Cottage Grove resident, Tiffanie Williams, has won the Emerald Valley USBC Bowler of the Year Award. The honor is presented annually to the best bowler in the Willamette Valley region, a region that includes area bowling alleys such as the Cottage Bowl, Emerald Lanes, Firs Bowl, Strike City Lanes, and Family Fun Bowling.

“I’ve been bowling for 25 years. This is something I would have always loved to achieve, so I was super excited. I’ve won state serval times: individually, as a doubles team, or a together team. It’s kind of fun; you don’t always get recognized as an individual. A lot of times, in bowling, it’s your team,” said Williams.

Over the years, several Cottage Grove bowlers have been honored by the Emerald Valley USBC in many ways. Casey Carver was named male bowler of the year for the 2019-2020 season.

For the 2019-2020 season, Andy Mitchell was named the Male Senior Bowler of the Year. For the 2020-21 season, Butch Cardoza made the Hall of Fame in the Superior Performance category while Vince Fiatarone saw his name make the Hall of Fame for his Meritorious Service. Other noteworthy bowlers included Wayne Northern who won Male Platinum Bowler of the Year and Dave Richardson won Male Senior Bowler of the Year, all of which have ties to the Cottage Grove community.

Williams helps sub when bowlers can’t make it to Monday night leagues and also participates in Wednesday night leagues. She spent most of her time in Cottage Grove but has also bowled at Emerald Lanes in Eugene.

“I love [bowling]. I enjoy our family - we aren’t just friends - we are a family. We also have some senior bowlers that we look forward to seeing. During COVID, we didn’t bowl because we were trying to protect them, because they are the most susceptible. It’s great to see their faces every week. The owners of the bowling alley are wonderful people, too, and are extended family to me,” Williams said.

While Williams is an accomplished bowler on her own merits, she tells the Sentinel that a great amount of credit is due to her husband and other family members.

“My husband is a great coach. He has been bowling for even longer than me. We bowl together on Wednesday nights, and he bowls Thursdays in Men’s League, as well as Mondays.

“Our youngest [daughter] bowls on Saturday mornings; she’s part of the junior program,” Williams continued. “She was on the high school bowling team, and she lettered. It’s a family sport. Our oldest [son] also bowls and his daughter started bowling last year. It’s fun on Saturday morning watching our youngest but also getting to watch our granddaughter.”