Franklin Boys Claim 1st Bowling Title, Dakota's Girls Return to Top of D1
By
Perry A. Farrell
Special for MHSAA.com
March 4, 2022
ALLEN PARK – Livonia Franklin’s boys bowling team made history Friday at the MHSAA Division 1 Finals at Thunderbowl Lanes.
In just its fourth year of existence, the Patriots’ program claimed its first title, pulling away from Utica Eisenhower 1,451-1,214 behind junior Ian Wright’s 267 and senior Ian Cain’s 251.
Franklin led Eisenhower 390-361 after the two Baker games.
“They’ve been bowling with each other since they were little guys,’’ Franklin coach Dan Hejka said. “We’ve worked very hard over the last four years. We almost got here two years ago, then we had a setback at Regionals last year. This is amazing for the seniors.’’
Said Wright: “We grinded through everything. Our second match we struggled. We had to put up some numbers, even if it meant staying clean and making our spares.’’
Macomb Dakota senior Jillian Lipinski shot 185 in the championship game and got a big boost from sophomore Haylie Patterson to hold off Davison’s girls team 1,222-1,120 and claim a first Finals title since 2015.
“This is a fantastic experience for me; we really had to fight for it,’’ said Lipinski. “It’s amazing it happened my senior year. Through tough times this year we really rocked it.’’
Patterson – whose father Chris and grandfather Curt are 200-average bowlers in Macomb County – rolled a match-high 223 in the title decider.
Davison’s downfall was 10 straight open frames in the fifth and sixth, ending any chance at a championship. Dakota had only a slim 362-351 lead after the Baker games.
Franklin’s boys advanced to the championship match by eliminating Davison, 1,383-1,278 while Eisenhower beat Midland with a huge number, 1,616-1342.
Davison’s girls advanced to the final by out-rolling Farmington, 1,364-1,049 while Dakota edged Macomb L’Anse Creuse North, 1,255-1,146.
Midland was the top qualifier in the boys division with a score of 3,748, followed by Franklin at 3,695 and Davison third at 3,563. Macomb Area Conference schools Utica Eisenhower (3,512) and Macomb Dakota (3,504) were fifth and sixth.
Franklin was the first boys team to advance to the semifinals with a 1,460-1,208 victory over seventh-seed Rockford. Davison eliminated Dakota, 1,312-1,284 to advance on the other side of the boys bracket..
Midland, the top boys’ seed, advanced to the semifinal with a 1,435-1,168 win over Jenison; while Utica Eisenhower topped Holt, 1,318-1,292 to face Midland in the semifinal.
On the girls, side Holt qualified first at 3,504 followed by Dakota at 3,382 and Zeeland third (3,218). MAC schools Macomb L’Anse Creuse North (2,988) and Sterling Heights Stevenson (2,949) qualified sixth and seventh, respectively.
Sixth-seeded L’Anse Creuse North knocked off third-seed Zeeland 1,385-1,324 to advance to the semifinals against MAC rival Dakota, which had eliminated Stevenson 1,345-1,087.
Dakota’s girls were 2-0 head-to-head against LCN during the regular season and made it 3-for-3 with their semifinal victory. Davison advanced to the semis with a 1,200-1,148 decision over Grandville, and Farmington edged top-seeded Holt 1,177-1,173 to advance and face the Cardinals.
PHOTOS The Livonia Franklin boys (top) and Macomb Dakota girls (middle) bowling teams celebrate their Division 1 championships Friday. (Click for more from Champions Photography.)
Campbell, Betts Believed Then Achieved
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
March 2, 2019
MUSKEGON – Trusting the process led to a stunning ending to Dawson Campbell's season.
In fact, if you had asked the Cheboygan junior a few months ago if winning a Division 3 individual bowling championship was a possibility, Campbell's answer would have been a resounding no.
"Not a chance, no way," he said after accomplishing just that with a 427-363 win over Hopkins' Brenden Gossman in Saturday's championship match at Northway Lanes.
It's not that Campbell hasn't had success in the past. He was a two-time Finals qualifier heading into the season, but failed to advance past the qualifying stage his freshman and sophomore years. So what's the difference between those two tournaments and Saturday's? Campbell, seeded No. 6 among the 16 finalists, said it was a matter of trusting a grueling process that includes bowling 30 games a day, seven days a week for the last three years.
Campbell said the work left him more of a finished product. Proof of that, he said, came after he converted tough back-to-back 2-8 and 2-4-8-10 shots in the quarterfinal. It was that sort of success under pressure that led Campbell to believe he could win a Finals championship.
"After that I felt I had a chance," said Campbell, who averaged 188 across four match wins. "It just kinda happened. It shows if you put in enough practice, you can win and that one day you could become a state champion.
"I feel real happy, amazed. But I've put in the work. At the end of the day, it's part of my life."
Jenna Betts of Clare won the girls title with a 418-305 win over Lainey Meader of Coloma.
Like Campbell, Betts had minimal success in previous Finals tournaments, also never making it past the qualifying round. And also like Campbell, Betts believed winning the Division 3 championship was likely beyond her grasp.
"I had no reason whatsoever," she said of possessing title hopes. "But you have to believe in yourself and do the things you need to do to win."
Betts said much of her confidence came from Clare coach Kelli Dingo, whose chief work with her junior bowler was teaching fundamentals such as how to hold a ball and how to incorporate movement with her shot. The rest, Dingo said, was up to Betts.
"I taught her to bowl, not tell her," Dingo said. "She was very open (to coaching). Everyone knows she's an excellent bowler, and they expect a lot from her. She used to overthink the process; now she just bowls."
Betts, who also plays volleyball and runs track at Clare, said two things which struck home for her this season were gaining confidence and the ability to bowl consistently. Both were on display in winning Saturday, she said.
"I was very consistent. They weren't really high scores, but I was consistent," she said of averaging a 194 in her four wins. "You're going to have some high and low games, but confidence is a key."
Betts said her work with Dingo left her with the confidence she belonged among the top bowlers in Division 3.
"I think the past couple weeks that's grown by leaps and bounds, believing in myself," she said. "I feel incredibly happy now. Coach has given us all confidence, not just me. She's given us what we need to do well."
Click for full girls results and full boys results.