Earnest reflects on Queens

The odds were stacked against Vandalia native Josie Earnest once the seeding was finalized for last week’s United States Bowling Congress Queens Tournament.

Facing Hall of Famers and collegiate All-Americans, Earnest had an uphill climb in the tournament, but she overcame almost every one of the challenges to make the television finals and place fifth.

“It was pretty unreal. It was my first big tournament, so I didn’t have a whole lot of expectations,” she said. “I always felt like I could compete with the best, but I didn’t have a lot of time to prepare.”

Earnest decided just a few days before the event began to make the drive to Texas with  her boyfriend, and by the end of the trip, she had one of her “most cherished” bowling memories.

Queens match play
Earnest was seeded No. 16 after 15 qualifying games, earning her a first-round bye, but also setting up a very challenging voyage through the double-elimination tournament.

USBC Hall of Famer Kim Terrell-Kearney, who was a coach of Earnest’s Team USA squad, was Earnest’s first challenge in match play.

“It was intimidating, because that’s a woman who had helped my game throughout the years,” Earnest said. “It was something I had to think about post-match, because if I had thought about that during the match, I couldn’t have stayed with her.”

And she needed every pin, as Earnest battled her way to 707-686 victory in the three-game set.

In the second round, she was paired against No. 1 seed Kelly Kulick, who Earnest considers to be today’s top female bowler.

Kulick, who has won a professional men’s bowling event and six major women’s titles, earned the top seed in match play by 130 pins

“It was all mental,” Earnest said of facing Kulick. “For me, I knew that I was going to run into some Hall of Famers out of the gate, and if I thought about that, I wouldn’t have beaten them.

“I had to take care of the things that I had control of.”

Earnest did just that, dispatching Kulick, 672-646.

In the third-round, Earnest took her first loss, losing a heartbreaker to eighth-seeded Hall of Famer Carolyn Dorin-Balled, 592-589.

Earnest then eliminated No. 10 Hall of Famer Leanne Hulsenberg, 581-558, and No. 29 Olivia Sandham, 681-595, to advance to the contenders bracket roll-off.

Competing against three other bowlers for three spots in the TV finals, Earnest rolled a 636 to place third and capture the No. 5 finals seed.

TV finals
Bowling live on ESPN, Earnest faced Hall of Famer Liz Johnson in the first round of the TV finals, losing, 268-223.

Earnest’s 223 was the fourth-highest score of the night, but even if she had converted a spare in her one open frame during that match, she would have bowled a 234, which still wouldn’t have defeated Johnson, who had nine strikes, including six in a row from the second-seventh frames.  

“I watched (the Queens) as a little girl,” Earnest said. “It was the one tournament you looked at when you’re a girl that you wanted to win.”

Earnest recorded strikes in the first two frames and had four in a row from the fifth-eighth frames. She held the lead by nine pins in the first frame, but Johnson only needed three pins in the 10th frame to secure the win.

She handled the nerves of bowling on national TV well in her second appearance.

Earnest said there were significant differences between bowling on TV by herself and bowling on TV with a college team, as was the case in 2007 when she bowled on TV with Vanderbilt during the NCAA championships.

“It was different, because you had the team and coaches who can occupy your mind,” Earnest said.

The top-five finish is another milestone for Earnest, who has an impressive book of bowling accomplishments as it is.

Among other things, the two-time NCAA Player of the Year was a member of the 2007 NCAA champion women’s bowling team and has bowled six sanctioned 300 games.

As a senior at Vanderbilt, her 214.9 average led the nation by 14 pins and she also placed second at the Amateur Championships that year.

The future
Earnest said she hopes to bowl in the Queens Tournament in the future, so long as her schedule will allow it.

She works as the assistant bowling coach at Vanderbilt University and is also taking college classes, so competition isn’t always at the front of her mind, but she does have some upcoming tournaments.

The U.S. Open is in June in Reno, Nev., but Earnest isn’t sure if she will be able to make the trip, but she will be teaming with her dad, Larry, in doubles during a tournament in May.

In the second week of June, Earnest will begin training with Team USA. After that week, it will be determined which bowlers will represent Team USA at events throughout the summer.

Then, Earnest will be back at Vanderbilt as the assistant coach. She said she has given thought to staying in coaching, because she enjoys giving back to the sport.

Though she would need to be careful, because some day, one of her pupils may come along and beat her in the Queens Tournament.