The Division 2, MSHAA Regional Bowling Tournament was held at the Sherman Bowling Center in Muskegon. The two day event started on Friday with the Team Event Competition which consisted of six Baker Games and Three Regular Games. There were 14 girl’s teams present.
The top three teams will advance to the 2011 MSHAA State Finals to be played at Century Lanes in Waterford, Michigan on March 4th.
The girls teams represented include Cedar Springs, Coopersville, East Grand Rapids, Fruitport, Forest Hills Eastern, Forest Hills Northern, Forest Hills Central, Northview, Kenowa Hills, Iron Mountain, Lowell, Marquette, Mona Shores and Sparta.
The first Baker Game provided Lowell with the early lead as they rolled and very fine 244 which put them 75 pins ahead of 2nd place Mona Shores. In the second Baker, Lowell increased their lead to 92 pins over Forest Hills Central, who now occupies 2nd place. Mona Shores put up a 223 on the board for the 3rd Baker Game and it appears the top five teams jockeying for the pin lead are FHC, Northview, Iron Mountain, Lowell and Mona Shores.
At the conclusion of the 6th, and last, Baker Game the top five teams are Lowell (1036), Mona Shores (1015), Forest Hills Central (990), Northview (926) and Iron Mountain (885).
The three regular games are next. Each team plays five individuals, from their roster, to help accumulate as many pins as possible. Mona Shores rolled the highest first regular game with an 890 while Lowell shot an 862 and Forest Hills Central was close behind with an 860. FHC was led by Maggie Smith (197), Kathryn Chamberlain (183) and Sarah Gillespie (182). Mona Shores has now taken a slim 7 pin lead over Lowell (1905-1898) while FHC is in 3rd at 1850. Remember, only the top three teams advance to the state finals.
Forest Hills Central’s all senior line-up took the challenge to improve on game number one and put together a team total 892 in their 2nd game. The scoring showed a balanced effort by all. They were led by anchor Ashley Ritsema (199), Angela Borgman (178), Maggie Smith (178), Sarah Gillespie (172) and Kathryn Chamberlain (165). The Lady Rangers have now jumped to first place by a slight 22 pin lead over Mona Shores. Northview made up 169 pins on Lowell and now trails by 78 pins for the 3rd place spot.
The Lady Rangers improved a bit more in their final game by rolling an 894. They were led by Kathryn Chamberlain (217), Ashley Ritsema (215) and Maggie Smith (178). Their amazing run in the three regular games was too much for the other fine teams in contention. The 2011 Regional Championship Trophy is the first in the history of the Forest Hills Central girls bowling program.
Coaches Rick Dykema and Dan Hill were thrilled to see their seniors perform so well in a pressure situation. The 3636 total pin count provides a testament to the hard work put in by both players and coaches alike.
2nd place goes to Mona Shores with a total pin count of 3500. The Northview Wildcats picked up 115 more pins on Lowell to take 3rd place and finished with 3287 pins.
Advancing to the State Finals is a well deserved experience for the Forest Hills Central Lady Rangers. The senior leadership has provided a path for the active J.V. program to follow in their footsteps.
