Seniors Standouts Cap Careers with D1 Wins

By Jason Schmitt
Special for MHSAA.com

March 2, 2019

ALLEN PARK – The minute she saw the match play draw at Saturday’s Division 1 Bowling Singles Finals, Oxford’s Megan Armbruster’s eyes lit up. She had already mentally circled a name on her half of the draw.

A year ago Armbruster’s dreams of winning an individual championship were dashed by Jenison’s Lauren Slagter, who ousted Armbruster in the first round of match play. It’s something that did not sit well with the Wildcats senior. So when she saw a potential semifinal matchup at this year’s Finals, she was all in.

“(Slagter) had knocked me out last year and I was upset,” Armbruster said. “After I won the quarterfinal match here today, I noticed that I had to play her and I just wanted to get revenge.” 

She certainly got her revenge, and then went on to defeat St. Clair Shores Lake Shore sophomore Dani Decruydt in the title match, 416-367, at Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park.

“It feels so awesome to finish my career off like that,” said Armbruster, who was seeded 12th out of the qualifying round. “It was super quiet out there, and my legs were shaking, but I didn’t feel my nerves at all. I just kept throwing the ball, staying super calm and shooting the ball one at a time.”

Armbruster collected four strikes in her first five frames of the final and did not have an open frame the entire first game. She led Decruydt by 34 pins after Game 1 and calmly pulled away for the first Finals singles bowling title in Oxford history.

“I’m especially proud of Megan. Her brother (Eric) bowled for me when she was like in the sixth grade,” said her coach, J.R. Lafnear. “She saw her brother bowl … and she fell in love with the sport. 

“So she began working with us. Her mom and the rest of her family are outstanding supporters of our program. For her it’s special.”

Armbruster defeated Taylor’s Abigail Bird in her first match of the day before ousting Flushing’s Evelyn Cano in the quarterfinals. 

Decruydt was the seventh seed after six games of qualifying action. She defeated Farmington-Harrison’s Carrington Beaman in her first match and followed it up with wins over Holt’s Gabriella Van Horn and Jenison’s Anna Bartz to reach the Final. 

“Dani never gets too high or too low,” said her coach, Jeff Villasurda. “The great thing about Dani is that nothing ever really fazes her. Nothing’s too big for her. So she wasn’t really fazed by what was going on out there. The other girl just made a couple extra shots.”

Over on the boys’ side, Brownstown Woodhaven senior Jeff Lizewski went out in style, catching fire at just the right time.

After piecing together a mediocre qualifying block score of 1,210 – good for just the 15th seed – Lizewski averaged a 222 over eight games of match play, capping things off with a 453-322 victory over Jenison senior Nick Slagter.

Lizewski strung together five straight strikes to open the final and never really had to look back.

“I came out of qualifying 15th, and I started off real bad. I didn’t have a good look at all in the first game,” said Lizewski, who reached the quarterfinal round last year as a junior. “I made a big ball switch, and I threw it until I came home with a win.”

Lizewski, who will be bowling at the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater next year, narrowly edged the 2-seed, Abery Thomas of Clinton Township Chippewa Valley, in his first match, 445-440. He then got past Macomb Dakota’s Kyle Finn, 443-435, in the quarterfinals and downed Salem’s John Hall, 433-325, in the semifinals.

Slagter defeated Saline’s Dallas Casey and Walled Lake Central’s Nick Casagrande and Jarrod Willbur in his next two matches to reach the final.

“If there was one person I’d want to lose to over there it would be Lizewski,” said Slagter, who wrapped up his high school career Saturday. “I have bowled against him in some out-of-season tournaments, and he’s filthy. 

“I feel like I bowled great this weekend. I tried my best in the team event yesterday, and we fell just a little short in making the cut. But today, I did fall a little short in the championship match but I’m really happy overall. I had fun.”

Click for full girls results and full boys results.

Mother/Daughter Pair Powering Gobles Bowling's Growth

By Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com

December 14, 2021

GOBLES — When it comes to high school bowling, Morgan Brunner and Alexis Diamond are perfect examples that the team sport is for anyone.

Southwest CorridorBrunner, a junior who began bowling when she was 3 years old, is the reigning MHSAA Division 4 girls singles champion.

Diamond, a senior, started bowling this year and has no experience other than birthday bowling parties.

In spite of the vast difference in experience, both are integral parts of the Gobles bowling team.

They also are the only girls on the boys team.

For the second-straight season, there was not enough interest to field a girls team, so Brunner and Diamond joined the five varsity male bowlers.

“When I first started bowling, I had to bowl against boys because in the U12 division in tournaments, we couldn’t get enough girls, so I’m kinda used to it,” Brunner said.

“It does help me because boys usually score higher, so it makes me work harder and harder.”

Diamond, who also is a member of the marching band, said bowling is similar in that it is not a gender-specific sport.

“The boys have embraced the girls as their own, and I think it’s made our girls better bowlers,” coach Karrie Brunner said. “Even though we do have a little bit of disappointment (because there is not a full girls team), it is fun to work with the boys, too.”

The Brunners, mother and daughter, were instrumental in starting the team.

When Brunner was a freshman, no bowling team existed at the high school.

Gobles bowling“I promised Morgan that if she wanted to bowl in high school, I would coach her,” her mom said.

Athletic director Chris Miller gave the go-ahead, and a bowling team was born.

Interest in the girls team lasted just one year, so last year Morgan Brunner also bowled with the boys during the regular season. Girls are allowed to bowl on the boys team and then switch to the girls postseason as long as they compete in a minimum number of regular-season girls competitions. 

At Regionals, “I was pretty much my own team,” the junior said. “I competed in individuals with the girls, which made me able to go to states and gave some of the freshmen (boys) who never bowled a chance to bowl at Regionals.”

Brunner made the most of her run at the state tournament.

Seeded third, she bested the sixth, second and top seeds for the title.

“I don’t think it really matters where you’re seeded,” she said. “If you work hard and get through all the matches, you should be good.

“You can come from the bottom and make it to the top.”

That experience has helped her become a better bowler, she said.

“Throughout my whole season so far, it’s taught me not to give up, even if you have a low game,” Brunner said.

“Stay positive throughout the day because that’s something I did at state, too, and it helped me.”

Having her mother as her coach is nothing new.

Her mom and dad, Scott, have coached her since she was a preschooler.

Her dad runs Scott Brunner’s Pro Shop at Continental Lanes in Portage, and when she was very young, “I’d go to the pro shop with my dad all day, so I would bowl all day,” Morgan Brunner said.

“I started bowling competitively at 9 or 10. I’ve just stuck with it since.”

During all those years, her mom, dad and grandpa Bill Keirns have been her three main coaches.

However, bowling every week with mom as a coach is a bit different than in tournaments.

“It’s mostly good,” Morgan Brunner said. “She knows what I’m working on and what I have to work on or if I need help on something.

“If I need something different and I don’t know what, she can help me with that. She tries to keep me positive.

“She knows everything about my game,” Brunner continued. “Even if she sees one thing that’s different, she’ll point it out and I’ll be like …” she said, shaking her hand.

Karrie Brunner said she is thankful for the bonding time with her daughter.

Gobles bowling“I know sometimes it’s hard to have Mom around cramping your style, but I love that we get this bond and get to do this together,” she said.

“Her dad and I both coach her when she bowls individual events, but this just adds to the bond. To get to watch her become a leader on the team is really fun.”

Talking about wins and losses at home is a no-no.

“We have rules in our family that it stays on the lanes no matter what happens, whether it’s individual or team,” Karrie said.

“Scott and I had to develop that for our games, so we taught the girls that. She has to leave it at the bowling center.”

With no bowling center in Gobles, the team’s home house is Revel & Roll West in Kalamazoo, about a half hour away.

“It does pose some challenges, especially for the kids, but it was the best choice for us,” Brunner said. “We work with the kids if they can’t make it or need rides.”

New bowlers like Diamond have added to a worthwhile coaching experience.

Working with Diamond, “it’s fun,” Brunner said. “You’re teaching somebody to love the game that they can do when they graduate, when they get older.”

One area Diamond hopes to improve is “keeping my arm straight. It has a mind of its own,” she said.

Eric Phillips and James Goerke are the only other seniors on the team, and Oskar Wood is the lone sophomore. Juniors include Nolan Vanhorn and Owen Nuyen.

Brunner uses all seven bowlers in a match, subbing out so everyone has a chance to bowl.

The key to this year’s team is camaraderie, the coach said.

“The boys get along great and with the girls, I think they’re finally getting into their own skin,” Karrie Brunner said. “They’ve done it a couple years now, so everybody’s getting comfortable and they’re getting that desire that we can actually win.”

Pam ShebestPam Shebest served as a sportswriter at the Kalamazoo Gazette from 1985-2009 after 11 years part-time with the Gazette while teaching French and English at White Pigeon High School. She can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.

PHOTOS (Top) Morgan Brunner is returning for Gobles this winter after winning the Division 4 singles championship last season. (Middle) From top down, Gobles coach Karrie Brunner, Morgan Brunner and Alexis Diamond. (Below) Morgan Brunner warms up before a recent match at Revel & Roll West in Portage. (Photos by Pam Shebest.)