Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, January 21, 1995                   TAG: 9501230047
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

POWELL MISSES 300, BUT ROLLS 833 SERIES

Powell twice flirted with perfection at Lee-Hi Lanes, and the result was an 833 set, believed to be the highest in the Roanoke Valley.

Powell, 46, had games of 289, 256 and 288. In the first and third games, he bowled 10 strikes in a row before leaving single pins on the 11th ball.

``I beat myself to death the first time I came close to 300,'' said Powell, who rolled a 298 at All-Star Lanes in 1985. ``I realize, if you're bowling good, you still have a shot at a nice, big set.

``I didn't miss the right side [pocket] all night [Thursday]. I didn't throw my best shot on the 11th ball in the first game, when I left the 2-pin, but I felt I got robbed the last game, when I left the 7-pin.''

By that time, Powell already had surpassed the previous high set for the Valley, an 814 posted by Bobby Hogan at Hilltop in 1988. Powell's previous best was a 741.

Powell is a lifelong Roanoker who works as an assistant caster at Roanoke Electric Steel. He started bowling in 1976 and carries a 211 average in the Trophy League, the mixed league in which he set the record.

``I was thinking about the 300,'' said Powell, who also bowls in leagues at All-Star and Viking. ``I wasn't thinking about the 800 [set], but I could tell after the first game that it was going to be my night.''