Judy Shaw of the Newport Avenue Market team throws a ball Saturday morning on the first day of the state women's championship tournament held at Lava Lanes in Bend. This is the first time in more than 40 years that the women's state bowling tournament has been held in Central Oregon.

For the first time since 1964, the Oregon state United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Association’s Women’s Championship Tournament brought its annual 10-week competition to the High Desert.

The first balls were thrown out Saturday by 94-year-old veteran bowler Bonnie Ward of Bend and Michelle Wallace, 18, a student at Bend High School, who will attend the University of Maryland next year on a bowling scholarship.

Lava Lanes Bowling Center night manager Patsy Wood reported that approximately 50 different teams from throughout the state took part in the first weekend of the tournament, which will be attended weekly by teams from across Oregon through the first weekend in July. The tournament, hosted at Lava Lanes, features singles, doubles and team bowling.

In lane No. 25 on Saturday was Bend’s Newport Avenue Market team. Judy Shaw, the floral manager at the store, explained that although she and the other members of her five-person team bowl dedicate every Monday night to bowling at Lava Lanes, they mostly participate in state tournaments for fun.

”Bowling is a great sport, and it’s great for Bend to host the women’s state tournament,” noted Shaw. ”Although we can get competitive, we do it mostly to have fun. This gets us off the couch.”

Shaw added that the team members are all friends off the lanes as well, and even play cards together on occasion.

”The social aspect and camaraderie are wonderful,” said Shaw, whose team took 50th at a national competition in Reno, Nev. last month. ”Our strategy is just to root for everyone else and bowl our best. We’d be on tour if we were really any good.”

Two teams of four from Prineville – Bi-Mart and Zippy Trucking – also got in on Saturday’s tournament action.

According to Prineville team member Mary Jo Grimes, the teams regularly bowl on Tuesday nights at Rimrock Lanes in Prineville.

”We do it for fun and to see each other once a week,” explained Grimes.

Area high scorers this weekend were Vickie Harris and Mikki Jackson of Prineville, bowling a 235/247 and 235 respectively. Other high scorers were Shannon Preston, Carolyn Weigle, Judy Norris, Eleanor Libby and Lynne Woodall, all from west of the Cascade Mountains.

According to Wood, team standings from this past weekend will not be finalized until this upcoming Friday when the tournament’s results thus far have been tabulated.

Dora Marcus, the Bend Women’s Bowling Association president, joined her Wicked Four bowling team on Saturday. When asked how the tournament was going for the foursome so far, Marcus rolled her eyes.

”Let’s not talk about how we’re doing today,” she smiled. ”We’re having fun.”

Cathy Grant of the Wicked Four reported that most of the bowlers on her team bowl at least once a week, though some bowl more frequently.

”We bowl to compete, but also to be social,” said Grant.

Like the Newport Avenue Market team, in its purple jerseys with white embroidering, the Awesome Five team from Redmond had light turquoise team shirts made up for the tournament.

”We bowl at state every year, so its nice to have the state tournament at home this year,” said Cindy Trainor, who bowls with her team at Premier Bowl in Redmond every week. ”I think we’ll be No. 1. I mean, we’re the Awesome Five.”

”No, really, we’re not hard-core serious,” chimed in Awesome Five member Cindy Meyers, gesturing toward her teammates laughing and joking from the chairs. ”Come on, look at us.”