Carson on Cloud Nine after 843 series

Julie Carson was on Cloud Nine after rolling games of 279, 299 and 265 for a dream-like 843 series at East Lincoln Lanes. It’s the third highest series ever rolled by a York County female bowler.

“After it was all over, I was questioning whether it was real or not,” said Carson, who easily eclipsed her previous high of 789. “I was in such a zone, I wasn’t really sure it had happened.”

Going into the ninth frame of her third game, she had a shot at surpassing Jennifer Elicker’s 868, the York County women’s record, and tying Marvin Goldberg’s 878, the county’s highest series.

There was, however, plenty of drama before that. The 28-year-old right-hander missed recording her first perfect game when a 10-pin refused to budge on the last ball of her second game.

“I just tried to go through my normal routine prior to the last shot,” she said. “I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be. I felt good about the shot, but I didn’t carry the 10-pin. I was a little disappointed. In the end, however, I was happy to have recorded my highest game.”

Carson started the third game with eight consecutive strikes. She cooled off in the ninth as she notched a nine/spare. She followed with an eight/spare and an eight-count in the 10^th.

“I was just trying to keep up with the transitioning lanes the second half of the last game,” she pointed out. “There wasn’t as much pressure on me because I had already gotten my 800 series. But, I did get more nervous as the night went on.”

Although an 800 series has always been one of Carson’s goals, she didn’t expect to accomplish it so soon.

“It was more of a long-range goal for me,” she offered. “After the second game, I knew I had a good shot at an 800. But, I wasn’t counting on it. I tried to take one frame at a time.”

The 843 series helped validate Carson’s efforts to improve her game and that she’s one of the county’s top female bowlers.

“It was a great feeling,” said Carson, who averaged 207 last season. “It was all very surreal, and it took a while for what I had accomplished to sink it.”