In the early months of the long, long ago year of 2021, twelve ball warriors who had fought and struggled on the lanes of North Kansas City for more than two decades found themselves discarded into the gutter, forgotten to time like the lonely souls in unmarked paupers graves. This is the story of their defiant effort one Tuesday evening to remind the world: "Yes, we still exist."

The apparently-unexpected ninth week of Spring 2021 saw one team climb in the standings, while one team slipped. JoAnne Barber picked up this week's high game (132) and series (385) for the woman, while Matthew Taylor (as usual) earned this week's high game (258) and series (700) for the men. Read on for all the rest of the details!

First up, on lanes 17 & 18: In what should have been a fairly closely-matched lineup Raining Chimps was instead handed a platter of cheese sticks by Gimme Some Of Your Totts. Despite being propelled by AJ Hofmann with his above-average 538 series, Chimps got swept by Gimme Totts. This was due in part to the (witnessed by several league members) pre-bowling of the absent Most Valuable Bowler Scott Murdock and his better-than-normal 593 series showed off for Gimme Totts as they swept the competition. Raining Chimps remains in 6th place, while Gimme Totts remain in 3rd.

On lanes 19 & 20: Smokin Js traded lane malfunctions with Name Coming, Curtis Said. Topped by Jeremy Varnell with his 417 series, Smokin collected 3 wins against TBD. Over on the other side, Curtis Whiles with his slightly-off 467 series took charge of TBD despite his team notching only a single win. Smokin Js climb 1 spot in the standings to 4th place, while TBD sinks 1 spot to 5th.

Finally, down on lanes 21 & 22: A well-matched pair of rivals gathered as Gordon Michael's Groupies had a rendezvous with their arch-nemesis,Larry, I'm On Ducktales. Strengthened once again by #1 Power Ranked and #1 Head-to-Head Matthew Taylor (who is poised to end the season as the 6th best bowler in league history if he keeps this up) and his above-average 700 series, Groupies collected 3 wins against Ducktales. In the midst of this, Michael Gordon with his 606 series guided Ducktales despite his team notching only a single win. Gordon Michael's Groupies remains in 2nd place, while Ducktales remain in 1st.

Bowlers who crashed the party at The 200 Club include: Aaron Barber (212,204), AJ Hofmann (212), Matthew Taylor (201,258,241), Michael Gordon (236,222), and Scott Murdock (235)

In this week's Tournament of Champions brackets: Matthew Taylor routed Division 1, while Jeremy Varnell won Division 2. In terms of overall points: Michael Gordon tops Division 1; and James Tott is in the driver's seat in Division 2.

NEXT WEEK:

• First, on lanes who the fuck knows, 2nd-place Gordon Michael's Groupies will tussle with 5th-place Name Coming, Curtis Said (hcp 59). Groupies are expected to dazzling and sweep the series; while TBD is forecast to drop their average a bit while they endure a rough night.
• Moving to lanes eleventy-three and eleventy-four, 1st-place Larry, I'm On Ducktales will compete against 3rd-place Gimme Some Of Your Totts (hcp 40). Ducktales might roll a little low and lose the series but avoid getting swept; while Gimme Totts ought to raise their average while they enjoy their victories.
• Finally, on lanes √(-1) and π*(∞^3), 4th-place Smokin Js (hcp 61) will match wits with 6th-place Raining Chimps. Smokin is predicted to roll decently and win the series; while Chimps are anticipated to drop their average a bit while they avoid getting swept.

^*(Remember, the predicted results above are based on mathematical extrapolations and can be changed by all sorts of factors. If you don't like how your team's results are predicted, you and your teammates have the power to prove the math wrong!)

THIS WEEK'S MVB Scott Murdock Runner Up: (See Posting)	#1 POWER BOWLER Matthew Taylor Runner Up: Scott Murdock	#1 H2H BOWLER Matthew Taylor Runner Up: AJ Hofmann
FROM THE GUTTER (GUTTER QUOTE) "Hurry and get it in, I don't know how much longer I can keep it up!" Matthew Taylor, to Jeremy Varnell, as they attempted to re-attach a wheel to a bowling bag.