​After a season of dominating the Bill Mastronardi Masters League, it was only fitting that the Sunset Lanes team capped the season by winning the league’s post-season tournament on Monday night.

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Of the four potential spots available in the tournament, the Sunset Lanes team of captain Steve Taylor, Joe Robards, Ryan Walker and Bloomington’s Jason Jones claimed three of them after capturing the final third by 20 points.

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They also won the second third after barely being edged out of the first-third title by Potter’s Alley and finished 75 points ahead of the field for the most overall points in the season – an even 1,000.

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In the post-season tournament, held at Sunset Lanes in Pekin, Sunset Lanes jumped out to an early 10-2 lead behind an opening 279 by Taylor and a 257 by Jones.

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But it took a late flurry of strikes to put the match away against Potter’s Alley. Midway through the sixth frame of the final game, Jones started a rally that included 16 strikes in 17 shots, including 11 in a row, to pull away for the win.

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“It would have been tough to swallow if we had lost the tournament after the kind of year we had,” Taylor said. “You never know what’s going to happen.”

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The final score was 34-16.

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Taylor led the way with a 752, sweeping Potter’s captain Bob Baker 8-0. Jones added a 707 in a 6-2 decision over Brian Davis; Walker beat Peoria’s Jason Jones 6-2; and Potter’s Chris Feger swept Robards with a team-high 695 series.

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“The right lane hooked a lot more, and I felt if we could stay clean or catch a couple of doubles on that lane, we were going to be good on the left lane,” Taylor said. “That’s what happened. Halfway through the last game we had a bunch in a row, and that kind of separated us.”

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It was the fifth or sixth title for Taylor (he couldn’t remember how many), who has had a good draft-day strategy for the past few years.

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“A lot of people draft their friends,” he said. “I go in with no expectations. I just see who’s the best available, and that’s who I pick every year.

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“I like to compete, and I don’t like to lose. So I put together a good team, and we all jelled all year and it worked out in our favor. In a 33-week league, you have to have contributions from everybody on the team.”

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Taylor made a solid first-round selection in Jones, who bowled well enough to earn a spot as captain for next season.

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Robards was solid as the lead bowler every week and Walker had a strong finish after some early-season struggles.

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“Ryan was in his first year in the league, and I gave him a chance,” Taylor said. “He started out a little slow, but then in the middle he really stepped up and got us the points when we needed them."

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Sunset Lanes might have swept the league had it not been for a near-perfect finish by Potter’s at the end of the first third.

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Bob Baker’s team was in fourth place with two weeks to go but went 46-4 each of the final two weeks to vault into first place. Taylor’s team won their position-round match over Wingstop, but finished second, just four points behind Potter’s.

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Because there was no league roll-off, both the Sunset Lanes and Potter's Alley teams will be entered in the upcoming Tournament of Champions.

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Travis Anderson ended up with a high average in the league at 238.43, almost five pins ahead of Tommy Barnwell (233.56). Taylor was third (233.1), Tony Recsnik fourth (230.3) and Tony DeVita fifth (229.72).

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Also earning spots as captains were Andy Stone, Chad Barnes, Irvin Johnson, Bill Maher, Don Sweet, Jason Jones of Bloomington, and Rob Johnson. Chris Feger, who finished 13th on the average list, will probably get a spot because Recsnik will be furthering his education and will not return to the league next season.

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Anderson also was the points leader, finishing 170-86 from his anchor position. Johnson, who earned his first captain’s spot, and Bloomington’s Jones were tied for second with 156, Kevin Tockes was fourth at 150 and Feger fifth at 148.