Evergreen rolls to state bowling championship

The Plainsmen, who had a big lead going into the final day, had a little worry early in Saturday’s competition, but then showcased talent up and down the lineup to pull away from Hudson’s Bay for the title.

The Eagles finished second in state, making this quite the weekend for 3A bowlers from Clark County. Kerissa Andersen of Evergreen won the individual title on Friday and six from Southwest Washington earned medals for placing in the top eight.

Then Saturday, it was a two-team battle in the 14 Baker games for the championship because the Plainsmen and Eagles had put so much distance between them and the six other teams in competition.

Hudson’s Bay had cut a 181-pin deficit to 78 after the first four Baker games.

“I was having a heart attack. Hudson’s Bay has a great team,” Evergreen coach Robin Bailey said. “I was really worried.”

Evergreen got it going in the fifth game and by the seventh game, the lead was back to 178.
The Eagles responded with a 51-point advantage in the eighth game to get back within striking distance, with Evergreen struggling to a 138.

The Plainsmen followed with a 201, with their first four bowlers — Lexi Henderson, Hailey DeHaven, Jessica DuFrain, and Andersen — all firing a strike to set the tone.

Bliquez said the team’s enthusiasm took a hit in that eighth game. She and her teammates were silent. And the Plainsmen really believe that decimal numbers matter.

“When we cheer loud, the pins fall,” Bliquez said.

“When we scream, the pins get scared,” added DuFrain.

“We just knew the loudest team was going to win,” Bliquez said. “That’s how it is.”

The Plainsmen, she added, went back to the “really annoying cheers.”

It helps to have those strong starts, too.

“Being lead-off is a lot of pressure,” Henderson said. “If you have a bad frame, it can carry on. But if you do good on the first frame, everything else will be good.”

DeHaven said a quality first frame from Henderson gives her confidence for her second frame. It’s a snowball effect.

“Every girl did something at the right time to get us going again,” Bailey said.

Evergreen was paired with the Eagles for games 11 and 12, and the Plainsmen added 78 pins to their lead.

The final two games were just an extended celebration, with the Plainsmen cruising to the title with a final margin of 297 pins: 7,591-7,294. They even recorded their best score of the day — a 206 — on that final game.

All seven Plainsmen contributed this weekend. Dakota O’Neil bowled in all six traditional games Friday, helping the Plainsmen build a 181-pin lead going into Saturday, before injuring a knee.

In the final game Saturday, reserve bowler Kayli Shaw got into the action, rolling a strike on her first ball of the championship.

Yes, it was that kind of a weekend for the Plainsmen. Everybody all-in for a title.

“It’s overwhelming,” Andersen said of her double — individual and team. “But I won with my team, and that’s the greatest victory of them all.”

Bailey, in her sixth season as Evergreen’s coach, remembered graduating her entire team four years ago. Bliquez’s freshman year was a re-build.

Now, the Plainsmen are champions.

“I’m so excited for them,” the coach said. “It says we are doing the right things.”

Bliquez won the district individual title last week but was bummed when Hudson’s Bay overtook the Plainsmen for the team crown.

This week, though, the Plainsmen would not falter. They were going to keep that lead over the Eagles.

“It’s just everything. I wouldn’t trade this for anything,” Bliquez said before tears of joy fell again.
She looked around at her teammates one more time.

“To win with them, it means everything.”

Class 4A: Eastmont won the 4A team title Saturday. Hanford was second. Battle Ground, the district champion from Southwest Washington, finished seventh.

Notes: Evergreen became the fourth program from Clark County to win a WIAA state bowling title. Battle Ground has four 4A state titles, from 2012-15. Columbia River won the 3A title in 2015, and Prairie won the 3A title in 2011. … Andersen is the fifth individual from Clark County to win a state title. Wylicia Faley of Battle Ground won 4A titles 2012 and again in 2014. Madison Crockett of Skyview was the 4A champion in 2013. Ashli Mortensen of Evergreen was the 4A 2009 champion. Rachel Kreigbaum of Battle Ground won the 4A 2007 title, the first year the WIAA recognized an individual champion. … The WIAA sanctioned bowling as a team sport in 2001.