Overnight Recap – Night Five- 2025 IBF Youth World Cup
By Matt Stevens
Stage 2 of the 2025 IBF Youth World Cup kicked off overnight at Olympia Bowl in Helsingborg, Sweden — and both Australians hit the lanes for the opening eight games of matchplay.
In this stage, every win counts: bowlers earn 30 bonus pins for a win, 15 for a tie, and they must combine matchplay success with big scores to climb the standings. After 15 total games, the top 8 will advance to the final stage.
Here’s how our Aussies fared in their first battle through Stage 2…
Samantha Clifton
| Defeated Lim (SGP) – 258+30 |
| Defeated Sarntong (THA) – 197 +30 |
| Lost to K Nielsen (DEN) – 203 |
| Lost to Erosa (MEX) – 183 |
| Lost to Abigania (USA) – 159 |
| Lost to Redzwan (MAS) – 188 |
| Lost to Masterson (IRL) – 226 |
| Lost to Mathiesen (NOR) – 182 |
| vs Duque (COL) – Lanes 15 & 16 |
| vs Lindemann (GER) – Lanes 7 & 8 |
| vs Lȍkfors (FIN) – Lanes 9 & 10 |
| vs Weinstok (CRC) – Lanes 17 & 18 |
| vs Banjac (CRO) – Lanes 3 & 4 |
| vs Sillis (ENG) – Lanes 11 & 12 |
| vs Engberg (SWE) – Lanes 5 & 6 |
After finishing Stage 1 with her best block of the tournament, Samantha returned to the lanes full of confidence — and wasted no time setting the tone for Stage 2.
Sam opened with a dominant win over Singapore’s Shi En Lim, rolling a huge 258–154 to claim her first matchplay victory and a 30-pin bonus. The 258 her highest game score since the campaign has started. She backed that up with another solid win over Thailand’s Ramita Sarntong (197–157) to make it two from two.
Despite a string of narrow losses in her next six matches, Samantha’s scoring stayed competitive throughout: she closed the session with 1,656 over eight games, averaging 199.5 — the 7th highest average in the field for this block.
While the wins didn’t keep falling her way, her pinfall means she sits 13th overall, just 31 pins outside the crucial top 8 cut — with seven games still to come.
Known for her resilience on the lanes, there is plenty of fight left in this one — let’s go Sam! 🇦🇺
Next up – Blake Walsh.
| Defeated B-Becsi (ROU) – 228 +30 |
| Defeated Prekop (CZE) – 227 + 30 |
| Defeated Vaananen (FIN) – 206 + 30 |
| Defeated Ilhammar (SWE) – 267 + 30 |
| Lost to Ngoi (SGP) – 199 |
| Defeated Hrusovsky (SVK) – 249 + 30 |
| Lost to Pettit (NZL) – 227 |
| Defeated Carter (DEN) – 247 + 30 |
| vs Qasem (KUW) – Lanes 3 & 4 |
| vs D otting (NOR) – Lanes 9 & 10 |
| vs Williams (IRL) – Lanes 7 & 8 |
| vs Vilhelmsson (ISL) – Lanes 5 & 6 |
| vs Saar (EST) – Lanes 13 & 14 |
| vs Muscat (MLT) – Lanes 15 & 16 |
| vs Abu Samah (MAS) – Lanes 11 & 12 |
After qualifying fourth overall in Stage 1, Blake wasted no time proving exactly why he’s among the best in the field.
He came out firing with four straight wins, collecting four consecutive 30-pin bonuses — capped by a powerhouse 267–204 victory over Sweden’s Robin Ilhammar that lit up Olympia Bowl.
His first setback came against Singapore’s Brian Ngoi, but Blake rebounded in style, defeating Stage 1 leader Simon Hrusovsky of Slovakia with an impressive 249–203 win.
A second loss came in a tight match against New Zealand’s Ben Pettit (227–247), but once again Blake responded immediately, closing his block with a hard-fought 247–234 victory over Denmark’s Nicholas Carter.
At the end of his opening eight matchplay games, Blake sits on 2,030, averaging a huge 231.3, and is locked in 3rd place overall heading into tonight’s final seven games.
With momentum and form on his side, he’s in a fantastic position to secure a spot in the Top 8 finals bracket.
Outstanding work Blake — let’s finish strong! 🇦🇺
Finishing in the top three for the block, Blake was interviewed following the performance.
Action resumes at 5:00 pm AEST today with Blake up first to complete Stage 2, followed by Samantha — then it’s onto the grand finale: the Top 8 finals bracket!
Stay tuned for the full lane draw and session details in this afternoon’s Nightly Preview.
We’re so proud of both Samantha and Blake — what a run so far at the 2025 IBF Youth World Cup!
