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Versailles Varsity Bowling
Versailles Lady
Bowlers District Runner-Ups
On Monday, February 25th, the Lady Tiger Bowlers went up against 23
other teams in the Southwest District Tournament. The top 5 teams would
then advance to the State Finals in Columbus on Friday, March 1st. With
Versailles being the 3rd highest team in all 4 Sectionals, they were
seeded in 3rd to start the tournament. “To finish as high as we did in
all of the Sectionals is a big advantage at Districts. We get to cross
with the other top 3 teams in our 3 regular games,” said Coach Phlipot.
The first game, Versailles was paired up with Beavercreek. The Tigers
got off to a good start by rolling a 907 their first game. This put
them in 5th position after 1 game. As with all tournament competition,
teams switch pairs of lanes after each game. “This is where good teams
can make a move when lanes are switched. The teams that can make the
better adjustments the quickest can make up ground very fast.” stated
Coach Davidson. After a couple of frames, the lanes were playing a
little different from the 1st pair. The Lady Tigers started to roll.
Led by Paige Holsapple’s new school record of 278, they finished with
the tournament high game of 1,038. This leaped Versailles into 2nd
place behind Beavercreek. Game 3 the girls fought through the tougher
lanes and had a hard time carrying out the corner pins. However, they
were able to make most of the spares and ended up finishing with a 920.
This was good enough for 2nd position after the 3 Regular Games with a
score of 2,865. Going into the Baker Games, Versailles was only behind
by 68 pins to Beavercreek. “Unlike other sports, there can be a “home
field” advantage. This is due to the fact that these tournaments need
to be held in a large bowling center and there are times when it is 1
or 2 schools home bowling center. Being only 68 pins behind, we had a
legitimate shot at the District Title.” said Coach Davidson.
The stage was set for the Bajer Games. Beavercreek and Versailles were
the top 2 teams after 3 games, therefore, they were paired against each
other for the 6 Baker Games. With Versailles being up by over 200 pins
on the 5th place team, things were looking real good to qualify for
State. “We can win this. It’s not about going out and just making the
top 5, we have a great chance at the District Championship.” Said Coach
Phlipot. The first game belonged to Beavercreek and they ended up
taking the lead by 94 pins. The Beavercreek fans were fired up and it
looked as if they were going to run away with it. The Lady Tigers had
other plans. They came out firing the 2nd Baker game and rolled a new
school record 258. The momentum shifted and Versailles was now in the
lead. Each game went back and forth with Beavercreek in the lead and
then Versailles. It came down to the last game with Versailles down
only 56 pins. “The right lane was much tougher to hit the pocket and to
carry strikes. We were on the left lane to finish the match, so we
could still pull this out.” Said Coach Phlipot. The Tigers kept the
heat on Beavercreek and it literally came down to the anchor bowlers.
With a 3 bagger going into the tenth it was time for the Tiger anchor
Megan Monnin to bowl. “I told Megan this shot is no different than
every other shot she threw all day. Take a couple extra deep breaths
and throw a good shot and see what happens.” Said Coach Davidson. Megan
did her job and rolled two strikes and a 9 pin count. This forced the
Beavercreek bowler to at least spare in the tenth. Unfortunately for
Versailles, she rolled a strike and Beavercreek ended up winning the
District Title over Versailles by 15 pins.
“I am so proud and excited for this team. They have worked extremely
hard and have now earned the opportunity to compete for the State
Championship.” Said Coach Phlipot. Leading scorers for Versailles was:
Paige Holsapple 632, Hannah Niekamp 593 and Megan Monnin 585. The State
Championships will consist of 16 teams. All teams will bowl 3 regular
games and 6 baker games. The field will then be cut to the top 8.
Bracket style match play will then start with the best 3 out of 5 Baker
games. Winners will advance each round until the champion is determined.
Paige Holsapple set a new school record by rolling a 278. She also
rolled a team high 635 series and was earned 4th spot out of 8th on the
Southwest District Girls All District Tournament Team.
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