd while the Pocket Pounders slide one spot down into 4th place.The third battle of the evening played out like a true roller coaster ride. Ballz Out, led by Cliff Barendsen and his 349 series, struck first to take Game #1 from opponents Sexual Chocolate. Anchor Jason Carpio rallied his Chocolate troops with his 550 series for a Game #2 victory to even the score. Game #3 came down to the 10th frame with Ballz Out taking it only to drop total pins to Sexual Chocolate, unable to overcome the margin of victory in Game #2 and splitting the series 2-2. The wins keep Sexual Chocolate in 6th while Ballz Out use their new notches to ascend one spot into 7th place.The last pair of lanes in the bowling alley witnessed a showdown between two powerhouse teams that did not play out like the predictions called for at all – FTOP absolutely demolished the Mayan Apocalypse in a 4-0 sweep. With David Codding's 625 series leading the way (including a season-leading 258 game in Game #1), FTOP taking each game by nearly a 100-pin margin. The Apocalypse's anchor Carl Goetz, despite an off night, led his team with a 511 series. The four victories keep FTOP atop the league standings in first place while the four losses force the Mayans to evacuate three spots, landing in 5th place.Bowlers anxiously awaiting Octoberfest beer showing up in The 200 Club this week include: Carl Goetz (213), David Codding (258), Jason Carpio (215), John Boren (205), Pat Searcy (201), and Ryan Doll (216). For those of you that bowled last season, you'll remember the Tournament of Champions. With 32 bowlers in this session, everyone will qualify into one of the four divisions to do battle with everyone else throughout the season. Initial seedings are currently up but, of course, nothing is set in stone until averages have been calculated following Week #3. If you would like to participate monetarily in the Tournament, just slip an additional $2 into the prize fund envelope next week and write your initials in the "TOC" column next to your name. See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Freda Schroeder Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Freda Schroeder Runner Up: David Codding	#1 H2H BOWLER Ken M. Wilson Runner Up: Freda Schroeder
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "At least he didn't get it in Ken's hair this time." Jason Carpio, after witnessing the floor becoming all wet (from a spilled beer) and overhead AJ ask if Scoot had become all excited.

The Fall 2012 season of GutterAlley kicked off Tuesday night – our 26th season! – with a full roster of 32 bowlers slated to do battle over the course of seventeen weeks in the quest to pull down the championship title. With this session made up of a lot of the seemingly eternal staples, several bowlers from seasons past made their return into the fold including: Andy McLeod (last seen Fall '06), Steve Kiernan (Fall '07), Cory Chorpenning (Spring '09), Pat Searcy (Fall '09), John Boren (Fall '09), and David Codding (Fall '10). Rounding out the league this time around are six new GutterAlley recruits making their debuts Tuesday night. A special welcome goes out to new bowlers Shane Daniel, Cliff Barendsen, Matt Bunyard, Mark DeVoe, Michael Smith, and Kent Schoonover. Let's get down to the nuts and bolts of Week 1, shall we?Reassembling the core of their Fall '09 team that went on to become the best team in league history, FTOP came out firing on almost all cylinders in their initial matchup against opponents Ballz Out. Led by anchor Ken M. Wilson and his 579 series, F nearly came away with a clean sweep but fell shy in Game #3 by nine pins...also due to anchor Ken M. Wilson. Ballz was led by rookie Cliff Barendsen, who ended his night with a 367 series. The 3-1 victory in favor of FTOP puts them into first while Ballz Out begins their run in 8th place.One pair of lanes down saw a union that has been a long time coming. For the first time in history, powerhouse bowlers and league legends Carl Goetz and Pat Searcy have joined up on the same team as the Mayan Apocalypse bringing doom to opponents Sexual Chocolate. With an impressive initial week, led by Searcy – this week's #1 Power Ranked bowler – and a stunning 184 average out of lead off bowler Scott Murdock (compliments of his 554 series, an all-time personal best for Scoot), the team notched a 3-1 matchup victory en route to a 2nd place start. Sexual Chocolate, led by anchor Jason Carpio and his 512 series, use their one win and total pins to grab 6th place.Back-to-back league champions Turkey Hunters faced awesomely named Bobby Belt and The Facebook Friends as they begin their quest for a third consecutive title. Amidst allegations of team-wide sandbagging, only Dennis "Pops" Laube didn't hold back to set a 179 average. Aubrey Moren's 541 series led the team as the Hunters kick off their season with a 3-1 win over The Belt. After promises of Ian Goetz subbing were dashed at the last minute, lead off bowler Jonathan Vigliaturo led Bobby Belt with a 494 series. With their respective notches in the win column, the Turkeys find themselves in 4th with Bobby Belt right behind them in 5th place.Down on Lanes 47 & 48, cool team shirt owners Split It and Hit It came out like gang busters to win Game #1 behind anchor Dennis Blake and his 485 series. After that, though, the Pocket Pounders found their stride and brought the pain. Led by Steve Kiernan and his 548 series, the Pounders reversed their fortunes to take the night 3-1 and start off in 3rd place. The single victory for Split It has the team making its league debut in 7th place.For those of you that bowled last season, you'll remember the Tournament of Champions. With 32 bowlers in this session, everyone will qualify into one of the four divisions to do battle with everyone else throughout the season. Initial seedings are currently up but, of course, nothing is set in stone until averages have been calculated following Week #3. If you would like to participate monetarily in the Tournament, just slip an additional $2 into the prize fund envelope next week and write your initials in the "TOC" column next to your name. The predictions for next week's matchups definitely look interesting. Bobby Belt is slated to sweep Split It and Hit It. The Turkey Hunters and Pocket Pounders are predicted to notch the first tie of the season, ending the night with the Pounders coming away with a 2.5-1.5 overall victory. Sexual Chocolate is apparently going to lay waste to Ballz Out in a 4-0 blowout while the Mayan Apocalypse is going to bring about the demise of FTOP 3-1. Will any of this come true? We'll just have to wait until next week to find out!See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB No one Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Pat Searcy Runner Up: Ken Wilson	#1 H2H BOWLER Pat Searcy Runner Up: David Codding
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Thirty-two people on the league and 28 are men, three are women, and then Scoot? This season is a sausagefest." Ryan Doll, after taking inventory.

As summer winds down, the month of August has historically marked the return of the fall session of the VML Bowling League...and this one is no exception. Tuesday, August 28th will see the beginning of the 26th season. This season will feature five new recruits making their debut this season! A special welcome to rookies Shane Daniel, Cliff Barendsen, Matt Bunyard, Mark DeVoe, and Michael Smith. Several past bowlers who haven't been seen on the lanes in several years are also coming back into the fold for this go around, including: Andy McLeod (last seen Fall '06), Steve Kiernan (Fall '07), Cory Chorpenning (Spring '09), Pat Searcy (Fall '09), John Boren (Fall '09), and David Codding (Fall '10). Welcome back, gentlemen!START DATE: Tuesday, August 28th at 6:20PM (league bowling starts at 6:30 after ten minutes of practice)LOCATION: NKC Pro Bowl, 505 East 18th Avenue, North Kansas City, MO 64116. Anyone that has been in the league pretty much knows everything else that's about to be told but, just in case you are bored and/or need a refresher, here's the GutterAlley 101 so that you know what to expect in our league: Read the rest of this entry »

That's right, kiddies...it's almost time for the next session of the VML Bowling League to get underway.Here's the inside skinny:Starts: August 28th at 6:30pm (practice starting at 6:20)Ends: December 18th (total of 17 weeks)Cost: $14 per week, does NOT include the cost of rental shoes (full-time VMLers will tentatively pay only $8/week)Location: NKC Pro-BowlFor the full list, hit up http://www.gutteralley.com/recruitment/.See you next week!

The Spring 2012 season came to an official conclusion on Tuesday night, complete with prize disbursement and the announcement of the various season-ending awards.This season proved to be a big one for returning bowlers shooting their all time personal bests (obviously rookies had their highest games, series, and average ever in the league this season so we left them off):Highest game?AJ Hofmann, Aubrey Moren, Bob Brunker, Eric Lynch, Freda Schroeder, Scott Murdock, Seth Gunderson, and Teresa DeterdingHighest series?AJ Hofmann, Aubrey Moren, Bill Krejci, Carl Goetz, Ian Goetz, Jake Parrott, Jason Garcia, Jonathan Vigliaturo, Rob Kaszuba, Russell Madsen, Sabrina Gray, Teresa DeterdingHighest season-ending average?AJ Hofmann, Aubrey Moren, Bill Riley, Carl Goetz, Jake Parrott, Jason Garcia, Jonathan Vigliaturo, Kelly Anderson, Mike Berlin, Ryan Doll, Sabrina Gray, Teresa DeterdingFive bowlers also put up scores that put them into the all-time records in league history:Carl Goetz moved up to the #2 spot on the Men's High Series Scratch record with his 735 and ties Cory Chorpenning for the 3rd spot on Men's High Average with his 208. Ryan Doll is tied now with John Boren for 5th in that same category with his 202 average.Anita Osthoff took over 5th place on the Women's High Series Scratch with her 518 as well as finds herself tied with Jennifer Seefeldt for 3rd place for Women's High Average for her 159.Freda Schroeder threw the #2 highest Women's High Game Scratch with her 234. That same game earned her the #3 spot on Women's High Game Handicap (262).Seth Gunderson joined Carl Goetz, Jason Carpio, and Rich Foster at the 5th spot in the Men's High Game Handicap category with a 291.The biggest individual achievements for the season came out as follows:Women's High Series Scratch: Angela Bradford - 563Women's High Game Scratch: Freda Schroeder - 234Women's High Series Handicap: Teresa Deterding - 663Women's High Game Handicap: Sarah West - 248Women's Pins Over Average: Freda Schroeder - +70Women's Most Improved Bowler: Teresa Deterding and Freda Schroeder - +7Men's High Series Scratch: Carl Goetz - 735Men's High Game Scratch: Ian Goetz - 266Men's High Series Handicap: Jonathan Vigliaturo - 746Men's High Game Handicap: Seth Gunderson - 291Men's Pins Over Average: Seth Gunderson - +99Men's Most Improved Bowler: Aubrey Moren +24The results of the Season Favorites were announced at the Tuesday night meeting:Rookie of the Season - Anita Osthoff (Dennis Blake, runner-up)Captain of the Season - Ryan Doll (Seth Gunderson, runner-up)Carl Goetz Defensive Bowler of the Season - Carl Goetz (Ryan Doll, runner-up)Underdog of the Season - Teresa Deterding (Kelly Anderson, runner-up)Bob Brunker Good Sportsmanship Award - Rob Kaszuba (Bob Brunker, runner-up)Emily Podhajsky Good Sportsmanship Award - Anita Osthoff (Kelly Anderson, runner-up)People's Choice: Most Valuable Bowler - Ryan Doll (Carl Goetz, runner-up)Actual individual team MVBs:ACE²S = Eric LynchBallsagna = Russell MadsenBowled to Death = Ryan HousknechtBrown Belt Jones = Jonathan VigliaturoSplits or Swallows? = AJ HofmannStrange Bedfellows = Carl GoetzThe Turkey Hunters = Dennis "Pops" LaubeX-Men = Ryan DollActual: Most Valuable Bowler - Ryan Doll (Carl Goetz, runner-up)Cumulative #1 Power Ranked Bowler: Ryan Doll (Ian Goetz, runner-up)The Tournament of Champions was won by Ian Goetz in a down to the wire finish against runner-up Russell Madsen. As this season's champ, Ian received an additional $50 in his prize envelope. Russell received $30 for second place. We look forward to continuing the Tournament of Champions from here on out.Prize money was handed out for the teams based upon wins:1. The Turkey Hunters (51-13)2. Strange Bedfellows (41.5-22.5)3. Brown Belt Jones (39-25)4. X-Men (36-28)5. Splits or Swallows? (31-33)6. Ballsagna (20.5-43.5)7. ACE²S (19-45)8. Bowled to Death (18-46)And lastly, Bob Brunker was officially inducted into the GutterAlley Hall of Fame after being selected over Dennis "Pops, Laube, Janelle "Nellie" (Laube) Lamar, Pat Searcy, Phil Schroeder, and Seth Gunderson by the voters of the bowling community.Congratulations to all of the winners this season!

The 25th season of GutterAlley bowling wrapped up Tuesday night and while there wasn't much drama in the realm of who would walk away with the title – as The Turkey Hunters had wrapped that up in Week #13 – it seems that the hot topic was the newly created Tournament of Champions, which will be refined over the summer to provide more of a variety in the realm of who you will face each week. Couple that with some impressive performances by various people around the league and you have what you call a nice ending to the season. NOTE: Voting for the Season Favorites is now closed. Thank you to everyone that voted.With first place already locked up, what did The Turkey Hunters have to lose? Three out of four games, actually, thanks to Carl Goetz of Strange Bedfellows. Rolling a league leading 657 series – which pushes him to 2nd place on the all time greatest bowlers in league history list with his season-ending 208 average – to propel his team to a 41.5-22.5 record and 2nd place. The Turkey Hunters, led by Freda Schroeder and her 557 series (including her new all-time personal best game of 234!), ended the season with an incredible record of 51-13. Did we mention that Game #3 was settled by a single pin? Thank you, Carl.With two of the most powerful teams in the league facing off against one another – X-Men and Brown Belt Jones – you'd expect this to be a grudge match fought with epic scores, right? Unfortunately, this wasn't what people were treated to down on Lanes 21 & 22. Ending with a 3-1 matchup victory, in which all three games were charity wins, the X-Men found just enough fire power from anchor Ryan Doll (who shot a 532 series) to win the battle of attrition. Ian Goetz, who we will talk about more here in a little bit when the Tournament of Champions is addressed, led The Belt with a 595 series in what may be his final appearance in a GutterAlley bowling league. Brown Belt Jones ends the season with a 39-25 record and a 3rd place finish while the X-Men end theirs with a 36-28 record and 4th place. Perhaps someone should tell Splits or Swallows' AJ Hofmann that he is allowed to bowl like this every week of the season and not just in the Finals. Putting his team on his back against opponents Bowled to Death, Hofmann put on the performance of his career en route to his team's second sweep of the season. Earning both #1 Power Ranked bowler as well as Most Valuable Bowler honors, Hofmann ended the night with his personal best series (a 533, including his first 200+ game) and finished the season with a 31-33 record for 5th place. Doing his best to stave off the onslaught, Matt Bell of Bowled booked a 429 series but it wasn't enough to derail the Splitters. Dropping all four games gave Bowled to Death a one-way ticket to 8th place, ending their season with a record of 18-46.In what has traditionally been "The Battle for Last Place" ended up being anything but as neither team ended up in the cellar after all was said and done. Needing wins, Ballsagna looked to anchor Russell Madsen to deliver and he did. Bowling a team leading 480 series, Madsen pushed his team to a much needed 3-1 matchup victory over short-handed opponents ACE²S. Without anchor Eric Lynch there, the team got the most fire power from teammate Alexandra Avila and her 374 series – her new personal best. Despite the over-achieving performance from Avila, the ACE²S could only muster a single win in Game #2. Ballsagna moved up two spots to 6th place with their 20.5-43.5 record while their opponents finished with a 19-45 record, ending in 7th place.Bowlers wondering who the hell let the child into The 200 Club this week but later realizing it was AJ Hofmann (200) were: Aubrey Moren (208, 203), Carl Goetz (219, 215, 223), Freda Schroeder (234), Ian Goetz (205), and Phil Schroeder (202).The first officially run Tournament of Champions came to a close as well, with quite a finish. Game #1 represented the quarterfinals of the Tournament, with #1 seed Ian Goetz easily defeating #8 seed Chris Klee. #4 seed Dennis "Pops" Laube beat #5 seed Jonathan Vigliaturo by 7 pins to advance. The #6 seed, Rob Kaszuba, heroically upset #3 Aubrey Moren to head into the semifinals while #7 seed Russell Madsen emphatically crushed #2 Bill Krejci. Game #2 represented the semifinals and both matches were complete blowouts. Ian destroyed Pops in their face-off while Russell Madsen made easy work of Kaszuba to advance to the championship game. Ian, with his 199 in Game #3, was declared the winner of this season's Tournament of Champions over Russell by a mere 16 pins. Goetz becomes the very first bowler from Division #1 to win the whole thing. Congratulations, Ian! As a side not, Ken and Scoot both placed $50 bets before the season began as to who would win the entire thing. Surprisingly, both of their picks ended up in the final round of the Tournament. Unsurprisingly, Scoot lost the bet to Ken. Thanks again, Ian! Other people that will be receiving extra money in their prize envelope next week at our traditional end of the season Fun Night for their individual accomplishments on the lanes this season will be:Angela Bradford - High Series Scratch, Female : 563 ($20)Carl Goetz - High Series Scratch, Male : 735 ($20)Freda Schroeder - High Game Scratch, Female : 234 ($20)Ian Goetz - High Game Scratch, Male : 266 ($20)Teresa Deterding - High Series Handicap, Female : 663 ($10) Jonathan Vigliaturo - High Series Handicap, Male : 746 ($10)Sarah West - High Game Handicap, Female : 248 ($10)Seth Gunderson - High Game Handicap, Male : 291 ($10)We'll also announce the winners of the Season Favorites, reveal the name of the actual Most Valuable Bowler, and announce this season's inductee into the GutterAlley Hall of Fame.See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB AJ Hofmann Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER AJ Hofmann Runner Up: Carl Goetz	#1 H2H BOWLER AJ Hofmann Runner Up: Ian Goetz
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Drown 'em." Carl Goetz, after Freda asked what people should do with their 5th teammate once we return to 4-man teams next season.

Over the course of our league's twenty-five seasons, many teams have managed to accumulate 40+ wins with the majority going on to win the championship. Only two times has a team managed to crest the 50+ win mark – the Fall 2009 champions Sweep the Leg, Johnny ended with a 55-9 record and the infamous Blue Ballers from the Fall 2000 season with an unconfirmed 53-11 record (unconfirmed, as this was before official record keeping). Week #15 saw this season's crown winners, The Turkey Hunters, joining that group as they reached the big 5-0. Beginning their matchup against a no-show ACE²S – and hoping to finish before another team for the first time all season – the Turkey Hunters had to merely beat themselves for two easy wins in Games #1 and #2. In Game #3, however, the ACE²S were able to form a legal lineup but couldn't slow down the Hunters, who completed their sweep with the help of anchor Aubrey Moren's 605 series and this week's Most Valuable Bowler, Freda Schroeder. Eric Lynch led the ACE²S with a 453 series in the losing effort, slipping one spot down into 7th place. The Hunters' record improves to 50-10.Pickles and pushups and power ranks, oh my! The matchup between Brown Belt Jones and Splits or Swallows started out with a bang. With Teresa Deterding putting on this week's #1 Power Ranked bowler performance with her team-leading 506 series, the Splits took Game #1 in a 10th frame showdown. The Belts' Ian Goetz, however, reversed his team's fortunes by shooting a 600 series on the dot to bring them team back to take a 3-1 matchup victory. Neither team move in the standings, however, with Brown Belt Jones staying in 3rd and Splits or Swallows remaining in 5th place.In what should have been a clash of the titans ended up being more of just a crash with both teams. In a pivotal matchup in the "race for 2nd place," Ryan Doll of the X-Men came out firing with a 253 game (ending with a team-leading 635 series) to easily take Game #1. That's when the cagey veterans of Strange Bedfellows woke up and took care of business. With Carl Goetz hoisting a 255 – and a 601 series to boot – the Bedfellows managed to scrape out a 3-1 matchup victory to keep them seated in 2nd. The X-Men remain in 4th place.Down on Lanes 25 & 26, the pins were flying. With Bowled to Death's Matt Bell rolling his first 200+ game (a 202!), Games #1 and #2 went in their favor. Game #3, however, saw a change in temperature as rigor mortis set in for Bowled while Ballsagna caught fire. With the Balls' Russell Madsen hoisting a 464 series, he not only provided the necessary pins to take the last game but managed to secure total pins by the slimmest of margins to split the series at 2-2. Bowled moved up one notch in the standings into 6th while Ballsagna remains in 8th place.Bowlers laughing at the Royals' 12th consecutive loss while throwing back drinks in The 200 Club this week include: Aubrey Moren (227, 226), Bob Brunker (221), Carl Goetz (255), Dennis "Pops" Laube (206), Ian Goetz (241), Matt Bell (202), Ryan Doll (253, 200), and Seth Gunderson (205).After battling it out all season long, the battle for all the marbles that will crown this season's winner of Tournament of Champions will take place next week. The breakdown of those that will be competing in Round #1 are as follows:#1 - Ian Goetz vs. #8 - Chris Klee#2 - Bill Krejci vs. #7 - Russell Madsen#3 - Aubrey Moren vs. #6 - Rob Kaszuba#4 - Dennis Laube vs. #5 - Jonathan Vigliaturo Good luck to those participants still in the hunt to be this season's winner.Voting for the Hall of Fame nominees is now closed. Thank you to everyone that voted. The winner will be announced during the Fun Night on May 8th.The Finals take place next week and the lineup it's the same format as the position round:1st place vs. 2nd place 3rd place vs. 4th place5th place vs. 6th place7th place vs. 8th placeSee you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Freda Schroeder Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Teresa Deterding Runner Up: Ian Goetz	#1 H2H BOWLER Teresa Deterding Runner Up: Angela Bradford
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Dammit, AB! The second I got it out, I couldn't get it in time." Ken, to Angela Bradford while trying to take a picture with his cell phone of Matt Bell's oddly place belt.

With only a handful of weeks until the Finals take place, it's being touted as "the battle for second place." And while we can't give the official update just yet due to the results of one contender's matchup delayed until some post-bowling takes place, it's safe to say that one team truly took the necessary steps to put themselves ahead of the pack while another team continues to get big output – and big wins – out of a relatively quiet member as the season wraps up.The matchup between opponents Strange Bedfellows and Bowled to Death cannot be reported yet as Bowled needs to post-bowl. We will report the outcome as soon as all the scores are in.Last week, the X-Men's Rob Kaszuba threw the best series he's ever thrown and was named the Most Valuable Bowler. Did he rest on his laurels? Not at all. Combining with anchor Ryan Doll's team-leading 590 series, Kaszuba brought the right amount of counterattack to push his team into another four wins this week...this time at the expense of opponents Ballsagna. The Balls, led by anchor Russell Madsen, failed to make a dent into the surging X-Men despite his 456 series. While Ballsagna remains in 8th, the X-Men tentatively look like they may advance to 3rd place. On pace to being only the second team in recorded league history to reach 50 wins, season champions Turkey Hunters ran into an unlikely combination Tuesday night – themselves and Brown Belt Jones. After dropping Game #1, compliments of The Belts' Bill Krejci and his team leading 593 series, the Turkeys struck back to take Game #2 thanks to Aubrey Moren's 625 series and his #1 Power Ranked bowler status for the week. Game #3, however, became a battle of attrition as both teams underperformed but came out in The Belt's favor, as did total pins. This is the first time since Week #11 of last season that the team has lost an actual matchup to anyone in the league. Brown Belt Jones remains in 2nd while the Turkey Hunters continue to celebrate their undeniable championship.Down on Lanes 25 & 26, the ACE²S had to think it was their night against opponents Splits or Swallows. After winning Game #1 and seeing teammate Ed Felix hoist his new personal best game (a 190!) and best series (422), things were looking pretty good...until the Splits swallowed them up to take a 3-1 matchup victory. AJ Hofmann provided the most oomph for those that Swallow with his 436 series while the team remains in 5th place. Eric Lynch of the ACE²S led his team with a 424 series but simply could not manage more than that Game #1 victory. The team remains in 6th place.Bowlers being bought drinks by Sweep the Leg, Johnny at The 200 Club this week include: Aubrey Moren (223, 235), Bill Krejci (219), and Ryan Doll (200, 224).The latest results of the Tournament of Champions cannot be calculated yet due to the post-bowling. There is just one more week left to vote for this season's Hall of Fame nominees. Congratulations to candidates Bob Brunker, Dennis "Pops" Laube, Janelle (Laube) Lamar, Pat Searcy, Phil Schroeder, and Seth Gunderson. Be sure to get in there and vote!See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Rob Kaszuba Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Aubrey Moren Runner Up: Bill Krejci	#1 H2H BOWLER Rob Kaszuba Runner Up: Bill Krejci
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Yesssss! I need to find Pops' address so I can send him a thank you card." John Boren, from his home upon reading the news that his all-time league win record will continue to stand.

Last season, something strange happened. Defying logic and beating the odds, four veteran bowlers who had rolled together for years – Phil Schroeder, Freda Schroeder, Dennis "Pops" Laube, and Aubrey Moren – found their mojo and used it to win the Fall 2011 championship. Well, they've done it again this season, along with new recruit Anita Osthoff. Congratulations to the Spring 2012 champions, Turkey Hunters, who clinched the crown this week!And speaking of this week, some gigantic scores came out of the bowlers of GutterAlley en route to the battle for 2nd place and beyond. And now that the post-bowling scores are in, here's the full run-down...After their surprising 2-2 split last week, The Turkey Hunters regrouped and wrapped up their second consecutive championship at the expense of opponents Splits or Swallows with an emphatic 4-0 victory in which not a single game was even close. Leading the charge was anchor Aubrey Moren and his 622 series. The championship is the 6th for Dennis "Pops" Laube, 4th for Freda and Phil Schroeder, 3rd for Aubrey Moren, and 1st for Anita Osthoff. AJ Hofmann's 448 series led the Swallows in the losing effort, and remain in 5th place. Ian Goetz began this season as a man on a mission, proving that he can lead a team to victory out from underneath the shadow of his Hall of Fame father. Well, Week 13 was his coming out party. Leading his team Brown Belt Jones to a clean sweep over opponents ACE²S Tuesday night with both his own personal best game – a 266 – and his best series to date – a 695, along with a spot on the Top 25 Highest Series of All Time list and easily earning #1 Power Ranked bowler honors. The victories push The Belt back into 2nd place. Chris Klee's 402 series led the charge for the ACE²S – complimented by Ed Felix's new personal highest series of 398 – while the team remains in 6th place. With Bowled to Death opting to post-bowl this week, the rollers of the X-Men showed up Tuesday night to deal their damage. No one did more than Rob Kaszuba. Rolling his personal best high series to date – a 568 – Rob personally led his team to a 4-0 sweep over the competition and earned Most Valuable Bowler honors in the process. Bowled's Matt Bell led the charge for his crew, shooting a 471 series, but was unable to reverse the X-Men's fortunes. Neither team moves up or down in the league standings, however, with the X-Men holding onto 4th and Bowled to Death still sitting in 7th place.Down on Lanes 25 & 26, Ballsagna and Strange Bedfellows exchanged blows in some of the tightest contests of the evening. After ending Game #1 with a tie, Ballsagna took Game #2 with the last throw of the game in the 10th frame. Game #3 and, subsequently total pins, went in favor of the Bedfellows compliments of Bob Brunker's team-leading 519 series, to take the matchup 2.5-1.5 in the end. The Balls' Orion Kinkaid put up the best series for his team, ending the night with a 442 to secure the 1.5 victories. The Bedfellows topple a spot to 3rd while Ballsagna remains in 8th place.Bowlers having to hear the Turkey Hunters brag about their run in The 200 Club this week include: Aubrey Moren (241, 203), Bill Krejci (231, 213), Freda Schroeder (206), Ian Goetz (221, 266, 208), and, wait a minute...Scott Murdock (207)?!?With the actual Tournament of Champions just a few weeks away, those bowlers in the hunt to be qualifiers are as follows: Division #1 features a tie between Carl Goetz and Ken M. Wilson (17 points). Aubrey Moren (29 points) continues to be lead Division #2 with Bob Brunker (22 point) in second place. Division #3 has Jonathan Vigliaturo and Rob Kaszuba as its top seeds (20 points). Russell Madsen (20 points) continues to lead Division #4 with Chris Klee just behind him (18 points).Voting for this season's Hall of Fame nominees is now open. Congratulations to candidates Bob Brunker, Dennis "Pops" Laube, Janelle (Laube) Lamar, Pat Searcy, Phil Schroeder, and Seth Gunderson. Be sure to get in there and vote!See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Rob Kaszuba Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Ian Goetz Runner Up: Rob Kaszuba	#1 H2H BOWLER Ian Goetz Runner Up: Bill Krejci
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Here's what I want to know - why the hell is she wearing white?!?" Bob Brunker, to Ken and Carl after being shown Angela Bradford's 1983 wedding photos.

As the Spring 2012 season marches onward, teams celebrated their victories and lament their losses in Week 12. In all four matchups Tuesday night, at least one game was settled by the slimmest of margins reinforcing the old bowling adage that "every pins counts." That single open frame or the low count following a spare early in the game may come back to haunt you when all is said and done. Such was the case across the board in this week's rehash of GutterAlley. Ready to get into the specifics? We are too.In a matchup of the two teams that the league determined to be the most fun to face, the return of Strange Bedfellows' super anchor Carl Goetz didn't make it so much fun for opponents Brown Belt Jones. Continuing to put up huge numbers – and easily being labeled the #1 Power Ranked bowler – Goetz put up a 695 series to lead his team to a 4-0 bounce back after the Bedfellows' paltry performance last week without him. The Belt, which started out strongly behind Jonathan Vigliaturo's 521 series – including a 225 performance in Game #1 – put up their best fight in Game #1 before dropping it in the 10th frame. The four wins once again find the two teams exchanging positions in the standings, with the Bedfellows reclaiming 2nd while The Belt slips back down into 3rd place.Many in the league have openly wondered, "who can stop the Turkey Hunters?" That answer came in the form of Bowled to Death in one of the closest finishes we've had all season. After a Game #1 rout by Bowled in Game #1 – compliments of a stellar performance from lead off bowler Ellen Neidlinger and her 446 series (including a new personal high game of 178) – the league's reigning champions struck back big in Game #2 to even the series at a game apiece. Game #3 came down to the wire with Bowled to Death coming away with a 9-pin victory but total pins went to the Turkeys...by a margin of a single pin, splitting the series at 2-2. Hall of Fame candidate Dennis "Pops" Laube led the Turkeys with his 563 series. While the Hunters remain firmly out in first place, Bowled to Death gained some ground in the win column but remain in 7th place.Another back and forth battle for supremacy took place down on Lanes 23 & 24 between competitors Ballsagna and the ACE²S. Striking first to take Game #1 was the Balls' anchor Russell Madsen and his team leading 412 series to secure the first win of their night. Not to be outdone, the ACE's anchor Eric Lynch returned to his yesteryear form to shoot a 231 to reverse his team's fortunes in Game #2. Lynch would go on to lead his team with a 531 series. Game #3 was settled by a 5-pin margin in the 10th frame in favor of Ballsagna but total pins netting out in the ACE's favor, splitting the series at 2-2. Neither team rose nor fell in the league standings, however, with the ACE²S refusing to move out of 6th and Ballsagna remaining in 8th place.The last time that Splits or Swallows faced powerhouse team X-Men, their anchor didn't show up and they ended the night with three wins. Well, this time around, they added a new anchor – Jake Parrott – who put on this week's Most Valuable Bowler performance with his career best 528 series to come away with a 3-1 matchup victory. Game #1 was easily won by the X-Men with anchor Ryan Doll's 237 game, en route to a team leading 644 series. From that point onward, though, the night belonged to the Swallowers. After an 8-pin win in Game #2, Splits or Swallows went on to emphatically take Game #3 as well as total pins to improve their record to 23-25...a single game behind opponents X-Men in the standings. The two teams remain in 4th and 5th place, respectively. Bowlers celebrating KU's inevitable loss in March Madness in The 200 Club this week include: Angela Bradford (223), Carl Goetz (236, 246, 213), Dennis "Pops" Laube (233), Eric Lynch (231), Jonathan Vigliaturo (225), Ken M. Wilson (204, 202), and Ryan Doll (237, 209).There aren't that many weeks left until the actual Tournament of Champions takes place with the top eight seeds in the league. Division #1 features a tie between Carl Goetz and Ken M. Wilson (17 points). Aubrey Moren (29 points) continues to be lead Division #2 with Bob Brunker (21 point) in second place. Division #3 has Jonathan Vigliaturo at its top seed (20 points) with Anita Osthoff moving into second (15 points). Russell Madsen (19 points) continues to lead Division #4 with Chris Klee just behind him (18 points).Voting for this season's Hall of Fame nominees is now open. Congratulations to candidates Bob Brunker, Dennis "Pops" Laube, Janelle (Laube) Lamar, Pat Searcy, Phil Schroeder, and Seth Gunderson. Be sure to get in there and vote!See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Jake Parrott Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Carl Goetz Runner Up: Jake Parrott	#1 H2H BOWLER Jake Parrott Runner Up: Carl Goetz
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "They can have total pins. Any team that takes this long to bowl – and remain alive – deserves to win." Eric Lemmon, after staying up past his bed time bowling The Turkey Hunters.

With the Finals quickly approaching on May 1st, the reigning champs continue to further distance themselves from the rest of the league during Week #11 on what appears to be an historic run towards the best record in league history. The big story of the night, however, belonged almost entirely to Jonathan Vigliaturo...but we'll get to that here in a little bit. Let's see how things went down, shall we?The last time that Ballsagna faced opponents Splits or Swallows, the teams battled one another to a 2-2 standstill. Some things never change. Like a well-fought duel, the teams went back and forth with victories with the Balls taking Game #1 – with Russell Madsen's 411 series leading the way – before Splits battled back to take Game #2 compliments of a big series out of Mike Berlin (a 469). Ballsagna took Game #3 but not by a large enough margin to keep total pins from going to Splits or Swallows. Neither team moved up or down in the league standings, with Splits or Swallows and Ballsagna remaining in 5th and 8th place respectively.After leaving the lanes without winning a single game last week, the X-Men quickly reversed their fortunes against opponents ACE²S. With self-proclaimed "best team captain in the league" Ryan Doll leading his team with a 639 series, the Xers added a 4-0 win to their record to lessen the gap between their team in 4th place and the team just ahead of them. The ACE²S anchor Eric Lynch put up the top series for his team – a 445 – but the group just couldn't bring the right combination to stop the X-Men's momentum. The ACE²S remain in 6th place.In what was supposed to be an epic showdown against former champs and reigning champs ended up being a one-sided beat down by the Turkey Hunters over Strange Bedfellows. With both teams missing their anchors, the Turkeys' Phil Schroeder slipped in to fill the role and did so quite effectively with his above-average 547 series en route to a clean sweep over the "competition." The wins keep the Turkey Hunters a dominant 11 games ahead of the rest of the league out in 1st place. Ken M. Wilson pathetically led the Bedfellows with a 562 series in the losing effort, dragging his team back down into 3rd place.During the off season, Brown Belt Jones' very own Jonathan Vigliaturo become a true student of the game. His practice paid off in spades Tuesday night as he shot his personal best game (230) AND series (648 - a whopping 110 pin improvement!) while earning both #1 Power Ranked bowler and Most Valuable Bowler honors in the process. Opponents Bowled to Death weren't happy at all with this outcome with the exception of the ending of Game #2, which they won in the 10th frame by the slimmest of margins. The Belt took the matchup 3-1. Ryan Housknecht had the highest series for the Deaths, rolling a 403. While Bowled to Death remains in 7th place, Brown Belt Jones trades up and find themselves back in 2nd place.Bowlers finding themselves carded at the entryway into The 200 Club this week include: Anita Osthoff (202), Bill Krejci (202), Ian Goetz (215), Jonathan Vigliaturo (230, 220), and Ryan Doll (244, 201).There aren't that many weeks left until the actual Tournament of Champions takes place with the top eight seeds in the league. Division #1 is led by Ken M. Wilson (14) with Bill Krejci right on his tail (12 points). Aubrey Moren (29 points) continues to be lead Division #2 with Bob Brunker (15 point) in second place. Division #3 has Jonathan Vigliaturo at its top seed (19 points) with Anita Osthoff moving into second (15 points). Russell Madsen (18 points) continues to lead Division #4 with Eric Lemmon just behind him (17 points).Voting for this season's Hall of Fame nominees is now open. Congratulations to candidates Bob Brunker, Dennis "Pops" Laube, Janelle (Laube) Lamar, Pat Searcy, Phil Schroeder, and Seth Gunderson. Be sure to get in there and vote!See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Jonathan Vigliaturo Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Jonathan Vigliaturo Runner Up: Ryan Doll	#1 H2H BOWLER Jonathan Vigliaturo Runner Up: Ryan Doll
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "No it's not...they're all gay." Bob Brunker, speaking his piece after Pops quipped that "youth is wasted on the young" in response to the boys of Brown Belt Jones loudly celebrating.