Kiski Area’s Veronica Flanagan gets back to WPIBL girls finals, wins championship

By: Triblive
Thursday, February 22, 2024 | 7:16 PM

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As a sophomore last season, Kiski Area’s Veronica Flanagan came within one win of a WPIBL girls singles championship, falling in the final match.

As a junior, Flanagan got back to the finals Thursday evening, and this time, she was second to none.

Flanagan saved her best game of the day for last, defeating Freeport senior Mackensie Livingston, 222-183, to win the title at AMF Mt. Lebanon.

Flanagan was remarkably consistent in qualifying, bowling 205, 206, 205 in her three games to enter the step-ladder finals as the fourth seed.

She battled in her first two matches in the finals, falling behind early and surging late. She defeated Hempfield’s Ashley Bensur in the quarters, 209-190, and top-seeded Amelia Droste, also of Hempfield, in the semis, 189-181.

Flanagan lost to Freeport’s Julia Cummings in the finals last season.

Droste led the field in qualifying with a 661 series and a 246 high game. She was followed by Livingston (624), Freeport’s Olivia Svitek (616), Flanagan (616), Bensur (608) and Montour’s Emma Zhong (608).

Freeport’s Kylie McConahy and Plum’s Mareana Pilyih missed the step-ladder finals by two pins.

Svitek defeated Zhong in a two-frame tiebreaker in one quarterfinal after the bowlers tied at 181. Svitek won the tiebreaker 43-24. Livingston defeated Svitek, 210-182, in the other semifinal.

The Western Regional girls singles championship is set for March 9 at AMF Noble Manor.