Falcon girls and boys bowling going to state

Photo

Photo

The Fitch boys bowling team, which finished fourth overall at the state a season ago, will join the Falcons girls team as the only school from the northeast district to qualify both teams for state.

“These boys have worked hard all year,” Falcons coach Dino Balkan said. “We started to peak right before sectionals and during both sectional and district competition it was like no one could miss.”

Fitch’s Kyle Codrick rolled a 246, which was good enough for 11th overall, but the Falcons still remained seventh heading to the Baker portion of the meet.

“The mood was energetic for everyone today,” Codrick said. “We struggled our last game, but in Baker’s we kicked it up a notch and that was the difference.”

“During the season we weren’t as strong in Baker, but started to come around starting in the sectionals,” Codrick said.

Dwayne Learn, who had a 524 series, is one of five seniors on the Falcons’ squad.

“The Baker’s did it for us today,” Learn said. “It’s just a great feeling to know that the seniors will end their careers with a trip to state, also knowing full well that we have the talent to improve on last year’s fourth-place finish.”

Since becoming a sanctioned scholastic sport, Fitch is the only high school that can boast of its boys and girls bowling teams winning a state championship in the same season.

That came during in the 2002-03 campaign when the boys were winning the second of their two consecutive titles and the girls their first and only crown.

After rolling a 4,020 last Saturday at Crest Lanes to capture the 22-team Northeast District Bowling Championship, the Lady Falcons did their part to give Fitch a shot at another dual state title today.

“The key today was that our girls made their shots and covered their spares,” Falcons coach Don Morrison said at districts.

“That is what we preach because every pin counts and that is what builds the score. We minimized our mistakes and made the necessary adjustments after having to change lanes. Our girls are a disciplined group and they deserve all of the accolades because they made it happen.”

Morrison, currently in his 14th season as head coach, also has one runner-up crown to his credit.

The Falcons had four of the top 10 individual series with Jessica Halas’ 255 game the top individual game of the tournament.

“Last year, we narrowly missed a trip to the state so for a year now we’ve had this attitude of anger and frustration just waiting to break loose,” Halas said. “We get mad at ourselves in order to do better and by winning today, this vindicates last year’s miss.”

In addition to Halas, other top-20 Fitch finishers included Lynnette Seebacher (ninth, 226); Laura Wilson (11th, 222) and Katie Viglio (19th, 210).

“We wanted to redeem ourselves so we bowled with a chip on our shoulders all year long,” said Seebacher, whose 620 series was second best overall in the tourney.

“Today, our lane kept resetting so we had to switch lanes, which frustrated some of the players. We adjusted and in the end it all worked out because we won,” Wilson said.

Halas’ 615 series was third overall, Viglio’s 605 series sixth and Wilson 10th with a 578 set.

“Our only goal all season long was to get back to state. Everyone did their part and today we realized that goal,” Viglio said.