TEAM USA'S DEREK EOFF WINS WORLD CUP

HERMOSILLO, Mexico - Team USA's Derek Eoff of Greenfield, Wis., struck his way into the record books at the 2008 QubicaAMF World Cup on Friday and will bring the coveted cup home to the United States for the second consecutive year.

On the way to a 2-1 win over Sweden's Martin Larsen at Bol 300, Eoff rolled games of 221, 279 and 278 for a 778 series, the highest three-game set in a World Cup championship round.

After dropping the opening game 229-221, Eoff rode the momentum of an emotional ninth and 10th frame roll-off (59-37) that decided Game 2 after a 279 tie and then struck 10 times to put the final game out of reach 278-196.

"After the third frame of the first game, I changed to a ball that I hadn't thrown all week, and it turned out to be a pretty good guess," said Eoff, a two-time Team USA member and first-time World Cup participant. "I knew I had a really good reaction going into the second game, so it was just a matter of carry. When he kept striking, I knew I had to keep striking, too. When I won the second game the way I did, I knew I had the momentum going into the last game."

Eoff started the day slowly with three spares and a split in the first four frames, but quickly got lined up after a ball change. He struck seven times in the final eight frames of the first game and never looked back.

Larsen matched him strike for strike through nine frames in Game 2, including a Brooklyn strike along the way, and when Eoff left a 2 pin in the 10th frame, Larsen could've locked up the title with another strike. Instead, he left a 10 pin and struck on his fill ball to force the roll-off.

"When I first got involved in youth bowling, I never would've believed that one day I would be bowling for the World Cup," said Eoff, a Sport Bowling Coordinator for the United States Bowling Congress. "This is a dream come true and feels absolutely amazing."

Last year, nine-time Team USA member Bill Hoffman of Columbus, Ohio, became the first American man to win the World Cup since 1995. Eoff's title marks the ninth win for the American men and the 17th overall title for the United States.

On the way to the championship match Friday, Larsen posted a 2-1 win against No. 3 Zulmazran Zulkifli of Malaysia. Larsen won the opening game 203-187, split twice and lost the second game 237-180 and bounced back to win the final game, 249-187.

On the women's side, Jasmine Yeong-Nathan of Singapore struck 20 times on the way to a 2-0 win over defending champion, Ann-Maree Putney of Australia, and will bring the World Cup back to Singapore for the first time.

Yeong-Nathan, who rolled one of five perfect games at Bol 300 this week, started the first game of the championship match with nine consecutive strikes before a 4-6-10 ended her run at perfection, but a 263-222 win gave her the momentum in the match.

The second game looked a lot like the first as Yeong-Nathan opened with 11 strikes on the way to a 298-215 victory. The 20-year-old right-hander left the 2-5 on her final shot. The previous high game rolled in the women's stepladder finals was 280, shot by Putney in 2007.

"I just came here to bowl my game and do my best, and winning is a great bonus," said Yeong-Nathan, a two-time member of Team Singapore. "I took it one shot at a time, but it was great because everyone loves strikes. I feel really happy right now."

With a win, Putney would've been the first woman to win back-to-back titles since Jeanette Baker Finch, also from Australia, did it in 1982 and 1983, and would've become the fourth woman to win two World Cups (Finch, Shannon Pluhowsky of the United States and Pauline Smith (Buck) of Great Britain).

Putney advanced to the final with a 2-0 win over England's Zara Glover, 246-219 and 248-202.

Pluhowsky, who won the event in 2002 and 2004 and was looking to become the first woman to win the coveted World Cup three times, rolled a 299 game during match play Thursday and finished sixth overall.

This year's World Cup featured 82 men and 63 women representing 85 countries. It was the event's second trip to Hermosillo, which also played host in 1994.

Friday's championship round was shown live on Mexican television and also aired live on Eurosport, the largest European sports satellite and cable network.