BOWLING: Former champion pole vaulter Mardon Connelly still flying high in Mesquite bowling

Mardon Connelly is the only bowler I know who had students in class who were the sons and daughter of two legendary athletes and a former prominent movie actress.

But first, lets look at his bowling which begins with a 45-mile drive from his home in Overton to bowl twice a week at the Virgin River Bowling Center in Mesquite. And in his 9:30 a.m. Early Risers League last week he was stoked after beginning league play with seven strikes in a 226. And building on the momentum from his strong start, he followed with another clean game, a 198, and finished with a 200 game for his first 600 of the season, a heckuva good 626 with a total of 19 strikes and only two open frames while raising his average to 158. In fact, he was so fired up with his series after a subpar season due to a shoulder issue, he celebrated with an adult beverage and after bowling asked his wife, Judy to drive them the 45 miles back to Overton.

Humor aside, he really was thrilled with his outing and felt like celebrating as it marked really the first time this season he was pain free throwing a bowling ball to the 1-3 pocket since surgery on his left shoulder.

And just five days ago in the bowling segment of the Mesquite Senior Games he won a pair of gold medals in his 80-84 age division.

Changing gears here, Connelly is 82, but don’t let that fool you as he still follows his first passion, the pole vault. He was a state champion in Nevada high school circles which resulted in winning a track and field scholarship to Utah State University where he competed for four successful years against the top college pole vaulters in the country. His career-high vault is an almost stratospheric 16 feet.

And yessiree, he’s still active in pole vaulting in senior games in both Utah and Nevada, and in fact won gold in his age division in the 2023 Mesquite Senior Games, and as recently as 2017 competed in the USA Track & Field Indoor Championships (Masters Series) held annually in Albuquerque, New Mexico where he finished first in his age group. He also took 1st place in Mesquite last year, and looks for a repeat finish in the upcoming games in Mesquite.

And how’s this for his passion about pole vaulting? Amazingly, he has his own pole vaulting pit with the required runway at his home in Overton so he can practice whenever he feels like it.

He was a high school teacher in Los Angles for 33 years and some of his students over that time had some famous parents. For example, the son of the great jockey, Willie Shoemaker was in his class. So was a son of the late actress, Jane Mansfield, as well as a daughter and son of the the NBA Hall of Famer and Laker great, Elgin Baylor.

Bowlers may find it hard to believe, but on November 16th, 2023 he celebrated being married for 55 years to his wife, Judy, who also still bowls twice a week.

In other blistering pin action, we’re gonna begin with Kelly Williamson’s return to bowling in the Mesquite Senior Games where he delivered an inspiring 713 series and 257 game after battling a truly major health issue the previous four months. Now back to last week’s league play where John Hollaway bookended 10 straight strikes with a spare in the first frame and nine pins on his fill ball in the 10th in a 289 game en route to the week’s only 700 series, a 718, while Darren Simonds fell three pins shy of one in a 697 effort on games of 255, 248, 194, and it’s amazing that twice over the years Simond’s had conversations with Jay Leno about classic cars.

In other action, Michael “Smurffzzz” Ramirez combined only two open frames with 22 total strikes including 10 in a clean 268 along with games of 234 and 184 which paved the way for a 686 series, and Milan Carr who retired after 25 years from a fascinating job with the New York Department of Corrections maintained his 212 average in City High Rollers League action with a 680 and high game of 247.

Meanwhile, Mike Gentry an outstanding athlete back in the day who also played on a celebrity softball team which included Ricky Nelson and Frankie Avalon kicked off the final stretch of the 2023-24 season with his best outing in over a month with 670 and 244 scores, and David Harris routinely hits screaming line drives up the alley or down the line for doubles in his senior softball games, and in somewhat similar fashion, his strike ball hit the 1-3 pocket with some serious pop for 22 strikes including an 8-bagger in a 257 on the way to his best outing this season, a superb 664 series which also raised his Men’s League average to 194.

Not surprisingly, Jim Lytle who bowls for the Desert Gold Realty team in the Mesquite Merchants Men’s League continued a terrific season with his 17th 600-plus series, a 662 which raised his average a point to 214. Indicative of his outstanding consistency this season is the fact a 599 and 594 scores are the only outings which fell short of the 600 mark.

And Dylan Kesl who’s doing a standout job drilling bowling balls and serving bowling customers in the well stocked pro shop posted a 660 with a high game of 238, Harold Hendrick had a first-rate 656 score with a 248 game in a strong outing in the Gamblers 4 Aces League, and Josue Mendoza continued showing how his game has improved tenfold over the last two years with a career-high 654 along with 11 strikes in a season-high 265 game.

And thanks to hearing and seeing Dave Wheeler throw a 300 game in a tournament in St. George two weeks ago, he will hopefully be bowling in the Monday Scratch League in Mesquite next season, and further validation of just how good a bowler he is came as a sub in the Kings & Queens League when he threw 20 strikes in a competitive 651 effort.

Steve Serrano raised his K & Q League average to 185 with a quality 645 set, Norm Ritchie (631-229) continued heating up the scoring monitors, George Huston scratched out a 614 with games of 241, 201 and 181, and former race car driver, Tim McNees navigated the lanes for 16 strikes and a clean 216 in a 604 effort.

Bob Ballard fired 12 strikes along with a clean 212 in a 603 outing, Dave Cirbo also added to his collection of 600s with a 600 on the nose, while southpaw and former outstanding high school running back Dave Castro fell a pin shy of the 600 mark with a 599 on games of 216, 202 and 181.

In single game action, Chance Evans (678) tattooed the 1-3 pocket with nine strikes in a clean 278,  Austin Finster (656) pounded out a 266, while Jacob Martinez (598) navigated the lanes for nine strikes in a 265, and Josue Mendoza (653) ran the front seven, followed by an open frame before going off the sheet for an eye-popping total of 11 strikes in a career-high 265 gem.

In the meantime, Chase Evans (657) began Men’s league play with an open frame before staging a powerful rebound with 10 straight strikes followed by nine pins on his fill ball for a 264, and Ken Meacham smacked nine strikes, including the front six in 264.

Larry Moultrie (637) threw an 8-bagger in a 257, and two nights ago in the Gamblers 4 Aces League, Tim Usher gets his first-ever ink in this column after throwing a season-high 246 which included a 7-bagger and only one open frame, while talented and hard-throwing Miguel Soto pounded out eight strikes in a 243, and Allen Cope merits ink for a season-high 233.

Wally Posey finished a 232 with a five-bagger in his Early Risers League play, Max Burgess is a retired dentist from SoCal who chucked a 226, while Tony Arias tossed a 225 and is looking to eclipse a season-high 232, and Nick Medina cruised to a 213.

Carlos Baeza tallied a 212, Steve Roberts posted a 210 and as a Packers fan may like the idea of the Raiders just traded Josh Jacobs to the Packers, and Buck Sorensen gets his first ink for a 208 which included eight strikes.

Dan Erhart smacked a 203 and is looking forward to Selection Sunday this coming weekend to see where his Gonzaga Zags will be seeded in the NCAA Tournament, Robert Murguia booked a 201, raised his average to 155, and is still looking to top his season-high 210, while Ken Mueller eked out a deuce with a 201.

And the recent trend of seeing women’s scores ripping higher continued last week, as did the number of women who garnered ink for the first time.  And it all begins with Sandy Sheppard’s standout 679 series featuring 21 strikes and only two opens in games of 256, 217, 206, while Bev Cormani pounded out a 659 with 22 strikes thrown during games of 247, 223 and 189.

Diane Marget who’s in the Minnesota Women’s Bowling Hall of Fame fired a 609 set with a high game of 214, Reiko Schultz continued her recent scoring splurge with a 585 set on games of 212, 200 and 173, and Kim Marshall’s 582 with a 223 game raised her City High Rollers League average to 183.

And in the Friday morning Ladies Trio League action, Laurie Trobough pulled off a stunner in light of a 122 average when she blistered the lanes with an eye-popping 575 series on games of 211, 198, and 166 which included a total of 16 strikes, including a 7-bagger in a 211. Amazingly, while she bowls with her right hand, she does everything else with her left. She was also instrumental in starting the Red Hat Society in Mesquite, and before moving to Nevada’s fastest growing city, she lived in Maui, Hawaii for nine years. And in previous years she also did the Susan Komen 3-day 60-mile walk to help find a cure for breast cancer, and in her next adventure will soon be embarking on a cruise for five months (not a typo) taking her and her husband to ports around the world. Oh, and her cruise ship does have lanes for bowling.

In other women’s action, Sharon Stoneman merits ink for a season-high 535 series with a 210 game. Her season-high game is a 236, and before changing her zip code to Mesquite this past year from one in Reno, she bowled in leagues for 14 years in both Reno and Carson City. She’s a graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno, retired as a critical care RN, and has a daughter who competed in high school rodeo throughout the Silver State.

Martha Green also captured her first ink in years after raising her Ladies Trio League average to 140 by blowing away her previous season-high 457 series with a really good 535 including a 191 game, and away from bowling she enjoys reading, and two days ago in the Monday Gamblers 4 Aces League, Charlene Heiden who’s also the excellent secretary of that league booked a 522 and 202 game, while Judy Clark punched out a 522, and count on Sheila Green’s (516-182) scores to continue gaining altitude.

Meanwhile, both Mary Posey (513-182) and Judy Heileson (512-192) posted some solid scores, and Kathy Legan who hails from the Windy City popped a 510 series including a four-bagger in a 189 game.

Tama Hixson chucked a Trio League season-high 502 which included a 200 game and also raised her average to 135, while Ashlee Yokoyama tossed a 503 with a 188 game.

In single game action, Georgia “GG” Godfrey (562) smacked a terrific 232, Cathy Hamilton (493) snared her first ink here for a heckuva nice 229 game with eight strikes, Cheryl Jackson (546) fired a 211, while Lee Ann Hames (567) booked a 205, and Lenora Miller tallied a super 201 in light of a 117 G.4.A. League average.

Kate Gott received a 150 Game Award for a 162 … Linn Barratt received a 300 series Award for a 345 … Kathy Baylor who hails from the Illinois and does a superb job working at The Eureka put together a clutch double and 8 pins on her fill ball in the 10th frame in a 157 game to help her team eke out a narrow win in TGIF League play … Wendy May chucked 5 total strikes including a double in the 10th frame in a 146 game helping her team scratch out a win. And in case you didn’t know, May is a former softball pitcher who’d routinely blow strikes past hitters. And if a hitter would dig in at the place, she’d deliver some “chin music” and then come back with a nasty curve ball on the outside corner for a K. Her husband, Troy, also indicated she has an improving golf game … Gina Stabenow picked up the 7-8 split and was a cheerleader in her California high school …Kathy Bussman bagged her first turkey in a season-high 188 game … Shaun Edwards converted the 4-7-10 split … James Hartley picked up the 6-7-10.

James Hartley 657-236; Harold Hendrick 656-246; Tony Zaccheus 654-237; Dean Baum 650-255; Angel Hernandez 642-237; Sal Diaz 642-227; Dan Aslin 641-245; Mike Rogers 639-227; Bryan Pierce 633-225; Norm Ritchie 631-229; Scott Mattingly 628-228; Doug Love 620-237; Mike Saldivar 619-215; Dean Sheppard 618-242; George Huston 614-241; Orlyn Meyer 609-236; Dave Johnson 608-236; Larry Willis 604-214; Bob Ballard 603-212; Dave Pershing 602-215; Dave Cirbo 600-215; Darrell Moffett Jr. 267; Randy Kezior 234; Harry Uncles 230; Dave Newman 225; Jim Rappe 223; Al Legan 220; Gil Niimi 219; Logan Hendricks 216; Pat Garcia 216; Bill Funk 214; Jack Northover 214; Ken Hammerschied 212; Marty Roper 212; Ron Johnson 212; John Gerger 211; Alan Pearson 210; Duane Sullivan 210; Ken Thompson 210; Louis Dilisio 209; Dennis Hartley 206; Al Gans 205; Bill Rife 205; Ed Hoepfner 205; Ernie Kala 205; Monty Dibble 205; Robin Drury 205; Russ Marshall 205; Bob Morgan 204; Michael Donovan 204; Bob Monson 203; Bob Wells 203; Brent Schlesinger 203; Dave Keil 203; John Martin 203; Jimmy Webb 203; Jeff Branche 202; Ken Moeller 201; Ricky Trujillo 201; Gayle Parison 531-200; Vickie Martinsen 525-202.