By Meg Peters
Review Co-Editor
The Lake Orion varsity girls? bowling team threw some good games at Sunnybrook Lanes in Sterling Heights at the state meet last weekend, and was just shy of making the eight block cut that would take them into the final elimination rounds.
Coach Denny O’Neill’s particularly young team, however, will each learn a lesson from the harder competition and bring that knowledge into next year.
‘The girls were all excited to participate and enjoyed the competition, and everybody tried the best to their ability. But sometimes you can’t win,? he said. ‘They have been winners all year as a team and they set a high bar for performance. We will have another shot at it next year, and we will do better.?
Lake Orion was nearly undefeated this season, after winning three tournaments and being named champions of the OAA Red Division, taking them to Division 1 Regionals Feb. 27, where they placed third with 3,513 hits.
One varsity bowler, junior Tryna Gladstone, made the cut to compete in singles state finals after rolling a qualifying score of 191.3 at the regionals on Feb. 28 at 300 Bowl in Waterford.
Although her team could not proceed into the final rounds, Gladstone made the first cut at the state singles finals on March 7 with a six game qualifying score of 1,251 hits, or a 208 average, placing her seventh of the 16 singles qualifiers and allowing her to move forward into two games of eliminations.
The lanes were re-oiled, and the girls stepped up to the line.
In the first elimination round Gladstone bowled against Brittney Schnicke from Caldeonia High School, and beat her 405 to 395. The next elimination match against Megan Macunovich, from Canton High School, who bumped Gladstone out, eliminating her from the competition.
At the end of the day, Gladstone placed fifth in the state, and O’Neill said he is very proud of her for her accomplishments, as he is all of his girls.
‘She kept her composure and hardly made a mistake at all. She’s a junior so she may be able to come back and even win it next year,? he said. ‘We are all absolutely looking forward to next year’s season.?