Jonesville boys bowling finishes runner-up at D4 finals
MUSKEGON — Coach Matt Molinaro and the Comet bowling teams had another successful postseason for their teams and individual athletes at the Division 4 state finals in Muskegon. The historic program went into the postseason with both teams ranked No. 1 in the rankings. At the end of the team state finals, the Comet boys bowling team would emerge as runner-up in the Division 4 title race.
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The Comets raced out to a 3,377 qualifying block score, taking second in the seeding for the final tournament. Houghton Lake qualified first with a final score of 3,472. Burton Atherton qualified third with a final score of 3,277.
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Jonesville defeated Riverview Gabriel Richard with game scores of 159-199-189-190, winning three of the four games before moving on to the semifinals. The Comets then beat Saginaw Nouvel Catholic in all three games of their semifinal round with scores of 188-173-189.
In the championship round, the Comets would face the eighth seeded Traverse City Christian team. The Comets lost the first game but bounced back to win the second. Traverse City Christian won the final two rounds to win the Division 4 boys bowling title.
The boys bowling team was joined by the Comet girls bowling team, which also competed in the D4 team finals. The Comets took fourth in the qualifying block with a pin total of 2,926. Burton Atherton took third, Bronson took second and Traverse City Christian took first. The Comets entered the final tournament seeded fourth.
They faced Taylor Trillium Academy in the quarterfinals. The Comets won three of their four games against Trillium with game scores of 168, 152, 112 and 187. The Comets then faced the first seeded Traverse City Christian team. The Comets lost the first game 183-128, won the second game 180-166 and then lost the final two games to fall in the semifinals.
TCC would move on to face Bronson in the championship game. TCC won the title after winning three of the five games.
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In addition to the team finals, Comet bowlers competed in the state individual finals. For the boys team, sophomore Kyle Covey and junior Andrew Sackett were the state qualifiers. Sackett would finish six in the qualifying block of the tournament with a final score of 1,224. Sackett won round one with a final score of 414 with game scores of 200 and 214, moving on to the quarterfinals and earning all-state honors.
In the quarterfinals, Sackett beat Anthony Wetzel of Jackson Lumen Christi with a 278-214-492 series. the highest total in the quarterfinal round. Sackett moved on to face Carter Fourmier of Hudson in the semifinals. Sackett fell in the semifinals in just a 28-pin differential. Sackett had a final round series of 222-209-431. Fourmier moved on to the championship match and won the D4 boys title.
Covey ended up 39th in the qualifying block with a final score of 1,049 and a game-high of 190.
Over in the girls individual finals tournament, two Comets made it past the qualifying block round. Senior MiKayla DeBoe took sixth with a score of 1,073. Senior Hallie James took eighth with a score of 1,065. They were joined by freshman Harper James as the three Comet girls bowlers who qualified for state. Harper James finished 40th in the qualifying block with a score of 911 and a game-high of 201.
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In the final tournament, DeBoe won in the championship round with a 226-162-389 series, qualifying for the quarterfinals. DeBoe faced off against Lauren Castillo of Memphis, and game two would be the difference between the two bowlers. Both tied their game one score with a 143-pin total. Castillo had a 179 score in game two versus DeBoe's 122 pin total. DeBoe had a final score of 265 in the quarterfinals.
Hallie James battled Kourtney Downham of Allen Park Cabrini in round one. James had a final score of 301 and game scores of 131 and 170. Downham won the match with a 377 series total.
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This season, the Comets had five state qualifying bowlers. The girls bowling team won a regional championship and a Cascades Conference championship. The Comet boys team took second. Andrew Sackett won both a boys regional title and a Cascades Conference title. Hallie James won the regional title for the girls team. Kyle Covey took fourth at regionals. Mikayla DeBow placed third at regionals. Harper James placed seventh. Also medaling at the conference tournament this year was Mikayla Deboe, Hallie James, Matt Woodruff and Marhsall Baker.
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This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Jonesville boys bowling takes second at Division 4 team state finals
