The second week of Fall 2026 arrived with three teams climbing the standings, three teams slipping backward, and enough drama on the lanes to make a bowling alley feel like the center of the sporting universe. I am Alotta Tenpin, reporting from the sidelines, where I have my notebook, my highly questionable bowling expertise, and a front-row seat to all the action. JoAnne Barber captured this week's women's high game with 143 and high series with 369, while Matthew Taylor dominated the men's leaderboard with a 203 game and 525 series. There were career milestones, an 89-pin over-average explosion, a 240th career 200+ game, and plenty of momentum swings. So settle in, because Week 2 had everything a bowling fan could want: triumph, heartbreak, comebacks, collapses, and at least one team wondering how a perfectly respectable bowling night somehow turned into utter devastation. Read on for all the rest of the details, and don't forget to check out this week's bingo results!

Fist My Bump
In a context of which team could suck slightly less, Fist My Bump didn't merely win this match; they apparently decided that a sweep was the minimum acceptable amount of victory. AJ Hofmann led the charge with a 443 series, opening with 121, before erupting for 163 and following that with 159. Tim Deddens was terrific in Game 2, firing a 154 that was 39 pins above his 115 average, while Jim Koger quietly put together 113, 120 and 99 for a 332 series, raising his average from 106 to 108. Scott Murdock, who is clearly infected with astrophage the way his bowling star has been dimming, contributed 123, 138 and 105 for 366. The team's 635 in Game 2 was a major reason they were able to keep the pressure on, and the excitement was obvious as they rolled through all three games. AJ Hofmann said, "We (except Scott) kept finding ways to put points on the board, and once we (except Scott) got rolling, we (except Scott) weren't going to let up." Fist My Bump had every reason to be amazed amazed amazed, and their mission is now to keep that momentum accelerating toward the top of the standings. Fist My Bump leaps two spots to 2nd place.

The Queenpins
The Queenpins entered this match with royal expectations and left looking as though somebody had misplaced the crown, the scepter and possibly the entire kingdom. Being on the losing side of a sweep left Queenpins with a particularly unpleasant evening at the palace. Ryan Sisco opened with 125 and 137 before crashing to 98 in Game 3, finishing with a 360 series and seeing his average fall from 141 to 130. Jon Little, however, provided the night's great contradiction: while his team was being swept, he produced a respectable 409 series. He opened with 129, endured a rough and very uncharacteristic 95 in Game 2, and then came roaring back with a 185 in Game 3, the Queenpins' highest game of the night. That late surge was impressive, even if it arrived after the match had effectively slipped away. Jon Little said, "I knew I had a big game in me, and I finally found it in Game 3. I just wish all of the other team would have bowled more like Scott." That 185 gave the Queenpins something positive to take home, but it couldn't erase the losses. The Queenpins plunge four spots to 5th place.

BowlJobs
Oh, BowlJobs. This was a night when things started going wrong almost immediately, and yet the team kept coming back for more. They were swept hard by Squid Row despite several strong individual performances, which means the BowlJobs crew spent the evening pumping hard, putting in the effort, and still somehow getting screwed by the final result. Mike Fitzgerald led the team with a 423 series, including a solid 153 in Game 2. Kurt Fredrickson had perhaps the night's most interesting recovery act, opening with a painful 91 before rebounding with 135 in both Games 2 and 3. That's quite a turnaround after such a rough opening - sometimes you've just got to take what the lane gives you and work with it. Chris Hagan also saved his biggest performance for the end, rising from a flaccid 113 to a semi 122 and finally firmly exploding with a team-high 167 in Game 3, a whopping 29 pins above his 138 average. Hagan also reached a remarkable career milestone by crossing 20,000 career pins and now sits at 20,294. Brian Schaben was absent, leaving BowlJobs with three bowlers, and although the team improved from 568 to 637 to 662, the comeback came too late to rescue the match. Frankly, after a night like this, there were probably a few BowlJobbers wondering whether they had gotten enough action, whether they had been handling the balls properly, and whether the Squids had somehow figured out exactly where to put the pressure. Chris Hagan said, "We were finally getting stimulated, but by then we'd already collectively gone limp." That's a tough position to be in, especially when the other team is having no trouble handling their balls. The late improvement was encouraging, but three losses left the BowlJobs crew devastated. BowlJobs drops one spot to 6th place.

Squid Row
Squid Row didn't just beat BowlJobs; they surfaced from the depths, wrapped themselves around the standings and squeezed their way all the way into first place. The Squids swept all three games, rolling 631 in Game 1, a massive 709 in Game 2 and 678 in Game 3. That 709 was the highest team game of the night. Matthew Taylor was the captain of the aquatic assault, posting 153, 169 and a spectacular 203 in Game 3 for a 525 series. That 203 was the men's high game, the 525 was the men's high series, and the 203 also marked Taylor's 240th career 200+ game. Ben Spencer was nearly as impressive, rolling 164, 178 and 180 for 522. Dennis Walling contributed 169, 192 and 134 for 495, while Chris Windham delivered 145, 170 and 161 for 476 and earned the #1 Head-to-Head honor. Squid Row had every reason to celebrate after sweeping the match and taking over the top spot. Matthew Taylor said, "We kept the pressure on, and once we got that 709 in Game 2, we knew we'd ink up a sweep and get our little suckers all over the top of the standings." Squid Row jumps two spots into 1st place.

Rat & Roll
The distinguished rodents of Rat & Roll arrived with their whiskers twitching, their tiny wine glasses polished and their sights set on another trip up the standings. Unfortunately, the evening ended with considerably more cheese than champagne. Rat & Roll managed just one victory against 3 Pins and a Gutter, dropping Games 1 and 3 and losing the series despite a magnificent performance from David Schemenauer. Schemenauer was the star of the evening, opening with a personal-best 180, following it with 162 and finishing with 146 for a 488 series. That 180 was 36 pins above his 144 average and became Rat & Roll's highest game. Kevin Hodge had a nice 145 in Game 3 and finished with a 385 series. Andy Orwig started with an impressive 143 but faded to 117 and 91, ending with 351 and dropping his average from 128 to 122. Kyle Weber debuted with a 99, 98 and 77. The Rats won Game 2 with 501, but the losses surrounding it proved too much to overcome. David Schemenauer said, "Squeak squeak squeak squeak squeak." A good summation of the events. The Rats may have had good individual performances, but the team was understandably disappointed to leave with only one victory. Rat & Roll drops one spot to 3rd place.

3 Pins and a Gutter
3 Pins and a Gutter may have arrived expecting a close contest, but Jeremy Varnell apparently decided that subtlety was overrated. Varnell opened with a stunning 162 against a 73 average, producing an astonishing 89 pins over average - the biggest over-average game of the entire night. He followed with 104 and 82 for a 348 series, but that opening explosion gave his team a huge boost. JoAnne Barber also came through, starting with the women's high game of the night at 143 and finishing with 100 and 126 for a 369 series. Nathan Burrows, the substitute player, contributed 108, 101 and 85 for 294. The team took Game 1 with 585, dropped Game 2 at 477, then recovered to win Game 3 with 465 and take the overall series. Their two wins and series victory had the team feeling understandably excited. Jeremy Varnell said, "Rubbing Nathan for luck before each frame was especially helpful." It certainly was. Varnell's opening game was the night's biggest over-average performance, and his contribution helped establish the foundation for the team's victory. 3 Pins and a Gutter jumps two spots to 4th place, with Jeremy Varnell earning both #1 Power-Ranked and Most Valuable Bowler honors.

And there it is, folks:Squid Row is sitting on top after a three-game sweep. Fist My Bump is follwoing the Petrova line straight to the second planet after its own clean sweep. Rat & Roll slipped to third despite David Schemenauer's magnificent personal-best performance, while 3 Pins and a Gutter climbed two spots behind Jeremy Varnell's extraordinary opening game. Meanwhile, The Queenpins and BowlJobs are staring at the standings from below and wondering how everything went sideways so quickly. Six teams entered the night with their own plans, and by the end of the evening, every one of those plans had been rewritten. From the sidelines, this is Alotta Tenpin signing off

The only bowler decent enough to pour one out for Dolly Parton at The 200 Club is Matthew Taylor (203)

The 143 rolled by JoAnne Barber is this season's new high game among women.

NEXT WEEK:

• First, on lanes 1&2, 4th-place 3 Pins and a Gutter (estimated estimated hcp 36) will face 6th-place BowlJobs. Gutterly Pinned is expected to maintain their current strength as they lose the series but avoid getting swept; while BJs are forecast to raise their average while they enjoy their victories.
• Moving to lanes 3&4, 3rd-place Rat & Roll (hcp 2) will share a couple of pitchers with 2nd-place Fist My Bump . Rats might roll a little low and lose the series but avoid getting swept; while Fist My Bump ought to hold steady as they enjoy their victories.
• Finally, on lanes 5&6, 1st-place Squid Row will test their mettle against 5th-place The Queenpins (estimated hcp 108). Squids are predicted to maintain their current strength as they and split the series with Queenpins; while Queenpins are anticipated to raise their average while they keep the series tied.

^*(Remember, the predicted results above are based on mathematical extrapolations and can be changed by all sorts of factors. If you don't like how your team's results are predicted, you and your teammates have the power to prove the math wrong!)

THIS WEEK'S MVB Jeremy Varnell Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Jeremy Varnell Runner Up: Chris Windham	#1 H2H BOWLER Chris Windham Runner Up: David Schemenauer
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "You know who else never heard this song before? Helen Keller." AJ, to Scoot, after Scoot mentioned being unfamiliar with a song playing that had a cryptic lyric that sounded a little bit like it was about Helen Keller.

Pos.	Team name	Record	Percent	Total Pins	Change
1	Squid Row	6-2	.750	3,932	+2
2	Fist My Bump	6-2	.750	2,995	+2
3	Rat & Roll	4-4	.500	3,055	-1
4	3 Pins and a Gutter	4-4	.500	2,659	+2
5	The Queenpins	3-5	.375	3,147	-4
6	BowlJobs	1-7	.125	3,021	-1