News

[INVALID]

NEBA Bowlers,

First and foremost, I want to sincerely thank everyone who supported this weekend’s event — Mike Sedoma and his staff, Dan, Justin, Debbie, the entire NEBA staff, and especially all of the bowlers who showed up despite the impending storm.

As many of you know, today presented significant challenges. The decisions that were made were not taken lightly. I’d like to share some of the behind-the-scenes discussions from this afternoon to provide transparency and address questions many of you have raised.

At approximately 2:30 PM, we were informed of Rhode Island’s travel ban (commercial vehicles at 5:00 PM and all vehicles at 7:00 PM). The executive board and on-site board members immediately began discussing potential modifications to the match play format to accommodate these restrictions.

Initial options included:

• The final 16 teams bowling a single game on the burn, with immediate payout based on score.
• The final 16 teams bowling one game, advancing the top 8 to a second round, and paying out based on those results.
• Bowling three Baker games, ranking teams by total pinfall, and paying accordingly.

As these discussions continued, we were notified of additional travel bans in surrounding states. It quickly became clear that we did not have the time — nor the flexibility — to safely conduct any form of finals competition.

At that point, we shifted our focus to determining the fairest way to conclude the tournament following the second squad. Ultimately, we made the decision to pay the top 16 teams based on qualifying seeding.

We understand that every option had its shortcomings, and we recognize that not everyone may agree with the outcome. However, one thing remained constant throughout our discussions: the safety of our bowlers and staff will always be our top priority.

In comparing today’s decision to last month’s cancellation at Callahan’s, with the information we had available throughout the week and heading into this weekend, we had every intention of completing both events. As circumstances evolved, however, our hands were forced and we adapted accordingly.

If you have thoughts, questions, or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me, Dan, Justin, or any NEBA board member. We are always willing to have a conversation.

Thank you for your understanding and for your continued support of NEBA.

Jay Johnson
NEBA President