The Aurora area has been a hotbed of bowling for a long time.
West Aurora qualified for the state finals 23 times between 1976 and 2007 before falling on hard times.
But the Blackhawks are back. They finished third at the Plainfield Central Sectional, the state’s toughest, to earn their first trip to state in eight years.
Junior Jamie McCreedy, who was 15th at last year’s state finals, is the only West Aurora bowler with state experience, but don’t expect the Blackhawks to merely show up this weekend at the Cherry Bowl in Rockford.
“I honestly think we can be in the top 6,” West Aurora assistant coach Brian Poss said. “We’re bowling well and that shot [at Rockford], the girls bowl really well under those conditions. Jamie last year was up there as a sophomore and she averaged 215 for 12 games.”
At the sectional McCreedy averaged 173, lowest on the team, an indication of how strong and resilient West Aurora is.
Junior Sydney Lundell finished second individually with a 1,296 series (216 average), and McCreedy’s twin sister, Corey, shot 1,188. Freshman Sammie Reid (1,112) and sophomore Paytynn Kuhns (1,099) are the other starters.
“I told [Jamie] it’s time for the team to pick you up,” Poss said. “You’ve been holding the team up all year round. Today we had other girls pick her up. That’s why it’s a team event.
“Sydney bowled the best she’s every bowled. She knows what to do. The girls are finally believing in the system.”
The addition of Corey McCreedy, who played basketball last year, was a big key.
“I decided to do bowling because I had done that my whole life,” Corey McCreedy said. “We had another freshman come in who was pretty decent, so we thought we might have a shot if we kept working hard.
“Honestly, it was just everybody’s attitude. When we got down everybody else picked everyone up so without that it would have gone downhill and we wouldn’t have made it.”
As good as West Aurora has been, Oswego East has the best shot at keeping the state title in the Aurora area.
The Wolves rolled to the Plainfield Central Sectional title, besting two-time defending champion Waubonsie Valley by 204 pins. Oswego East’s 6,088 pinfall was the third-highest sectional score in the state, behind Lockport (6,372) and Belvedere North (6,115).
“It’s awesome,” Oswego East junior Mallory Weisbrodt said. “This will be my first year going to state, so it will be great.”
The Wolves didn’t qualify last year after finishing second in 2013, but junior Abby Ragsdale and senior Avery Bottcher are back from that trophy team.
Ragsdale won the individual sectional championship with a career-high 1,434 (239 average), the highest sectional score in the state.
“I’d rather win as a team than an individual,” Ragsdale said. “I wasn’t concerned about my individual score but I knew I had to do well for the team to go.”
So what is the difference between 2014 and 2015?
“This team is a lot closer than last year’s and I think when we get down we’re able to get right back up,” Ragsdale said. “Nothing brings us down anymore because we’ve been able to mend as a team and focus better.”
Weisbrodt, who was seventh at sectionals at 1,243, Bottcher (1,178) sophomore Samantha Perez (1,141), senior Lynnmari Vargas and freshman Kiana Krahulik will attempt to win Oswego East’s third state trophy in their sixth state appearance in nine years.
“We’re always so energetic and pumped about everything,” Weisbrodt said. “Every spare we make, every strike we make, it’s all great so we get excited and we’re ready for the next frame.”
Metea Valley senior Jordan Newham, who was third last year, and Oswego junior Brittany Breedlove qualified individually.
Waubonsie Valley will try for its fourth consecutive trophy as it attempts to three-peat with an almost completely new team. Juniors Violet Kirk and Veronica Dreyfus lead the Warriors, who won a tournament at Cherry Bowl last month.
“If they perform the way they have at some tournaments, we can come home with a trophy,” Waubonsie Valley coach Marty Miller said. “They’ve had spurts of greatness, but to sustain it for two days, that’s going to be a challenge.”
Matt LeCren is a freelance writer.
