High school bowling: Wadsworth boys take sectional crown

The Wadsworth bowling teams had a great weekend at the always tough Stark County Division I Sectional at Eastbury Lanes in Canton. On Saturday, the boys dominated a 14-team field with a total pinfall of 4,272 to win by 85 pins over second-place Uniontown Lake (4,187), with Grizzlies sophomore Hayden Eagon-Mohlmaster earning the individual title with a 697 three-game series. GlenOak (4,010) and Green (4,003) grabbed the other two spots in the Northeast District, with Cloverleaf (3,130) finishing 12th. On Sunday, the Wadsworth girls advanced to districts by finishing third with a 3,452 team total. Massillon Perry (3,779) was first, Green (3,776) was second and St. Vincent-St. Mary (3,339) was fourth. Cloverleaf (2,459) placed 13th. The boys district will be Sunday at 10 a.m. at Roseland Lanes and the girls tournament will be the next day at 10 a.m. The top five teams and top five individuals from non-qualifying schools will advance to the state tournament. For Wadsworth, the boys last district appearance was 2018. For the girls, it was 2016. "Last year we did not do well here at all," Eagon-Mohlmaster said. "Finally, to be able to win it and beat all these great teams at our sectional, it was everything we worked for." A left-hander, Eagon-Mohlmaster had games of 256, 197 and 244. The Grizzlies' Nate Weyand tied for ninth with a 609 series (175-220-214) and Cayden Sponsler tied for 12th with a 597 (171-184-242). Alex Espie shot 550 (188-180-182) and Thor Nagel had 426 for two games (190-236) after being replaced in the second game of individual bowling. Wadsworth put itself in great position with team scores of 980, 954 and 1,118 in the individual portion of the tournament, then averaged 203.3 in six Baker games. "It was incredible," Eagon-Mohlmaster said of the 1,118. "Normally one person shoots real high and the rest of us fill in with 180s or 190s or 200s to balance it out. For us to finally get it all together, it was really great." Eagon-Mohlmaster credited two factors for the Suburban League champion Grizzlies' success. The first was practicing with Triway at Ballerz Sports Club in Wooster during the week. "I was lined up pretty much from the get-go," he said. "We've been practicing with the team from Triway, and for me it was exactly the same shot at Eastbury." The second factor was much easier for everyone at Eastbury Lanes to see. Prior to showing up at Wadsworth on Saturday morning, the previously long-haired Nagel, a junior, shaved the sides of his head, leaving him with a thin Mohawk of sorts. This Mohawk, however, was spiked, with his remaining hair, which ranged from about six to 10 inches in length, standing straight up from the top to the back of his head. By the time the team bus got to Canton, the Grizzlies were already loose and ready to roll. "We were thinking, 'What time did he wake up in the morning?'" Eagon-Mohlmaster said. "But actually, he said he woke up at 6:30 and he was at the bus at 7:20, so it didn't take him that long to do it. "We had so much fun with it. The Green Bulldog fans were talking about how much they wanted to touch his hair and a lot of other people wanted pictures." The Wadsworth girls team required no such fashion statements. The SL champion Grizzlies were third after games of 749, 820 and 827 in the individual bowling and, though just 20 pins ahead of fifth-place St. Vincent-St. Mary at that point, widened their lead with steady Baker games of 178, 170, 156, 175, 171 and 206. Sophomores Cassidy Myers and Aubrey Masuda led the way. A Norton transfer, Myers was sixth individually with a 523 series (182-211-130) and Masuda, who moved to Wadsworth from Hawaii prior to her freshman year, tied for eighth with a 519 (147-170-202). The consistent Grizzlies also got a 460 series from Addy Martin, a 449 from Amelia Lutz and a 445 from Cece Craig to secure their first district berth in nine years. Green's Madison Perrine, one of just two girls to shoot 600, was the individual champion with a 638 (187-224-227). "I'm losing my voice from screaming," Myers said. "I found it absolutely amazing. We just had fun. "I think we can (qualify for the state tournament), but my goal is just to do my best and keep my team up." The Cloverleaf boys were led by Trevor Courie, who was 26th with a 560 series (166-158-236). Shane Hlavaty was 27th with a 553 highlighted by a 226 in his opening game and Joe Deyling shot 454. The Colt girls were paced by Caroline Markert (397), Jennah Morrison (379) and Destiny Grayshaw (360). Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4046 or rnoland@medina-gazette.com. Follow him @RickNoland on X.