WYOMING, Mich. — Three Rivers’ boys’ and girls’ bowling teams both finished third at the Don Lamb Memorial Tournament at Spectrum Lanes in Wyoming Friday, Dec. 27.
The boys’ squad, after qualifying fourth with a score of 2,594, went into Baker match play where they were downed 2-0 by Grandville, then went on to win 2-1 against Flushing in the loser’s bracket to take third. They were led in the individuals by Nick Allen’s 235, Lucan Hoercher with 178, and JT Wilds rolling a 167.
On the girls’ side, the Wildcats qualified first with a score of 2,530 then went on to lose to the Grandville ladies 2-1, then won over the Flushing ladies team 2-1 to also finish in third. The girls were led in individuals by Jayna Larson’s 214, Tayler Mohney’s 194, and Laighnee Roll-Pike’s 155.
Both Larson and Allen also received 2nd place All-Tournament honors for their performances.
The Wildcats will be back on the lanes Jan. 5 at Continental Lanes for the Husky Open.
Sturgis bowlers miss cut at Don Lamb tourney; Career highs set at singles event
WYOMING, Mich. — The Sturgis boys and girls bowling teams took part in the Don Lamb Allegan/South Haven Invite Friday, Dec. 27, held at Spectrum Lanes in Grand Rapids. Although neither team made the cut, there were several season and career highs established.
In boys’ singles, Sturgis had a total pin count of 1454 (696/758). Brayden Smoker rolled 201-160 (17th place), Josh Groff had 139-200 (24th place), Malachi Monty rolled 145-149 (37th place), Noah Walker had 104-132 (44th place), and Brian Becerril-Nieves finished with 107-117 (46th place), which is his career high.
In the Bakers event, the Trojan boys bowled to a total of 779, giving them a final pin count of 2233 on the day, which put them in 10th place out of 12 teams. A 199 in the Bakers event is a new season high for Sturgis.
In girls’ singles, the Lady Trojans bowled to a final total of 1033 (513-520). Khara Kimes placed sixth with 181-152, Beth Waugh had 100-112 (27th place), Mackenzie Myers placed 29th (103-92), while Elliana McNett finished 33rd (75-80). Madison Mow and Blair Brinneman rolled 84 and 54, respectively.
The Bakers event had the girls bowling to a total of 615, which gave them a pin count of 1648 for the tournament, placing them seventh out of eight teams. A 140 game in the Bakers event is now the season high for the Lady Trojans. Myers, McNett and Mow all rolled career highs in the individual portion.
It was a good day on the lanes,” Sturgis coach Scott Spahr said. “The reserve parts of our roster got some much needed tournament experience due to illness and holiday family time.” Spahr also added that “The ladies also performed well on the day also. Event by event, Khara (Kimes) is settling into her new role as the anchor of the team. She just missed the All-Tourney team by seven pins. We’re seeing improvement from both teams each time out.”
Sturgis then took part in the Midway Lanes Singles events, held in Coldwater on Sunday, Dec. 29, with career highs set for both teams on the day.
A total of 31 bowlers rolled in the boys’ competition, with 756 being established as the cut. Andrew Matz finished with a 752 series (high game of 223), which gave him a fourth-place finish. Josh Groff grabbed seventh spot, rolling a 749. Malachi Monty placed 15th (641, 187 career high game), Brayden Smoker ended in 29th place (490 series), while Noah Walker rolled 454 (30th place). Brian Becerril-Nieves placed 31st (295).
In the girls’ event, the cut was set at 571. Khara Kimes finished fourth with a series of 609, Beth Waugh had a career high game of 157, and also a career high series of 552, placing her seventh, Mackenzie Myers rolled a career high game and series of 129 and 417, respectively, good for 19th place. Madison Mow finished in 20th spot, rolling a career high game of 125, and a career high series of 404, while teammate Blair Brinneman finished in 22nd place, at 276.
In match play, No. 4 Matz squared off against No. 5 Hunter Pennington, with Pennington coming out on top, 404-388. Matz placed fifth on the day. In girl’s match play, No. 4 Kimes bested No. 5 Megan Ramey of Hastings, 293-284, moving her into the semi-finals against #1 seed Heaven Simmet of Hastings. Simmet rolled a two-game total of 309, while Himes finished with 269, good for a fourth-place finish.
“It was a good day of getting experience for our newer players and some solid play out of our veterans,” Sturgis coach Scott Spahr said. “Josh Groff had a solid day, and Beth Waugh averaged what her previous career-high game score was (138).” He also added that “I continue to be impressed and optimistic by the improvement we’re making each time out on the lanes.”
The Sturgis boys are now 2-1 overall, 2-0 in conference play, while the girls are 0-3 overall, 0-2 in the Wolverine Conference.
