Girls Bowling Madison Stanton Struthers

Madison Stanton is a couple weeks removed from the Division II girls bowling state tournament, but the reality of her performance still hasn’t set in.

The Struthers bowler won the state title with a 634 series. Stanton finished 15 pins ahead of Lowellville senior Haylie Rotz.

After the trophy and medals were handed out, the Wildcats went out to dinner. The waiter congratulated Stanton.

Turns out, she didn’t realize she still had her medal around her neck.

“It still hasn’t really hit me yet,” Stanton said. “I know [I’m a state title winner], but I still go to practice every other day. I don’t bowl the best I could then I’ll bowl really good, so it just feels like another tournament to me.”

Stanton finished in the top eight at the sectional and was one of the top three bowlers at district.

“It was like a buildup to it, but it shocked me,” she said. “I was excited and once we left the bowling alley I was like, ‘Cool.’”

The Wildcat sophomore‘s game average was in the 160-170 range during the season. Stanton thought she would finish in the top 10 during her final game.

Stanton wasn’t aware of her individual numbers during the state meet. She heard people cheering in the background, but assumed it was just the usual cheers of a bowling tournament.

“I thought I was just going to bowl my average and just kind of hope for the best,” Stanton said. “The oil was tough, but it wasn’t the hardest we ever bowled on.

“We all practiced on it, we all had our ups and downs with it. It’s just I found my line straight on and that’s hard to do.”

With a state medal already sitting at home, Stanton’s goal next season is to lead the team to state. The Wildcats finished ninth in Columbus this season with a total of 2,900.

“I never want to think of my bowling experience as an individual,” Stanton said. “My next goal is to take the team to state again. I don’t care if I win the title again.

“I want to. I want to win the title the next two years, but I’d rather have the team win than myself.”

Stanton understands the state title will add more pressure over her final two years. She’s already looking for leagues and teams to work with over the offseason.

Stanton already has plans of bowling in college while studying history.

“Where I want to go to school depends on the bowling program,” Stanton said. “I do want to bowl in college, I do want to be a part of another team, I do want to open up my experiences. But do I want to go to [Youngstown State]? Maybe. Do I want to go to Wichita or somewhere in Tennessee, where they have a really good program? Maybe.”

— Dan Hiner, The Vindicator