Xenia High School sophomore Nicole Seibel second-guessed herself.

She posted the high score at the Greater Western Ohio Conference Championship, but missed a sectional tourney win by one pin, falling to Piqua senior Kayla Miller, 669-668.

“I missed a 7-pin; that was the difference,” Seibel said. “So, yeah, I was sort of kicking myself, but I was also happy because I advanced.”

Seibel will have a chance to redeem herself in the district tournament at Eastern Lanes in Middletown. The boys compete today and the girls on Saturday.

“I’m pretty confident with the way I’ve been bowling lately and I’m definitely going to try for first place, but I know I need to relax and not put too much pressure on myself,” she said.

The top five boys and girls teams and individuals on nonqualifying teams advance to the state tournament March 4-5 at Columbus.

“Nicole has really come into her own,” Xenia coach Stacy Kanemoto said. “She had high expectations for herself this season.”

Kanemoto will be busy doing double duty as coach and cheerleader for his daughter Sierra, who advanced with the Stebbins bowling team. The Indians finished third at the sectional.

“I will definitely be peeking over at my daughter’s lane,” Kanemoto said.

The Stebbins freshman rolled her team’s second highest series at the sectional. Teammate Macie Carter posted a 218-232-161 – 611 and Kanemoto closed with a 223-189-177 – 589.

“We get along really well as a team,” Sierra said of the Indians. “We are always there to help each other out when we need it.”

The first-year high school bowler hopes that teamwork pays off with a trip to state. A top-five finish, however, would be just one more thing for Sierra to celebrate; Saturday is her 15th birthday.

BOYS FIRST: The boys will be first on the lanes at the district but there were already a few firsts for area teams at the sectional .

Both Vandalia Butler and Tippecanoe are making their first district appearances. The Aviators, led by Eric Sacks who posted an 800 series, won the Dayton sectional and the Red Devils finished sixth.

How tough is it to get out of the Dayton sectional? The top three placers, Butler, Troy and Fairmont, posted team scores of 4,470, 4,278 and 4,275, respectively.

No other team at the other three sectionals posted a score better than Fairmont’s.