by John Selby ’15
The Wildcat Bowling team is usually the most overlooked sports team during the winter season and even the whole year. There aren’t usually any exceptions to this, but the members of the AlleyCats this year are the exception.
The team is led by its only senior, Andrew Maykut ’13. The team looks up to him during the good and bad times, and he is always there for them. Andrew helps them during matches and practices by giving them advice on what they may be doing wrong, and he always has a positive attitude. On leading the team this year Andrew says, “I believe I have done that, even when I wouldn’t be bowling well I would stay positive and help out my other teammates.”He also believes that is very important to have great chemistry because one person’s attitude may affect the whole team. Andrew has done an outstanding job of keeping the team’s emotions in check, and is leading the AlleyCats to one of their best seasons ever.
The AlleyCats finished the regular season with a record of 10-1 in the 12-team Greater Cleveland Interscholastic Bowling League (GCIBL) after ending the year on a 10-match winning streak. For you novice bowlers out there, the matches are scored differently than you may think. The matches are typically three hours long, and they are split into three categories: Scratch, Handicap, and OHSAA. There is a three game series followed by two baker games. The baker games consist of all five bowlers in which the first bowler bowls frames 1 and 6, and then the next 2 and 7, etc. until a complete game is bowled. In the GCIBL there is a seven point system for Scratch and Handicap in which a team earns two points for winning a game and one point for winning the total of the category. In OHSAA games, there is a one point system in which winning the grand total of the match wins one point. A win is determined by whoever has knocked down the greater number of pins. The team’s most important win was against Olmsted Falls in the third week of the season. Olmsted Falls is one of the toughest teams to beat in the division, but the AlleyCats overcame the odds and won the match by a total pinfall of 3, 333 pins to 3, 260. According to Andrew, “We were able to come together as a team, pick each other up when one of us was struggling, and defeat Olmsted Falls.” The team completed its first-ever sweep of the Handicap and Scratch Divisions of the GCIBL, while finishing second in the OHSAA division.
Postseason bowling kicks off with the Sectional Tournament on Saturday February 16th. The Ignatius community certainly wishes the team luck as it begins the playoffs in hopes of a championship.
