Stratton had been in commanding form on her path through to the final, but could find no answer for the drawing power of Eathorne on the Roslyn green.
Eathorne (32), a Dunedin primary school teacher, by contrast survived a second-round scare to beat Sacha Taylor (Leith) 21-18 before progressing through to a semifinal clash against the up-and-coming Tania Beattie (Fairfield).
Despite Eathorne escaping with a 21-19 victory, Beattie was a model of consistency, and it is only a matter of time before a title comes her way.
The close encounter with Beattie last Sunday and the four-day wait for the final may have sharpened Eathorne as she jumped to a seven-shot lead after just three ends before Stratton was able to play a scoring shot.
The game and the right to the junior women’s title always appeared Eathorne’s to lose, as she marched her way to victory and finished in style with three shots on the 17th end to win the race to score 21.
There is no doubting the sporting prowess of Eathorne (nee King).
She was an Otago age-group hockey representative and cricketer, playing for Sparks for two seasons, before turning her attention to bowls three years ago.
The men’s junior singles final reached a climax last Sunday when defending champion Brent McEwan (St Clair) defeated Hugh Marshall (Kaikorai) 21-14 at Andersons Bay Bowling Club to win his fifth centre title.
Marshall drew first blood on the opening end but was unable to counter the drawing power of McEwan over the next seven ends as he jumped out to a 9-2 lead in a hard-fought encounter.
Despite surrendering a seven-shot advantage to McEwan, Marshall was far from out for the count as he clawed his way back, keeping McEwan scoreless for the next six ends to grab a 12-9 lead.
But fortune smiled on McEwan as he drew three shots on the 15th end to lock the game up at 12-12.
He was then a model of consistency over the remaining eight ends as he won the race to 21, successfully securing back-to-back titles in his fifth and final year as a junior bowler.
