The British University Tenpin Bowling Association (BUTBA) Cup final against Loughborough, Sheffield, and Portsmouth took place in Rugby last bank holiday Sunday.
In the semi-final, we were matched against our Northern dominant rival, Sheffield. Facing six strong Sheffield bowlers who all had 180-pin averages, Imperial bowlers showed remarkable resilience. After an enthralling battle, Imperial team B (Kelvin Wong (c), Michael Lau, and Raymond Yang) were only 6 pins behind the opponents, with scores 505-498, 493-498, and 513-521. Although we lost 1-15 overall, there is no shame in defeat.
On the flip side, our best Imperial bowler, Hui Erh Tay, has never let us down. Hitting a 617 high series (183-216-218) in the semi-final, she broke her own record in the BUCS Championship taken place last February. Unsurprisingly, this has secured her the titles of ‘Female High Game’ and ‘Female High Series’ in the BUTBA Cup.
Moving on to the Second Runners-up match, the Imperial team and their southern rival, Portsmouth, were both equally strong at the beginning, drawing a tie 2-2 after the first game. However, while Portsmouth maintained their performance, our team slowly lost shape, slipping points away in the game and losing 3-13 in the end.
Even though Imperial was placed fourth, the team wasn’t too upset. It was far from a gloomy scene as it was still our most outstanding achievement of all. “I would say this is a great start. Well done to every team member who tried their best,” Captain Kelvin Wong continued, ‘and put so much effort in training. You guys have been amazing throughout the year.’