Rathbun wins Jeanette Martinich Classic

Bowlers stacked plenty of wood with one of the better scoring meets in the 27-year history of the Jeanette Martinich Peterson Point Classic women's bowling tournament.

The tourney was held March 7-8 at King Pin Lanes and Star Lanes.

Brenda Rathbun won the tournament, notching third in the qualifying and then winning three match-play competitions.

The tournament saw 40 games of 200 or better, including 11 that topped the 230 mark. Also, 16 series of 600 or higher were registered.

Tournament leader Sherry Sullivan averaged 215 for the tournament. Butte junior bowler Amanda Mulcahy averaged 224 and just missed her first 700 series with a 699 in her third set.

The top 12 bowlers advanced to the March 8 action, but only five then moved on to the stepladder finals toward the championship.

The finals started with fourth-seeded Terri Medina defeating fifth-seeded Laurie Tripp 222-203. Then, Rathbun topped Medina 201-193. Rathbun then knocked off the second-seeded Mulcahy 244-144 before winning a 207-180 championship match with Sullivan.