The inaugural season of the Girls Minnesota High school bowling league was recently completed and a state tournament was held on Apr. 9 in Winona.
Finishing as the runner-up at the state tournament was the United South Central/Albert Lea/Austin/Blue Earth team. Winning the state title was the Simley/Sibley/Eagan/South St. Paul team.
There were a total of 16 teams competing at the state tournament. The USC/AL/Austin/BE team came into the tournament as the fifth seed and Simley was the top seed.
The main difference between other sports and bowling is that the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) is not the governing body for high school bowling. Girls Minnesota High School Bowling is a club sport administered by the Bowling Proprietors Association of Minnesota.
Bowlers in grades 7-12 were eligible to participate in the inaugural season. The league used the baker-system, which consisted of five bowlers each bowling two frames to complete a single game.
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Comprising the USC/AL/Austin/BE team were: Paige Boryum, Mariah Jacobson, Chelsey Carson, Lauren Schabert, and Brianna Oftedahl. The coach was Loren Kaiser, who manages Holiday Lanes in Albert Lea.
Schabert is also a member of the Austin Packers High School bowling team, which has its season in the fall. Schabert and her teammates got off to a good start at state with a win over Owatonna in the first round of the double-elimination tournament.
In the next round, the local girls defeated Brainerd and advanced to play the top seed. Pulling off an upset, the USC/AL/Austin/BE team beat top-seeded Simley.
After this win, the team moved on and defeated Chaska to get into the final round. Unfortunately, Simley came back through the bracket and beat USC/AL/Austin/BE twice to win the state title.
