Mason Wins Gold at World Championships

Lincoln - Team USA's Gazmine Mason won the gold medal in singles at the World Bowling Youth Championships Wednesday evening, defeating Victoria Chin of Malaysia by a score of 211-207 in the final at Sun Valley Lanes in Lincoln.

Mason, a rising senior for the Nebraska bowling team, entered the Wednesday's competition as the third seed after the qualifying round and faced teammate Julia Bond in semifinal action. Mason defeated Bond, who will be a junior for the Huskers in 2016-17, by a score of 234-169 to advance to the final.

"I honestly feel relieved because all my hard work has paid off," said Mason. "I made shots, made spares, stayed in the present and never gave up. I truly appreciate all the support from my parents, friends, family and coaches."

Bond earned a bronze medal for her efforts. Mason's win marked the first girls' singles title for the United States at the World Youth Championships since 2000.

Raquel Orozco, an incoming freshman to the Nebraska program in 2016-17, represented her native Mexico and finished 17th overall with an average of 203 in Tuesday's qualifying round.

Mason, Bond and Orozco will compete again at the World Bowling Youth Championships at 9 a.m. (CT) on Friday in the doubles competition. Mason and Bond will team up on USA 1, while Orozco will compete on Mexico 1. Both teams will compete in Squad A, with the top two teams from the 20-team squad advancing to the semifinal round. The doubles semifinals will take place at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, and the championship match will follow at 6:15 p.m. The World Bowling Youth Championships run until August 2 at Sun Valley Lanes, and complete results can be found here.