Middletown Bowler Competing In Nation's Top Annual Youth Tournament

MIDDLETOWN, CT — Ten local youth bowlers — including one from Middletown — have secured coveted spots to compete in this summer’s 2025 Junior Gold Championships, the nation’s top annual youth tournament.

Nine bowlers from the Connecticut ICS Youth Bowling League and one from the REVS Youth Bowling League are among 38 from Connecticut who will participate in the highly competitive event, which takes place in July in Green Bay. Middletown's Tristan Shepard is among them.

Youth bowlers compete in local tournaments for a limited number of spots in Junior Gold. It runs over nine days and includes qualifying rounds, advancer rounds, match play, and nationally televised finals.

Supporters of the 10 local bowlers are raising funds to help offset the cost of their participation through a GoFundMe campaign and other events.

All are members of the Connecticut ICS league (based at Hall of Fame Silver Lanes in East Hartford) except Caitlin Spaulding, who is a member of the REVS league (based at Spare Time Entertainment in Vernon).

Alphabetically by hometown, they are as follows:

• BLOOMFIELD: Rylan Milliner, an eighth-grader at Carmen Arace Middle School, who also competed in the 2024 Junior Gold Championships in Detroit.
• BOLTON: Lucy Dubeau, a fifth-grader at Bolton Center School.
• EAST GRANBY: Timothy Mele, a junior at Enfield High School.
• GLASTONBURY: Brady Reitz, a sophomore at Glastonbury High School and captain of the GHS Bowling Team.
• GRANBY: Cameron Mele, a graduating senior at Granby Memorial High School.
• MANCHESTER: Landon Dunaway, an eighth-grader at Illing Middle School; and Brennen Johnson, a freshman at Connecticut River Academy in East Hartford.
• MANSFIELD: Caitlin Spaulding, graduating senior at E.O. Smith High School.
• MIDDLETOWN: Tristan Shepard, a seventh-grader at CREC Academy of Aerospace and Engineering, who also competed in the 2024 Junior Gold Championships in Detroit.
• SOUTH WINDSOR: Sophie Donnelly, a freshman at South Windsor High School.