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Pennfield, Kearsley Enjoy Repeat Success

March 2, 2018

By Tim Robinson
Special for Second Half

CANTON – It was like old times for Battle Creek Pennfield’s boys bowling team at Friday’s Division 2 Team Finals at Super Bowl.

Winning the title was nothing new; the Panthers did it last year in Division 3. That made Pennfield the first school to win back-to-back bowling championships in different divisions.

The Panthers’ opponent in the Final was familiar, too. Pennfield and Coldwater are both members of the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference.

This season included, however, the first wins over the Cardinals in coach Rick Hinds’ career at Pennfield, and the Panthers took three of four matches – two during the regular season and the third  Friday.

“It was tight all season,” Hinds said. “One of our wins was by one pin. We see them a lot.”

But it was a little nerve-wracking for the Panthers after a strong start.

Pennfield won the first Baker game 223-137, by an 86-pin difference, and as it turned out the Panthers needed all of them.

Coldwater made a furious comeback, winning the next Baker game by 25 pins and taking the regular games by 54.

But Pennfield’s strong start held, and the Panthers won by seven pins, 1,264-1,257.

That came in part due to a strong performance by freshman Carson Dyer, who was put in the lineup and finished with strikes in each of his final four frames.

“I plugged him in, and he finished,” Hinds said.

Senior Nick Hohnberger played a key role, having only one open frame during qualifying, while senior Sean Young and junior James Ruoss carried the team during a semifinal win over top seed Tecumseh.

“The competition was stiffer in Division 2,” Hinds said. “Nothing against Division 3, but the schools are bigger and a lot more competitive. I was told we were the smallest Division 2 school to win it. That’s a really good thing.”

On the girls side, the Division 2 trophy will find plenty of company at Flint Kearsley.

The top-seeded Hornets won their fifth consecutive Division 2 title and sixth in the last seven years by beating Tecumseh 1,186-990 in the title match.

Kearsley led by just 10 pins after the Baker games, then won by nearly 200 pins in individual play.

“What happened was I have girls who have experience and knew what to do when we got to the Finals,” Kearsley coach Rob Ploof said. “We filled a lot of frames in the first individual game.”

With the outcome determined, Ploof asked for volunteers among his starters to sit so senior Mary Wheeler and freshman Allison Robbins could get a chance to bowl in the Final.

Without hesitation, junior Alexis Roof and sophomore Imari Blond volunteered.

“They wanted to let our seniors finish,” Ploof said. “I preach all season long it’s about the team. I quote Bo (Schembechler, the late University of Michigan football coach) all the time. It’s the team, the team, the team. No one cares how you scored, as long as you win.”

Kearsley held off Sturgis in the quarterfinals.

“They gave us a run for our money,” Ploof said, “but Emma Boychuk, a senior, struck out in the 10th and won us the match. I give her a lot of credit.”

In the semifinals against Carleton Airport, senior Karlee Griffin led the way, with senior Barbara Hawes making a solid contribution as well.

The Hornets then knocked off Tecumseh, a team that gave Kearsley fits at the beginning of Ploof’s tenure. The first year his team bested the Indians was 2012, the first year Kearsley won the Division 2 title.

Ploof said his program has a strong feeder system at the elementary and middle school levels.

“When they get to the varsity level, they’re ready,” he said.

And for the fifth year in a row, the Hornets finished with a win.

“It never gets old,” Ploof said. “Never.”

Click for full boys results and girls results.

Perfection, Goals Achieved Highlight D1

March 5, 2016

By Scott Keyes
Special for Second Half

STERLING HEIGHTS – When Davison junior Taylor Davis was 8 years old, her father Bryan pulled her aside and asked her what she wanted out of her short bowling career. 

Mind you she was only 8 at the time, but the answer she gave proved she was way wise beyond her years.

"I want to win a state championship and bowl a 300 game," she said.

Little did Bryan know those words would become reality nearly a decade after she said them, as Taylor Davis became only the fourth in MHSAA girls bowling history to bowl a 300 game in the singles portion of the tournament, and the first in a Final on Saturday at Sterling Lanes in Sterling Heights.

Davis captured the Division 1 title with a 479-410 victory over Julia Huren of Westland John Glenn.

Davis also helped Davison capture the team title Friday.

"I knew it was going to happen eventually, but to bowl your first 300 game on high school bowling’s biggest stage is almost unheard of," Bryan Davis said. "To see my daughter step up and roll that final strike for her first 300 game was almost surreal. Then to watch her win a state championship is something I will always remember."

Taylor Davis admits she had butterflies in her stomach, but knew if she threw a good shot good things would happen.

"It was amazing,“ Taylor Davis said. “I’ve always wanted to shoot a 300. I was always wondering when I would be able to. To shoot it at the state finals is the best feeling ever. ... After I bowled in the final four on (lanes) five and six I kind of found a new shot. I tried it on seven and eight and it was fine. It worked.”

Kara Richard of Tecumseh had a 300 game twice in 2008 in Division 2 during qualifying and then the Round of 16, while Rachel Ringrose of South Lyon accomplished the feat in 2007 qualifying and Felicia Goll did the same for Harper Woods Regina in 2005.

Davis summed up the weekend's efforts in one statement.

"To be able to win a state title with my team, then come back and win an individual championship and then shoot my first 300 game with my friends and family watching is something I will always remember," she said. 

"I can't wait to get back here and do it all over again next season."

For Warren Mott’s Brad Delmarle, the long grind of a 14-game day came to an end as he downed junior Gabe Cassise of Wyandotte Roosevelt, 459-393, to claim a title for the Marauders.

“It was a grind,” said Delmarle. “This is a big accomplishment. A lot of practice, and I’m very proud of what I was able to accomplish.”

Delmarle started both games of the Final with a three-bagger, forcing Cassise to play catch up. In the end, Delmarle was too strong down the stretch and came away with the championship.

"The state finals is all about mental preparation," he said. "We are all tired out there, but you can't let that get to you. You have to keep focus and continue to throw good shots. I couldn't be happier with my performance today."

In the girls Semifinal, Farmington Hills Harrison’s Candyce Bradley had Davis on the ropes after the first game, up 29 pins going into the second. Davis would later prevail 392-358 over Bradley.

In the other Semifinal, Huren dominated Stephanie Schalk of St. Clair Shores Lakeview, posting a 257 game on the way to winning 430-361.

Open frames were Jordan Nunn’s undoing in a boys Semifinal. The Flint Carman-Ainsworth senior fell to Cassise, 444-415. Delmarle prevailed in his semifinal over Mike Maguran of Sterling Heights Stevenson, 423-370.

"I couldn't string together anything in the semis and I fell behind," Nunn said. "I qualified fifth on the day, and I was extremely happy to get as far as I did. Watching Taylor throw 300 today was pretty cool. It was definitely a great day for the Saginaw Valley League."

Click for full boys results and girls results.

PHOTOS: (Top) Davison’s Taylor Davis unloads the final roll of her 300 game at Saturday’s Division 1 Final. (Middle) Davis, right, and boys champion Brad Delmarle of Warren Mott. (Photos by Scott Keyes.)