Week 13 is now in the books and oh what a week it was. The league standings may not have changed very much but the stage is being set for an exciting finish to Season 23. Three teams seem to have broken themselves off from the rest of the league with the Finals just as many weeks away. Only seven games separate the triumvirate at the moment and a showdown between the top two teams is slated for next week. In the meantime, GutterAlley witnessed yet another impressive series of high games from bowlers not typically in the spotlight on their teams, several crucial games were settled by just a few pins in the 10th frame and a new recruit this season added yet another notch in his MVB belt proving that you never can tell what's going to happen on any given night in our league. Gotta love it, folks!Voting for the initial class of inductees into the GutterAlley Hall of Fame will shut down very soon. Anyone that has completed at least one season of bowling in our league is eligible to vote and it only takes a very short time to make your picks so please take the time to let your voice be heard today. Talk about a hard fought matchup. After last week's high output, No Pinheads's one and only Dennis "Pops" Laube continued to light up the lanes with yet another team-leading performance. This time, Laube's 527 series secured them Game #1 before the opposition woke up. After that, it was time for The Joe Longstreet and Sam Nau Show. With Longstreet's 384 series coupled with Nau's third Most Valuable Bowler of the season, SucmaBOWLS stormed back to win Game #2 and Game #3. Fortunately for the Pinheads, their margin of victory in the first game helped them hold on to even the victories at two games apiece. While No Pinheads remain in 4th place, SucmaBOWLS managed to hop back up into 6th place with their two wins.Everyone loves a good underdog story, especially when it involves Touch My Vlad picking off another win from a top ranked team. Such was the case Tuesday night when they faced league powerhouse Istanbowl Turkey. After Vlad stole Game #1 by a mere nine pins – with Chris Able's 401 series leading the way and Emily Podhajsky's highest game all season – it was time for the Turkeys to get back to business. Angela Bradford then took the reigns and led her team to a 3-1 matchup victory with her 499 series. The wins keep both teams in their current standings spots with Istanbowl Turkey in 3rd and Touch My Vlad in 8th place.Look out, first place...there may soon be a new sheriff in town. Continuing their impressive push towards the Finals, Dolls and Balls is showing no signs of slowing down. Unfortunately for Tonganoxie Doglift, this week was the best week of the Balls season. With anchor and team namesake Ryan Doll hoisting a 563 series to lead the way – and earning the #1 Power Ranked nod as well – the Balls secured a 4-0 win over Tonganoxie. While the initial two games were blowouts, Game #3 was settled by only four pins. Rookie of the Season contender Russell Madsen led the Doglifts with a 437 series in the losing effort. Dolls and Balls remains in 2nd, still back 4.5 games, while Tonganoxie Doglift slips one spot into 7th place.How does one celebrate his birthday during the best season of his career? By adding four more victories, that's how. Carl Goetz, who has put up big games week after week all season, spent the night before his birthday helping S*I*C*K stay atop the league standings by defeating Eat Split and DI 4-0 in their last face off this season. Goetz led S*I*C*K with a 570 series. On the opposite side of the equation, AJ Hofmann put up his best individual game of his career in Game #2 – a 183 – within his team-leading 449 series but it simply wasn't enough to derail the current league champions. S*I*C*K keeps their claw hold on 1st while Eat Split and DI remains in 5th place.This week saw a league veteran make his way into The 200 Club for the first time all season to join two other regulars who haven't been spied there as often as they should. They include: Bill Krejci (225), Ken M. Wilson (200, 201) and Ryan Doll (206, 200).Uh-oh. Murdock the Kinda Good at Times gazed into his crystal bowling ball to divine the Week 14 predictions and he's spied quite a bit. In a potential preview of the Finals, our league soothsayer foresees underdogs Dolls and Balls beating S*I*C*K 3-1, Eat Split and DI battling Tonganoxie Doglift into a 2-2 standstill, SucmaBOWLS falling all four to Istanbowl Turkey and Touch My Vlad continuing their 1-game hits against the predicted-to-win-3 No Pinheads. We'll have to wait and see just how accurate his powers of prognosticating turn out to be next week.See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Sam Nau Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Ryan Doll Runner Up: Kelly Anderson	#1 H2H BOWLER Ryan Doll Runner Up: Dennis Laube
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Oh, I'll show her something small." Bob Brunker, while talking to Seth and Ken about the "beer wench."

There are only a few more weeks of voting left before we close up shop on the inaugural class of enshrinees for our recently formed Hall of Fame. So if you have a moment, please visit the Hall and cast your vote(s) today. All season long, the trash talk has flown back and forth between reigning champs S*I*C*K and long-time rivals Istanbowl Turkey. In their first meeting, S*I*C*K came away with a sweep. When they met again in the position round, it was Istanbowl's turn to win it, 3-1. Tuesday night, however, the teams battled one another to a standstill and came away with two games apiece. S*I*C*K's Carl Goetz put up the top numbers for his team with a 592 series. Both Angela Bradford and Bob Brunker of Istanbowl put up a 486 to collectively lead their team. The results keep S*I*C*K in first place by 4.5 games and Istanbowl Turkey in 3rd, back six games.Remember the talk about the big games out of seemingly nowhere? Well, Dolls and Balls should be hoisting this week's Most Valuable Bowler – Kelly Anderson – onto their shoulders to celebrate their 3-1 matchup victory over opponents SucmaBOWLS. Despite Sucma's Orion Kinkaid's 519 series (including a 211 in Game #1), it was the combination of Kelly's performance and a team-leading 506 series from oft-absent Bill Krejci that secured the wins for Dolls. This was easily the best matchup of the evening as every single game came down to the 10th frame. Total pins was settled by a mere three pins in Dolls favor and keeps them in 2nd place, only 4.5 games back from first place. SucmaBOWLS remains in 7th place.Each season, there seems to be one team that piles on the wins in the first half and then can't buy a victory after the position round. This seems to be the fate of Eat Split and DI in our Spring session. Tired of losing week after week, Touch My Vlad decided to strike when the iron was hot against Eat Split and notched their largest victories of the season, coming away with a 3-1 win over the former 2nd place team. Led by Chris Able's 435 series – along with serious output from teammate Jeremy Stockbridge – Touch My Vlad narrowly missed their first sweep "against real people" (there's your quote, Sarah!) by only a nine pin defeat in Game #1. Eat's Teresa Deterding led her team with a 393 series in the losing effort. While Vlad still remains in 8th place, Eat Split and DI falls another spot into 5th place.What do you do when your anchor breaks her shoulder and is out indefinitely? Why, you win of course. With back-to-back 200+ games from Dennis "Pops" Laube of No Pinheads, the team got back on track and added three more wins to their record. Laube's 582 series was his highest so far this season and earned him #1 Power Rankedbowler honors. Tonganoxie Doglift, despite coming up on the smaller side of the 3-1 outcome, saw an impressive performance from Bill Riley. Riley, leading his team with a 398 series, rolled his first ever 200+ game in league – a 208 – to secure their Game #1 victory. No Pinheads moves up one spot into 4th while Tonganoxie remains in 6th place. Now that's more like it. A good number of people showed up this week at The 200 Club including: Aubrey Moren (201), Bill Riley (208), Carl Goetz (211), Dennis "Pops" Laube (232, 203), Ken M. Wilson (201) and Orion Kinkaid (211).Week 13's predictions has our favorite soothsayer Murdock the Kinda Good at Times foreseeing No Pinheads sweeping SucmaBOWLS, Istanbowl Turkey doing the same to Touch My Vlad, Dolls and Balls coming away with a 3-1 win over Tonganoxie Doglift and S*I*C*K helping to improve Eat Sick and DI's losing record. We'll have to want and see how well these predictions play out. See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Kelly Anderson Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Dennis Laube Runner Up: Aubrey Moren	#1 H2H BOWLER Aubrey Moren Runner Up: Dennis Laube
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Come on, guys! Spank these @ssholes...and not in a fun way." Deena Slinkard, while watching Istanbowl Turkey battle long-time rivals S*I*C*K.

At the mid-point of April – with the Finals five weeks off – the VML Bowling League witnessed quite a shakeup in the league standings. While the team at the top of the standings continues to hold onto that coveted spot, there was quite a shakeup amongst the rest of the league. All it took was a nod from a doctor clearing a long-time bowling powerhouse to return to the lanes after arm surgery to bring about one of the largest single-week climbs of any team this season. We're still accepting votes to name the four inaugural enshrinees into the GutterAlley Hall of Fame so, if you haven't already, please swing by and cast your vote(s) today. Thank you!So, shall we light this candle? Oh yes we shall.The last time these two teams faced off in Week #3, it was Eat Split and DI that walked away with the clean sweep over opponents No Pinheads. Such was not this case this time around. With Aubrey Moren leading the way with a 509 series, it was the Pinheads' turn to savor the sweet taste of victory with a 4-0 win over Eat Split and DI. Jake Parrott heaved the top series for Eat in the loss, ending his evening with a 418. While the victories keep the Pinheads in 5th place, they have narrowed the gap between themselves and the top half of the league standings. Eat Split and DI slips one spot into 4th place, enjoying a half game lead over No Pinheads.The second match-up of the evening between Touch My Vlad and Tonganoxie Doglift had to wait until Saturday when Vlad completed their post-bowling. The end result? The men of Tonganoxie came away with a 3-1 matchup victory...narrowly missing the sweep by a single pin in Game #2. Led by one of this season's top new recruits – and the Rookie of the Season as far as this writer is concerned – Tonganoxie's Russell Madsen led his team with a 453 series while continuing to raise his average. If not for Emily Podhajsky rolling her second highest game all season in Game #2, Vlad would have found themselves blanked. Chris Able put up the top series for Touch My Vlad, ending with a 456. While Vlad remains in 8th, Tonganoxie Doglift climbs one spot into 6th place with their three wins.Let's face it. Last week, S*I*C*K's best performer Carl Goetz had an off week. His performance this Tuesday night made that a faint memory. Earning Most Valuable Bowler honors with his 638 series, Goetz propelled his team to a 4-0 win in a closely fought battle against opponents SucmaBOWLS. Sucma's Orion Kinkaid kept him team in contention each game, ending his evening with a team-high 452 series. The victories keep S*I*C*K in first place by a margin of 5.5 games while SucmaBOWLS falls into 7th place pending the outcome of the post-bowling matchup.Welcome back, Ryan Doll. After having been out after surgery on his bowling arm, Doll got to return to the lanes and "roll for real" and led his Dolls and Balls team in the process into a 4-0 beat down over former 2nd place team Istanbowl Turkey...overtaking 2nd place themselves. Doll's performance also netted him the nod as this week's #1 Power Rankedbowler. Shorthanded Istanbowl was led by this week by Scott "Scooter J" Murdock and his 484 series in the quadruple loss. By the slight margin of half a game, Dolls and Balls ascends two spots into 2nd while Istanbowl Turkey falls into 3rd place. Only one bowler made it into The 200 Club this week. That's right, it was this week's MVB Carl Goetz (203, 237).In the predictions for next week, our favorite soothsayer Murdock the Kinda Good at Times has S*I*C*K defeating Istanbowl Turkey 3-1 and Dolls and Balls taking three from SucmaBOWLS. He's remaining silent about the outcomes of the rest of the league due to the post-bowling scores still being out. Is Murdock the Kinda Good at Times' crystal bowling ball foreseeing the truth about the future? We'll all find out next week.See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Carl Goetz Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Ryan Doll Runner Up: Chris Able	#1 H2H BOWLER Ryan Doll Runner Up: Carl Goetz
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "I even blew on it a little bit. DAMMIT, Gutter Quote!" Ken M. Wilson, after watching a pin tap – but not knock down – the lone remaining pin after what he thought should have been a strike.

Another week, another round of wins and losses to make the league's standings interesting. While S*I*C*K continues to top the league, their lead has once again been cut into and is within striking range of two other teams. With the Finals six weeks out, can another team finally knock them from their first place perch? It seems highly likely with as many ups and downs as each team is facing each week...including a long-time bowling legend earning his first Most Valuable Bowler performance in a season fraught with low scores. If you haven't swung by to check out GutterAlley's new Hall of Fame, please be sure to do so and cast your vote(s) today. Thank you!No healthy anchor? No problem! With Dolls and Balls' namesake still nursing a surgically repaired bowling arm, Rob Kaszuba stepped in to carry the team to a 3-1 matchup victory over opponents Touch My Vlad with his team-leading 499 series. Vlad's Jeremy Stockbridge put up the top series for his team – a 339 – but it simply wasn't enough to earn more than a lone win for the night. Vlad remains in 8th place while Dolls and Balls continues to shorten the distance between themselves and the third place spot.After a month of bad bowling, S*I*C*K's former anchor Ken M. Wilson shook off his bad vibes and got back to rolling his average, ending his night with a 585 series and earning #1 Power Rankedbowler nod in the process. His performance, however, wasn't even close to what it needed to be to derail a short-handed No Pinheads from kicking S*I*C*K's ass 3-1. Led by Aubrey Moren and his 505 series, the Schroeder-less Pinheads added three more notches in their win column. The Pinheads remain in fifth place, four games back from moving up a spot. S*I*C*K remains atop the league standings, up only a couple of victories.Tensions always run high when the teams in the top half of the standings square off against one another. Such was the case with Eat Split and DI taking on Istanbowl Turkey in a 2nd vs. 3rd place matchup. All season long, these two teams have continually swapped spots back and forth but this week it was Istanbowl that regained second place behind a surprise performance from this week's Most Valuable Bowler, the one and only Bob Brunker. With a team-leading 504 series Brunker led the charge in the upset, sending Eat Split and DI back down into 3rd place. Eat's anchor Jake Parrott booked the best numbers for his team, ending his evening with a 376 series. Three games now separate the two teams.In the final battle of the evening, Tonganoxie Doglift managed to stage an impressive comeback after dropping Games #1 and #2 to opponents SucmaBOWLS. With "Rookie of the Season" candidate Russell Madsen continuing to raise his average each week – he moved into the 140s with his team-leading 435 series on Tuesday – Tonganoxie Doglift managed to stave off being blanked despite a big start from opponent Orion Kinkaid. Kinkaid, falling victim to the roller coaster ride that seems to have made its way through the league this week, put up a 438 series to earn his team their two victories before tapering off in Game #3. Without ample firepower, Sucma not only dropped Game #3 but also lost total pins in the process. The two teams remains in their respective spots in the standings with SucmaBOWLS clinging to 6th while Tonganoxie Doglift sits in 7th. A single game separates the two teams from one another.Only three bowlers clawed their way inside the The 200 Club this week. They were: Aubrey Moren (204), Ian Goetz (201) and Ken M. Wilson (204). See you next Tuesday!

THIS WEEK'S MVB Bob Brunker Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Ken Wilson Runner Up: Bob Brunker	#1 H2H BOWLER Ken M. Wilson Runner Up: Bob Brunker
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Jesus, it's like Freda died and her ghost returned to take possession of these two teams!" Scott Murdock, while standing around waiting for SucmaBOWLS and Tonganoxie Doglift to complete their matchup.