District bowling: Buckeye's Aubrey Reuter wins title, Wadsworth girls headed to state

LORAIN — Buckeye's Aubrey Reuter was hearing certain portions of Alice in Chains' "Check My Brain" in her head Monday as she became the first bowler in school history to qualify for the state tournament by winning the Northeast Division I District. The Wadsworth girls team got a career day from its most experienced high school bowler, fourth-year varsity member "Mama Addy" Martin, to earn its second straight state berth and third overall. Highland's Gracie Dunne, who finished second at the 2025 state tournament as a sophomore, saw her season come to an unexpected end when she fell 12 pins shy of advancing. Those were the main storylines involving Medina County participants at Rebman Recreation, other than some harrowing early-morning drives that got much better once vehicles made it to the northern edges of the county. Reuter, a talented and still-improving senior who only has been bowling for three years, added a district title to her Summit County Sectional crown with a 609 series (201-219-189) she attributed to imaginary music. "The key for me was staying calm and keeping a song in my head," she said of the Alice in Chains tune. "I like the riff with the guitar. It goes with the motion of my steps, so it fits the way I bowl." Only two 600 series were shot on fairly tough lane conditions as an alarming amount of strike balls wound up in the gutter, with Reuter beating the 607 posted by Padua Franciscan's Olivia Hanna by two pins. "I just stayed calm and got some strikes going," she said. "To win sectionals and here is something I never thought I could get to." Reuter's best game was her second, when she overcame two huge splits by striking on seven of her last eight balls en route to earning a spot in the March 7 state tournament at HPL Bowling Center in Columbus. "My goal is just to keep making the school proud, but I did tell my parents the other day that I was manifesting an 825 series (at state)," she said with a smile. "I'm thinking big." Martin came up very big as Wadsworth finished second in a 19-team field with a pinfall of 3,516. Massillon Perry (3,737) was a runaway winner, with Austintown-Fitch (3,504), Wooster (3,484) and Nordonia (3,455) grabbing the other state tournament spots. Martin shot a career-high 565 (205-193-167) to finish eighth overall on a day when the Grizzlies got good but not great series from normal top bowlers Aubrey Masuda (T-20th, 523, 156-195-172) and Cassidy Myers (22nd, 522, 203-172-147). The senior's performance also helped her team survive a 745 in the third game of individual bowling, when no Wadsworth player had a double as the Grizzlies dropped from first place to fifth. Wadsworth quickly regrouped in the six Baker games, posting scores of 205, 199, 178 and 165 as its state berth became more and more solidified. "I am extremely happy for Addy to have that kind of day," coach Heidi Steele said. "She deserves it. She puts in the work and she's our emotional leader. We call her Mama Addy for a reason." The Grizzlies, who finished 12th at state a year ago, also got a 464 (137-185-142) from backup ball specialist Ella Brandenburg, a 159 game from Grace Dunwald and contributions from Morgan Shaeffer and Ellie Shoemaker. "I tried to focus on one frame at a time and do as good as I did the last frame," Martin said. "A couple of times I missed my mark, but I didn't want to change it, so I just tried to throw it better. "From my first year, we've gotten a lot better," she said of the two-time defending Suburban League champion Grizzlies. "We're supportive and we like to cheer each other on. I'm hoping we can do better than last year (at state), but it's going to take all of us. We have to work together." Highland's Dunne shot a respectable 563 (205-172-186) but was hurt by the fact five of the top six scores were turned in by bowlers whose teams did not advance to state. The fifth and final individual state berth was nabbed by Walsh Jesuit's Marley Draft, who rolled a 575 to finish sixth overall. "It wasn't great at all," Dunne said of her day. "I started with a good game and had a good line, then the next two games were just crap. It's sad. I'm disappointed in myself." A two-hander from the right side, Dunne had six strikes, including a four-bagger, in her first game, but also missed a pair of one-pin spares. She then had three splits and missed another spare over her last two games. "That cost me making states," the 16-year-old said. Buckeye, which got a 501 (185-184-132) from Riley Onyx, who tied for 39th, a 469 (126-176-167) from Leah Kaczmarski, a 432 (182-137-113) from Addison Fry and a 412 (132-141-139) from LaRyssa Hartshorn, initially looked like it might get the top-five finish necessary to advance as a team. The Bucks were fourth after one game of individual bowling and sixth after two, but a 740 in the third dropped them into a tie for seventh and they couldn't recover in the Bakers, ultimately finishing eighth with a pinfall of 3,335, which put them 120 pins out of fifth. "It worked out the best way it could for me, but I'm nervous about going (to state) without my team," Reuter said. "I was really hoping we could all go together." Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4046 or rnoland@medina-gazette.com.