ALLEN PARK — Growing up the daughter of former professional bowler John Mazza, Utica junior Ava Mazza said she has regularly watched old videos of her father when he was in his prime on the PBA Tour.

“Obviously I wasn’t born yet,” Ava Mazza said. “But on YouTube I’ve watched the Dick Weber Classic and him picking up a 7-10 split. It’s something I won’t forget watching.”

John Mazza now will have the same opportunity to rewatch highlights of Ava achieving a major title.

Following back-to-back semifinal appearances the last two years, Ava Mazza advanced this time all the way to the championship round of the Division 1 Singles Finals and won an all-Macomb County matchup against Macomb Dakota senior Brianne Jakuszanek 350-333 at Thunderbowl Lanes.

John Mazza, who is also the coach of Utica’s team, said it was the biggest thrill he’s had in bowling – even better than his own. 

“Absolutely,” he said. “Anytime your kid does something incredible, everything else you’ve personally accomplished pales in comparison to it.” 

Through the first game and first eight frames of the second, the deciding match was tight as could be.

Ava Mazza and Jakuszanek were tied after the first game at 170 apiece, and in the second game Jakuszanek held a one-pin advantage with both having a mark going into the ninth frame. 

From there, Mazza took control, delivering strikes on her next three balls to prevail. 

“I just took a deep breath, and it was everything I was working for,” she said. “I doubled in the 10^th, and it got me the win.”

Indeed, after Mazza threw the second strike in the 10th frame, John Mazza broke down in tears knowing she had clinched it, and even came out to give her a tearful embrace before she threw her third shot.

“It was a sense of relief from all the pain and hard work,” John Mazza said. “We’ve had a lot of painful situations. We’re getting in these positions a lot, and it’s nice to finish it off. She had the ball in her hand with a chance to win it, and she threw the shots she needed to throw.”

Ava Mazza was fourth out of the qualifying block and started her run in match play by beating White Lake Lakeland junior Savannah Reed in the round of 16, 411-330. She then beat Livonia Churchill senior Sophia Best in the quarterfinals (422-317) and Taylor senior Aria Ragland in the semifinals (405-346).

“It just means everything to me,” Mazza said. “I’ve put in so much work and so much time. I’ve been working out, I’ve been reading books on the mental game. I’ve been working super hard to try and understand and perfect the games I struggle with the most.”

Jakuszanek was the 15th seed out of qualifying as she advanced to the match play round for the first time in her high school career.

She began her run with a win over Rockford junior Sofia DeLuccia in the round of 16 (348-331), then beat Caledonia sophomore Katelyn Light (385-345) in the quarterfinals and Southfield Arts & Technology senior Jaysa Taylor (404-305) in the semifinals.

“Just confidence in myself and telling myself I got this no matter what,” Jakuszanek said of what was working for her on the day. “It was my senior year, so just go out there and have fun.

“It was pretty tough. There were a lot of ball changes and a lot of angles that were difficult.”

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