BOWLING

The Huntington bowling teams competed in two conference tournaments in Indianapolis over the weekend with the first on Friday at All Star Bowl and the second on Saturday at Western Bowl.

The weekend represented tournaments #2 and #3 of the Crossroads League regular season series. The format of each tourney included four team games in the morning and 16 Baker games in the afternoon. Unique to both these events was that non-conference schools were allowed to enter.

On the men’s side, the Foresters took second on Friday with a total pinfall of 7054 behind Marian who won with 7211 pins. Derek Leyba led HU with another All-Tournament Team honor by placing third individually with a four-game total of 850 (212.5/game average).

On Saturday, Huntington claimed fourth with a score of 7062. Matt Foutz topped Shockey’s crew with 812 pins through four games for a 203 average that landed him eighth among his CL peers.

“The determination of the guys this season has been impressive and fun to watch,” said Coach Mike Shockey. “They have embraced being a tough and gritty team that will do whatever it takes to succeed and move forward.”

Despite a continued battle with injury and illness, the Forester women took fourth on Friday by knocking down 6602 pins. The JV squad also competed to finish fifth with 5642 pins.

Sophomore Katie Fraser had a great outing to claim the individual title with a four-game total of 841 for a 210.3 average. In addition to earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team, the Elkhart native was also deemed the Crossroads League Women’s Bowler of the Week. Joining Fraser on the All-Tournament Team was teammate Amber Elliott who finished second in the individual standings with an 824 total pin count (206 average).

Saturday’s performance got better as the day wore on. After finishing fifth in the team-game portion of the tourney, the Foresters found their groove in Baker play to climb into second by the end of the day with a team scored a total of 6429 behind powerhouse program University of Pikeville (6932). The JV women bowled well in the morning to sit in second place before falling one position to a final finish of third place with 6068 total pins.

Senior Jessica Fraser led Huntington with a six place finish by scoring 762 pins for a 190.5 average.

“I think the Baker games on Saturday was turning point for the women’s team,” said Shockey. “We have high expectations and sometimes teams get caught up in living up to the hype created by those expectations.

“Saturday afternoon the women shut out the distractions and just bowled. They had fun, made spares, threw some strikes and just enjoyed bowling. We talk a lot about not forcing or faking positive energy and to see the team come together and let themselves bowl with real energy was a joy to watch.”

The Foresters host the fourth and final Crossroads League tournament on Saturday at MVP Lanes in Fort Wayne.