McKendree bowling coach wins second-straight major title

Shannon O’Keefe now has claimed the last two majors on the Professional Women’s Bowling Association Tour after winning the 2018 United States Bowling Congress Queens on Tuesday.

The 39-year-old right-hander from O’Fallon and head bowling coach at McKendree University put the finishing touches on a dominating week at the National Bowling Stadium as she defeated Bryanna Coté of Red Rock, Arizona, in the title match, 221-189, to capture the coveted tiara awarded to the winner and $20,000 top prize.

The USBC Queens is a major on the PWBA Tour schedule, and Tuesday’s championship round was broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.

O’Keefe grabbed the early advantage in the title tilt after Coté started with back-to-back splits. She opened the door for a brief moment after leaving the 4-6-7-10 split in the fifth frame.

“That was just a bad shot,” said O’Keefe, a 14-time Team USA member. “I got really quick and came off my power step, and I tend to grab the ball when I do that. It was my miss the whole week. I knew I needed to keep my hand under it and really feel my power step. Bad shots happen and I’m not a machine, but what’s important is how you bounce back from it. I had really great ball motion and trusted what I was seeing and the moves I had to make.”

O’Keefe quickly bounced back with strikes in the sixth and seventh frames, and she seized the opportunity to seal the win after Coté missed a 7 pin in the eighth frame by striking on her final four shots.

“The biggest thing for me was staying patient and in the moment,” O’Keefe said. “One of the things that makes Liz Johnson so great is when people give her an opportunity, she takes advantage of it, and I idolize her for that. I really tried to take my time in those pressure situations and trust my process to deliver a good shot without any regrets.”

O’Keefe claimed her first major championship to conclude the 2017 PWBA Tour season at the PWBA Tour Championship. Her win at the Queens marked her second victory through four events in the 2018 season.

The eight-time PWBA Tour champion has her sights set on winning PWBA Player of the Year, but she knows she can’t rest on the success she’s found in the first quarter of the season to reach her goal.

“This doesn’t even feel like real life, and maybe that’s a good thing,” said O’Keefe, who won the 2018 PWBA Sonoma County Open earlier this month. “I’m just staying so focused and not thinking of everything as a whole, and that’s probably the space I need to stay in to push through the rest of the season. I need to keep pushing myself to be better because the girls out here are so good. I need to keep practicing, keep the workouts going and stay present and committed to every shot for the rest of the season.”

Tuesday’s Results

FINAL STANDINGS

1. Shannon O’Keefe, O’Fallon, Ill., 468 (two games), $20,000.

2. Bryanna Coté, Red Rock, Ariz., 189 (one game), $11,000.

3. Liz Johnson, Palatine, Ill., 456 (two games), $8,000.

4. Stefanie Johnson, McKinney, Texas, 412 (two games), $6,500.

5. Amanda Fry, Antelope, Calif., 172 (one game), $5,000.

STEPLADDER RESULTS

Match One – S. Johnson def. Fry, 200-172.

Match Two – L. Johnson def. S. Johnson, 232-212.

Semifinal – O’Keefe def. L. Johnson, 247-224.

Championship – O’Keefe def. Coté, 221-189

This story was originally published May 23, 2018 at 2:21 PM with the headline "McKendree bowling coach wins second-straight major title."