Cape Girardeau woman wins PWBA regional event

Meleia Sides of Cape Girardeau swept a field of 30 bowlers to win a Professional Women's Bowling Association regional tournament Sunday in Savannah, Tenn.

Sides averaged 224.64 over 22 games in the two-day Jones Motor City Open. It was her first win on the tour after finishing 11th at a PWBA regional stop in Conway, Ark., earlier this year.

"I dropped off my 5-year-old daughter Friday and she asked if I was going to bring home a trophy this weekend," Sides said. "I said, 'I'll sure try.'

"It seemed like everything I'd learned, everything I'd heard and everything I'd ever watched just came together this weekend."

Sides advanced from Saturday's qualifying to lead 10 finalists. She was seeded first after a position round, then defeated fourth-seeded Kathryn Whisnant of Fayetteville, N.C., 256-242 in Sunday's final round.

Sides finished at plus-692 at the end of 22 games on a scale of 200. Her highest game of the weekend was 280.