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Canfield senior Tyler Frklech rolls 300
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Canfield High senior bowler Tyler Frklech rolled a perfect game during a match against the Howland Tigers on Jan. 13 at Wedgewood Lanes in Austintown. It was Frklech’s first 300 game and only the second for the Cardinals, the first being when Mike Decoli rolled a 300 against Struthers on Feb. 8, 2013.
Canfield senior Tyler Frklech rolls 300 at Wedgewood Lanes
By Greg Gulas
CANFIELD
It took 13 years for Canfield High to produce its first 300 bowler.
It only took 12 months for the Cardinals to produce their second.
Canfield senior Tyler Frklech rolled a perfect game in a match against Howland at Wedgewood Lanes, almost exactly one year after Mike Dercoli’s 300 against Struthers.
For Frklech, it didn’t come easy.
The 300 game — his first — required several adjustments over his 10 frames. Bowling on Lanes 3 and 4, Frklech, teammate Paul Harris and a Tiger bowler all started with six strikes.
“I said to myself right then that this was going to be a great day for all of us,” said Frklech. “Paul left the 10 pin a frame later but picked up the spare while the other bowler lost his bid for a 300 game as well. Heading to the eighth frame I was the only one left with all strikes and right about that time I began to shake because quite a few people began to take interest in my rolls.”
By the 10th frame, his entire team was watching.
“I was able to pick up that [first] strike and I then threw the ball dead flush for the 11th strike,” he said. “In the 12th frame I came up light, didn’t hit the pocket very hard but still got the strike.
“It sure was a great feeling.”
Frklech is averaging a 205 this season and a 199 over his high school career. Eighth-year Canfield coach Carl Hurd said Frklech has gotten more consistent since his freshman year.
“Tyler is an excellent bowler because he’s a stroker — someone who listens intently to all coaching suggestions,” he said. “He has a nice shot and moves decently around the lane. On that day, while others hesitated to make any adjustments he adjusted to stay in the pocket and that was the key. It really was quite an accomplishment.”
Canfield first offered bowling as a club sport in 2000 and it moved to varsity status in 2006. The Cardinals won a state bowling title last season but have yet to win a league title, something they’ve made a priority this season.
“We were third last year in the All-American Conference American Division and want to improve that finish this year,” Frklech said. “Finishing in the top-eight in sectionals, top four or five in districts and qualifying for state once again are other goals that we have set.”
Joining Frklech on this year’s team is Harris, who also serves as captain and placed third at state last year; Andrew Letscher, who has the team’s highest average; Austin Leonard, Ben Shoman, who set the state district mark last year with an 813 set, Patrick Neilson and Tyler Murphy.
“We’re currently bowling the best we’ve bowled all season,” Frklech said. “We’re putting up good numbers, we’re consistent and actually bowling better at this time than a season ago. In order to win the league and advance to state we need consistency from everyone.”
The AAC tournament begins Monday at Wedgewood Lanes, with top-seeded Canfield facing Niles at 4 p.m. Canfield earned the top seed when it finished tied for the league’s top mark with Struthers at 8-2, but won the overall pin count versus the Wildcats.