Two teams who have been in the spotlight of NSAA high school bowling began their quest for another trip to the state tournament on Thursday.
From Kings Lanes in Norfolk, the Wayne High girls and boys bowling programs competed against Norfolk Catholic/Lutheran High Northeast in dual action.
Head Wayne High bowling coach Josh Johnson said, “we were really happy with how all the teams played today (Thursday). The JV teams got some great experience as they are learning how things go. In varsity action, the boys took care of business. When one would struggle, our subs stepped in and picked up. The girls found themselves in a tough battle throughout game one. They kept their composure and found a way to win the match. It was a great start for all the teams.”
In the girls division, Wayne found itself up against a much improved Norfolk Catholic / Lutheran High squad.
Wayne would find themselves behind by as much as 60 pins in the early going. As the game went on, the Blue Devils slowly clawed their way back. By the beginning of the ninth frame the two teams were basically tied. Wayne would pull away in the ninth and 10th frames and would win the game 747-693.
Winning individual matches in game one were Madi Janke (152), Regan Fernau (159) and Lindsay Niemann (167) while other scorers for Wayne were Sammi Gubbels (133) and Graycen Trautman (136).
Game two would find the Blue Devils taking control early and then maintain the lead throughout. Wayne would go on to win game two with a score of 736-539. Winning matches for Wayne in game two were Madi Janke / McKaeya Becker (127), Sammi Gubbels (132), Regan Fernau / Rylin Hall (132), Graycen Trautman (170) and Lindsay Niemann (175).
Wayne would win the Baker game 175-118 and the overall victory 19-2.
The Wayne JV girls were also in action. The all-freshman team gained valuable experience and bowled extremely well for their first match. Game one found Lilliana Culy (117), Madilyn Korth (106) and Marie Allemann (86) would all pick up wins and Abbie Shultheis (79) would also score. Game two would find Abbie Shultheis (82), Madilyn Korth (104) and Marie Allemann (98) all pick up wins and the final score was Lilliana Culy (54). Wayne would lose the match 15-6.
During the boys division, Wayne High was looking to pick up where they left off last year. The boys have their top eight bowlers back from last year’s State Runner Up team and were eager to get the season started.
King’s Lanes’ oily lanes did not deter the boys. Wayne got off to a good start and pushed out to an early lead in game one. Wayne would pull away to win game one 1071-699.
The Blue Devils would sweep all five matches and take the early 8-0 lead. Scoring and winning individual matches for Wayne were Dylan Jensen (150), Jamison Meyer (222), Ben Haschke (184), Konnor Kai (258) and Aiden Petersen (257).
Game two found the Blue Devils picking up where they left off. Wayne would go on to win match two 941-753 and take a 14-2 lead. Scoring and winning individual matches in game two were Jaden Dramse (176), Jamison Meyer (193) and Konnor Kai (236) while other scorers for the Blue Devils were Ben Haschke / Dylan Jensen (166) and Aiden Petersen / Alex Rodriguez (170).
The Blue Devils would go on to win the Baker match 170-125. Wayne would win the varsity match 19-2 over Norfolk Catholic / Lutheran High.
The Wayne High JV boys were also in action Thursday night. Wayne would battle back and forth but would pull away in the end with a 683-512 win and lead 6-2. Winning individual matches were Lucas Allemann (107), Blake Smith (216) and Zane Sievers (168). Other scorers in game one were Carlyle Young (103) and Brodrick Tiedtke (89). Game two found the Blue Devils pick up the pace and pull away early and win with a score of 814-511. Winning individual matches for Wayne were Lucas Allemann (142), Tyler Johnson (152), Mahlik Campbell (143), Blake Smith (162) and Zane Sievers (215). Wayne would also win the Baker style game 141-129 and go on for a 19-2 victory.
