BY JAKOB LENKER, Freshman
BLYTHEWOOD - Possibly the most well known sports here at Blythewood High School are our football, basketball, and baseball teams.
However, there is a team that did very well this past season, a team some students did not even know existed: Blythewood High School’s bowling team.
Although neither the boys or girls team had the best record, they really showed what they were capable of in the playoff tournament.
“Our final record was 24-36, and the girls were 20-40. For the boys, it was their lowest regular season, but they did battle back and finish 2nd in the playoff tournament. It was the lowest for the girls also, and they finished 3rd in the regular season, and 3rd in the tournament,” boys coach, Dan Burk said.
Blythewood faced some difficult teams this year, and struggled during the regular season in games that are based on a cumulative amount of points.
“Our hardest game was against Airport. They had a lot more experienced players than we had, and they were a really good team,” senior Kenya McLeod said.
However, Blythewood shined during the playoff tournament, especially the Boys when they were up against the state’s No. 1 seed, Dutch Fork, they held their ground and fought till the end.
“It was the last game against Dutch Fork, this game was going to decide who would place first. We didn’t win in the end, but we still put up a fight, and it turned out to be our best game of the season,” junior Wister Grookett said.
The team operated under Burk’s coaching mentality of, “Don’t focus on the bad shot you just made, focus on the next one.”
When thinking about the past year, Grookett remarked, “I think we did alright, but I know from past seasons on various teams that we could do a lot better.”
The bowling team seems to have a bright future, however, awareness is a large issue standing in the way.
“I think it would be good to have more advertising, because most people don’t know we have a bowling team, so we should have more announcements,” McLeod said.
Some bowlers are moving on, and the team is in need of new and upcoming players. Thankfully, veterans of the team are giving advice to the youngsters.
“If you’re new at it, it might be frustrating, but you have to practice, and it gets harder before it gets easier,” McLeod said.
Hopefully, the bowling team will become more recognized for their achievements, and will continue being great.
