Martin and Callan Place in Top 10 at Junior Gold

Indianapolis, Ind. - A pair of Nebraska bowlers earned top-10 finishes at the 2023 Junior Gold Championships which wrapped up on Thursday.

Jillian Martin took home runner-up honors in the U20 division while Anna Callan placed seventh in a 76-bowler field. Both Huskers breezed through four rounds of qualifying, which cut the field to 46 bowlers and reached the round of double-elimination portion of the event after the field was whittled down to 16 bowlers. 

In the final 16, Martin, the 2023 NTCA Rookie of the Year, secured the top seed entering double elimination bracket play with Callan coming in as the No. 11 seed. Martin advanced through the first three rounds with wins over Aubrey Kiddle (362-350), Marissa Bills (377-334) and Emma Siekierski (451-333) before falling to Jenn Stretch (384-372). The loss put Martin as the second seed heading into the championship finals. 

In the televised finals, Martin defeated Brystal Beyer, 233-181, to advance to the finals to face top-seeded Jenna Stretch in the championship match. Martin was unable to become the second straight Husker to win the event, falling to Stretch 235-214.

Callan, the defending Junior Gold Champion, opened her first round of bracket play with a win against Brianna Rogers (339-334) before falling to Stretch (385-487) in the second round. Callen would collect one more win in the elimination bracket against Rogers (406-355), but would bow out with a 405-385 loss to Maya Avilez