“It was a crazy day,” boys coach James Smith said. “After the first game, we were in first place, but by the end of the third individual game, we were in 10th.”
The six-game Baker set was a bit of a struggle as the Lions were in jeopardy of falling below the cutline. Emmanuel Christian held off a late Yellow Springs surge to claim the final district berth by just 18 pins, 3,584-3,566.
“I had parents tracking other school’s scores and reporting back to me,” Smith said. “We knew it would be close.”
Emmanuel Christian junior Gabe Amos knows a thing or two about close calls. Only three pins separated the top three individual placers at the sectional meet with Amos coming in at second. Conner Hicks, of Dayton Christian, was first with 704, while Amos and Tucker Searles, West Liberty-Salem, were second and third with 702 and 701, respectively.
“It was the second tournament this season where I lost by less than five pins,” Amos said. “But I know my score helped the team and that’s what really mattered.”
It’s been a banner season for Amos who rolled his first sanctioned 300 game in early January. He also earned the Metro Buckeye Conference bowler of the year honor and helped the Lions win the MBC conference championship. His average has steadily improved from the 190s last season to 213 heading into the postseason this year.
“The off-season was definitely a grind,” Amos said. “A lot of us put in a whole lot of work. And, for me, a 300 was one of my biggest dreams so it paid off.”
Nervous was an understatement heading into the final frame that day.
“It was actually terrifying,” he said with a smile.
But he finished the same way he started — with a strike.
Personal accolades, however, are not the focus heading into the postseason for Emmanuel Christian. With only 64 boys in the school, the focus at the small Springfield school has always been quality over quantity.
“It can be a disadvantage because many schools have both a full varsity and JV team for boys and girls every season and we don’t always have that,” Smith said. “But we have an excellent team and they are highly motivated.”
The boys last qualified to state in 2017.
The Lions girls squad also extended their post-season run with a 10th-place sectional finish. Senior Kaylee Siemon led all Emmanuel Christian bowlers with a 489 series while sophomore Emmalee Koch was close behind with 481.
D-2 district play gets underway at Beaver-Vu Bowl on Tuesday.
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