For the third year in a row, the Le Mars girls bowling team finished in the top-three of the state tournament taking third this year in Waterloo.
The consistency that the Bulldogs showed again this season was in jeopardy after graduating such a sizable senior class of talent. Head coach Gary Brady says that makes this year that much more impressive considering a majority of the roster are not seniors.
One of the keys the Bulldogs wanted to accomplish early was getting off to a strong start. That has hurt the Bulldogs in years past at the state tournament, but it did not hurt Le Mars this time as they averaged 191 over their first five games. Coach Brady says his team did not feel like they were doing well after Lewis Central, who they were sharing lanes with, was off to a better start than they were.
After that rough second set of baker games, the Bulldogs bounced back to average 188 over their final five baker games to move up from fourth to third in the standings. Coach Brady says a quick meeting prior to those five games recentered the girls to play their best.
Le Mars matched up with Decorah in the semifinal round of the championship bracket and got beat in five games. Decorah went on to win the championship later on, and Coach Brady says they were just the better team on that given day.
The Bulldogs had a chance to redeem themselves in the third-place match taking on Lewis Central. Le Mars took advantage of the opportunity winning the first, fourth, and fifth games to finish third at the state tournament. Coach Brady says his team had to dig deep to find that extra bit of energy to finish the match.
The Class 2A bowlers face the tough task of turning around right away the next morning to compete in the individual tournament. That turn around is especially tough for the Bulldogs who sent all six of their bowlers into the individual tournament. Coach Brady says it is a good problem to have, and it will take an extra bit of focus to perform at their best.
Le Mars’ individual state tournament run begins at 9:00 AM on Wednesday morning.
