Bearcats Clinch Second-Straight 2A EvCo Title

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W.F. West’s girls bowling team secured its second-consecutive 2A Evergreen Conference title with a 2,083-1,753 victory over Tumwater on Tuesday at Westside Lanes in Olympia.

The defending state champion Bearcats also extended their undefeated streak to 22 matches, dating back to the beginning of the 2019-20 season.

“It was a very tough shot at Westside Lanes tonight,” W.F. West head coach Don Bunker said. “We were not bowling on fresh lanes, which makes for tough and unpredictable lane conditions. All of the oil was pushed down to the back ends, causing our bowling balls to react too early and then slide at the end. This made for some strange hits and tough spares for both teams. I was happy to see that our team did not get frustrated and just focused on getting as many pins as possible. 

“Our team has a saying when we are struggling and that is to just ‘beat your girl.’ When you beat the opponent across from you it creates a competitive atmosphere and our team thrives on the competition.” 

The Bearcats only lost two of their 12 head-to-head games on Tuesday, even though several of the games were close and came down to the 10th frame.

In the first game, the Bearcats were led by fantastic games from Brianna Powe (203), Cami Aldrich (202) and Piper Chalmers (203) to give them a 244-pin lead.



“Tumwater is a competitive team and always bowls us tough,” Bunker said. “This big lead kind of took the wind out of their sails, which helped us later in the match.”

In the second game, Tumwater kept it close with the Bearcats edging them by 50 pins. Aldrich rolled a 176 and Chalmers, who entered with a 210 average, bowled a 182.

In the final game, the Bearcats won again by a mere 56 pins, led again by Chalmers (194) and Aldrich’s (176). Powe contributed with a solid 170 game. 

“Senior Jessica Loflin struggled tonight but beat her girl every game, including total pins, which is exactly what we needed out of Jessica,” Bunker said.

The Bearcats final league match is set for Wednesday at Aberdeen’s Rainier Lanes. This match will be the final tuneup before the district championship slated for Wednesday, June 9, at Triangle Lanes in Longview.