Roughrider ladies bring home title

Compiled by Gary R. Rasberry

One game was all that was needed for St. Marys to move to the top of the board at Friday's Division II state girls bowling tournament.

The Roughriders emerged from qualifying as the top seed and fought through three match-play contests to maintain the spot and capture the program's second state title at Wayne Webb's Columbus Bowl.

"It was awesome," said Roughriders assistant coach Karl Dammeyer via telephone. "Just a fun day."

The first regulation game of qualifying didn't start as hoped, with St. Marys posting the 14th-best score. But with the second game of 988, St. Marys jumped all the way to the top of the leaderboard and then capped off the regulation game portion of qualifying with a score of 1,000 in game 3, which meant the five Roughrider bowlers averaged 200. St. Marys took a 109-pin lead into the three baker games. The combined 458 score from the bakers kept St. Marys as the top seed going into the eight-team championship round with a score of 3,236.

"From 14th to 1st, from one game to the next," said Dammeyer.

St. Marys opened match play against Minerva. After splitting the first two games of the best-of-five series, 181-131 and 170-196, the Roughriders cruised to wins of 177-169 ad 186-155 to take the quarterfinal 3-1 and advance to face Greenon, which dispatched Versailles in four games in its quarterfinal. The Roughriders were in no mood for a long match in the semifinal, sweeping Greenon 188-148, 172-141, 170-158 to advance to the final against fellow Northwest Ohio team Bryan, which finished first to St. Marys' second at the district tournament last week in Rossford.

The Golden Bears won the first game 178-177 before St. Marys came back to take the second 182-179 and then the third 171-169.

"It was like 'jab-jab-jab,' " said Dammeyer of the battle with Bryan. "The girls were making shots when they needed to."

In the fourth game, Jaden Gibson was bowling the 10th frame and started with a nine-spare. Needing just five pins on the last ball to clinch the championship, Gibson rolled a strike to give St. Marys a 194-188 victory to claim the championship.

"It was a whole team effort with girls making shots when we needed them," said Dammeyer.

Three Roughriders earned All-Ohio honors for their individual series. Gibson bowled a 577 series to earn second team honors with a seventh-place finish. Dorian Regedanz was eighth with a 573 to also earn second-team honors along with Sara Hardin, who rolled a 561. Alayna Thornsberry finished 19th with a 536 series and Debbie Swisher rounded out the quintet of Roughrider bowlers with a 531 series to place 20th.

"We're a well-rounded team," said Dammeyer. "The girls on our bench (Sam Ackroyd, Lily Steinberg and Michele Hoskins) are almost right there (and could) probably start on another team."

Madison Stanton of Struthcrs was individual state medalist with a 634 series. Versailles' Morgan Heitkamp earned honorable mention All-Ohio honors with a 555 series.

The boys Division II tournament begins this morning at 10:30 a.m.