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Mooresville bowler becomes association's first to roll 300 game
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Published: August 28, 2009
It was so quiet, swears Teresa Mayhorn, that she could have heard a pin drop.
But that's not what she and all the others around here wanted to hear.
They were eager to listen for 10 pins to fall.
So she obliged.
Battling nerves and sweating palms, Mayhorn delivered the goods on her third and final roll in the 10th frame to set off a wild celebration among family, friends and others gathered around her at George Pappas' Victory Lanes as she rolled her way into local bowling lore.
Mayhorn, an avid bowler for 16 years and who competes in various leagues, polished off the first-ever perfect 300 game in sanctioned women's league competition and becomes the first female keggler within the Rowan-Mooresville Association to also conjure up the sport's version of perfection.
"Before I rolled that last ball," noted Mayhorn, of the feat that took place last month, "it was so quiet. Everyone was gathered around to watch. It really made me nervous. I was shaking so bad. But I rolled it flush. I sure was glad to see all the pins fall."
Mayhorn was treated like a pitcher in the midst of a perfect game leading up to the final rolls. Her teammates, well aware of what she had in the making, tried their best to keep her mind off the situation.
"Right up to the ninth frame,'' remembered Mayhorn, whose Dazcon Realty Racers League squad has no identifying name, "my teammates were just great. They kept me loose. They never mentioned a word about what I had going."
That all changed, though, entering the 10th.
With three rolls left, Mayhorn cut loose on the first. It, too, produced a strike, but just barely.
On that first roll, she needed, and got a little help. A flashing seven pin crossed across the lane and nicked a still-standing stubborn 10-pin to keep her perfect game in place.
"The 10 pin was still standing,'' nodded Mayhorn. "That seven pin, though, bless its heart, it came through for me. That would have been tough to take."
She then rolled her second ball of the frame, it hitting the pocket flush.
"It was a no-doubter,'' smiled Mayhorn.
On the third, and with the crowd at full attention, Mayhorn went through her regular routine before letting loose on her final shot. It, too, was good from start to finish, leaving no pins standing in its wake.
"That sure was a relief,'' agreed Mayhorn.
It was an effort producing shots heard around the area's bowling world.
Mayhorn becomes the first female to register a perfect 300 game for as long as there have been such records kept.
"She's the first,'' assured Ed Conklin, manager of Pappas' Victory Lanes. "She's the first here in Mooresville, and in the women's association. We've had other 300 games rolled by women here in some tournaments, but hers is the first to happen in sanctioned league competition. We're very proud of her around here. All the players in all the leagues have showed their appreciation to her."
The local women's association covers leagues taking place at bowling houses not only in Mooresville but also Salisbury and Kannapolis.
For Mayhorn, the string of 12 straight strikes resulting in the highest possible score also accounted for her first 300 game.
She is a member of several leagues and bowls year-round, also competing in a number of area tournaments.
"I've been bowling for 16 years,'' revealed Mayhorn. "It's a sport that anybody can play. I'm always tying to get a little better."
Like most actively involved in the sport, she has her own shoes, several personal bowling balls and is outfitted with a wrist brace on her right throwing hand that helps her maintain control of her shots.
"I've got a ball I like to use when shooting for strikes,'' explained Mayhorn. "I've got a spare ball. I've got one ball I like to use when the lanes are really oiled. You just kind of get the feel for what kind of ball you need for shat shot."
Mayhorn also likes where bowling has taken her off the lanes as well.
"You meet so many interesting people,'' added Mayhorn, "because bowling is a sport that appeals to all kinds of players. It's for young and old, men and women. It's pretty much the same. It's just something that I really enjoy doing."
And it shows.
She competes in at least two leagues a week practically all year, doing so while posting per-game pinfall averages of between 197-203.
For once, though, she was able to enhance that standard by knocking down all of the pins that stood in her path.
"I might never have another one,'' beamed Mayhorn, "but I'll always remember the one I had.'
That's for sure. She has even kept a print-out of the game's official scorecard and keeps it in her purse for safekeeping and quick review.
The felling of the final 10 pins was enough to break all the silence.
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