WCHS Bowling Teams: 2008-09 Post-Season

They say all good things must come to an end, and in the end all of our hard work fell just one match short for both teams, as both the Wildcats & Lady Wildcats finish the season as TSSAA DIV I STATE RUNNER-UP!!  WOW!! 

First, the Wildcats.  Rolling against a heavily-favored "home" team Smyrna Bulldogs, our guys put the ball in the pocket, and kept fighting throughout the match.  But this Smyrna team was just too strong, too deep, and hitting on all cylinders as they plowed down 3814 pins to our 3487 total in winning 20-7.  Both teams were dealing with bleeding fingers & thumbs, but all of these boys played like champions!  Leading our guys in the finals was Fr. Spencer Harp with a pair of 217's and a 627 series.  Other good scores - Chris Branner with a 210-225 & 602 series; Geremy Roseti rolled a 212-596; Krishna Patel had a nice 226 and 595 series; and Seth Carey shot a 203 in game 3.  Here is the recap:

http://www.tssaa.org/2008Champions/StateBowling/DIBoys/Match7.htm

On to the LadyCats.  In two previous meetings with the Hardin Co. Lady Tigers in the State Tournament, it was pretty "ugly" on our end.  In 2005, our LadyCats had their first State appearance, and HCHS promptly sent us home in the first round 24-3.  Two years ago, in our other State Finals match, the HCHS ladies were way better than us, and won the title by a 21-6 score.  So Coach REALLY wanted to win this rematch, and knew we still were facing an awesome team.  As a matter of fact, Coach found out right before today's final match that this HCHS team had just shot 3507 in the semi's, and that is the highest team score EVER rolled at State by a girls team!!  So...here we go!!

Game 1 was a good one with our girls winning 3.5 of the 6 individual points, but the HCHS girls took the game 1129-1095.  So, it is close!  Game 2 saw their ladies take it to us with a whopping 1210 game score, as we bowled well with an 1128.  But, we only won 2 points, so after two games, we were down 5.5-10.5 and -116 on total pins!  Coach told the ladies this was the identical score that the boys were down by vs. Hardin Co. in their first-round match, and asked them to "give it their all" and lets storm back again and take it.  And OH THEY TRIED!!  Winning 4 ind. points and rolling a great 1178 game, our ladies did AWESOME!!  But, the HCHS girls were simply too good, and with their 1109 game 3 score, they had enough pins to hang on and take the State Title again, by a final margin of 11.5 - 15.5.  Our LadyCats rolled a 3401 series, which is higher than any other girls' team score in HISTORY, with the exception of the HCHS ladies scores of 3507 & 3448 from today!!  As a coach, you really can't ask any more of your team than to "give it their best" and THIS THEY DID!!  Our leaders from the match were:  Kirstin Page with a 190-206-222 for a 618 series; Brennan Page with a great 236-612; Dani Chaffin rolled a nice 226-583; and Brittany Sisco had a 211 & 214 to finish with her highest series ever of 572! Here is the recap from this match:

http://www.tssaa.org/2008Champions/StateBowling/DIGirls/Match7.htm

FROM COACH MARK, COACH KENNY, & COACH LEWIS - To all of our WC bowlers, THANK YOU SO MUCH for all of your HARD WORK, DEDICATION, DETERMINATION, and HEART that you gave for us ALL SEASON LONG!!  You all have shown what a lot of practice, learning new things, and giving your very best can do for you and our team!!  And we are all SO PROUD OF YOU!! 

AND, a very BIG "THANK YOU" to all of our PARENTS & FANS out there - you all are the best group we have ever had, and we appreciate your support of ALL of these kids all year long. 

CONGRATULATIONS on an INCREDIBLE SEASON!!

Two years ago this week, the LadyCats of WC went into what was then "uncharted waters" as they made it to the State Final Match by way of an extremely close, exciting win over Soddy-Daisy 14-13.  Could they do it again today against the defending State Champion Hendersonville Lady Commandos?  The answer is YES!!  By an identical 14-13 score, our LadyCats fought & clawed their way through the match, winning key points when needed, and even though we lost total pins 3270-3297, had enough points to take the victory!! 

Game 1 was a great one for the ladies.  With a very balanced team effort, they won 1122-1109 and took 4 of 6 individual points for a 6-2 lead in the match.  Fr. Brittany Sisco came thru HUGE with a 195-193 win over Megan Ditterline, and Dani Chaffin also held on to win her point 193-187 over Christina D'Ordine, this year's Girls Div I Individual State Champion!!  Game 2 saw us roll another good game with a 1094, but their 1137 was better and they evened the match at 8-8. Brennan Page soared to a beautiful 255 game, and Kaitlin Page's 202 won our only other point that game.  The 3rd & final game was very close throughout, and with the pressure mounting, no one rolled over a 200 game!  In the 2nd frame, Laurel Everett had a lucky break which would later prove to be huge - she left the "Big 4" split and MADE IT!!  Congrats, Laurel!!  As the game moved on, our ladies took a sizable lead.  But as good teams do, the H'ville girls started striking and our lead slimmed quickly.  This time, our girls finished with a 1054 game and waited for their last two bowlers to finish.  Christy King needed to get 9 pins for a tie, or a strike to win, on her last shot in the 10th frame.  She only hit 8 pins down, giving that point to Brennan Page 180-179!! Then Christina D'Ordine stepped up in the 10th with a chance to win the game for the Lady Commandos.  She picked up her spare, needing a strike on her last ball to win the game at 1055.  Even a 9-count gives their team a tie at 1054 and the final point needed for the win.  She only knocked down 6 pins...WE WIN!!  It is very hard to sit and watch, not being able to control your own fate, but, as fate would have it this time, our girls win and move on to the STATE FINALS MATCH!! 

Here is the recap of the match:

http://www.tssaa.org/2008Champions/StateBowling/DIGirls/Match6.htm

Brennan Page led the way for our girls in this match with a 614 series.  Also, Kirstin Page rolled a nice 213 in game 1.  Awesome job LadyCats...LET'S GO GET A CHAMPIONSHIP THIS TIME!!

"Jump out to an early lead" is what the coaches asked our boys to do in our semi-final match against Lawrence Co., and that's exactly what they did!  Winning all 8 points and taking a 154-pin lead helped our boys cruise home with a 19-8 victory, moving them into the STATE FINALS!!!!  Geremy Roseti led our boys with a super 259 in game 2, finishing with a nice 643 series.  Other good scores were:  Chris Branner with a 226-608; Seth Carey with 212-595; Krishna Patel had a 221-590; Spencer Harp rolled 224-582; and JR Clemons with a 215 in game 3.  Congratulations to Lawrence Co. HS on their great season!

Here is the recap from the match:

http://www.tssaa.org/2008Champions/StateBowling/DIBoys/Match6.htm

OK boys...we have only 1 MORE TO GO...Let's go get a STATE CHAMPIONSHIP!

WOW!  That is probably the best word to describe today's quarterfinal match for our boys vs. Hardin Co. HS.  Down 5.5 - 10.5 after 2 games, and down in total pins by 161, our guys showed an INCREDIBLE display of heart, determination, talent, & energy, as they stormed back with an awesome 1304 in game 3 to win by 200 pins and take the victory!!

After getting off to a real nice start in game 1, we were up by about 80 pins in the 5th frame.  But by the 7th frame, the Hardin boys started finding their shots, and we kind of lost ours.  We end up losing game 1 1191-1237, and are down 3-5.  Game 2 saw more great shots by our opponent, and as the tide continued to turn, our boys' hopes for a win seemed to be slipping away.  After Game 2, which we lost 1165-1280, we were really down and needed a miracle to get back in it.  Then the tide turned...

With a little "pep" talk from Coach Kenny, and a quick lineup change by Coach Mark, the guys responded almost immediately with lots of strikes, and plenty of energy!  The crowd really started getting into it (Thanks, fans...we love you!), and our boys fed off of that with more & more great shots!  Frame by frame, we chipped into their lead until we "had" them in the 10th frame, and JR Clemons came up and promptly struck with the first ball and we had the win!!  Again, WOW!  JR led all bowlers in the match today with an awesome 258 game 3, and a super 707 series!  Spencer Harp was our other "big gun" today, also bowling 258 in game 3, and ending with a 658 series!  Other good scores were:  Chris Branner with a 204-592; Krishna Patel with an awesome 228 in game 2 (winning a BIG point by 2 pins!); Seth Carey with a 220 in game 3, and Geremy Roseti with a big finish in game 3, rolling the last 5 strikes for a 206 game!

Want to see a recap of our match?  Click here...

http://www.tssaa.org/2008Champions/StateBowling/DIBoys/Match3.htm

Next up for the boys will be Lawrence Co. HS, who are making their first State Tournament appearance.  They defeated Greeneville HS 17-10 in their first round match, and our match with them should be another great one!!  LET'S GO WILDCATS!  YOU CAN TAKE THIS ALL THE WAY!!!

The first round of the 2009 TSSAA Girls State Tournament was good for our LadyCats, as they won easily over Greeneville HS by a 20-7 final score.  The match was actually decided after 2 games, as our girls rolled out to a 16-0 score on games of 1079 & 950.  In game 3, all of our subs came in to get some playing time in the State, which was GREAT!  Our two freshmen starters lead the way today, with Brittany Sisco shooting a great 208 in game 1, followed by Laurel Everett with a nice 202 game!  After that, our girls simply went into "coast" mode against the over-matched Greeneville squad.  Also, rolling in game 3 was Fr. Elizabeth Callas with a nice 185 game.

Click here for a recap of our match:

http://www.tssaa.org/2008Champions/StateBowling/DIGirls/Match3.htm

Now our ladies will find the competition VERY steep, as our semi-final match will be vs. the defending State Champion Hendersonville Lady Commandos!  Our Congratulations go out to Greeneville HS, as both their boys & girls made it to State for the first time!! 

TIME TO SHINE, LADYCATS!!  LET'S GO!!

At the semi-finals of the 2009 TSSAA Individual State Tournament, Jr. bowler Brennan Page showed just how far she has come in just two and a half years of bowling!  Ms. Page qualified in 18th place with a 735 series (4 games) in the qualifying round, then proceeded to roll nearly as well in the Sport-Bowling semi's with a nice 664 for 4 games, ending with a 1399 total which missed the cut to the top 6 by only 21 pins!!  Brennan finished with the 3rd-highest total for Girls on the Sport Shot, and also rolled the ONLY 200+ game by the girls, a nice 202!  She finished in 9th place overall.  A great tournament for her any way you look at it!  Way to go, Brennan!

Also qualifying for the finals for the boys were Jr. Geremy Roseti & Fr. Spencer Harp.  Geremy qualified 8th with a great 882 series (4 games), while Spencer made the cut at a tie for the 22nd spot at 840!!  JR Clemons started great with a 224 in game #1, but fell off after that and did not make the top 24 cut, rolling 774 total.  Also participating but falling short of the cut was Dani Chaffin, who started with a nice 192, but shot 667 for 4 - not enough to make the top 24.

Congratulations to all 5 of our bowlers for your performance ALL YEAR LONG!! Click on these links to see entire tournament results:

http://www.tssaa.org/2008Champions/StateBowling/DIBoys/Results.htm

http://www.tssaa.org/2008Champions/StateBowling/DIGirls/Results.htm

Wilson Central's teams have always had a "flair" for dramatic matches and finishes...but the sectional match for the boys vs. Station Camp is one that these boys OR their coaches will not soon forget!  After jumping out to a 196-pin lead in game 1, winning 6.5 of 8 points, our team felt really good about our chances of advancing.  But a couple of substitutions by our opponent and a game later, and all of that changed.  Station Camp improved 270 pins from game 1 for a super 1249 game 2, and that score beat us by 60 pins, as we followed our 1175 start with an 1189 score.  Now after 2 games, we were only up by a point (8.5 - 7.5) but still had a 136-pin lead in total pins.  But as the lanes dried up, so did our strikes and as game 3 progressed, it looked like we were letting our chance slip away!  With the other five struggling to find a line, Jr. Geremy Roseti actually FOUND his, and powered his way to a great 237 final game, and with his point and Seth Carey's 171-137 win, we got 2 points and held onto the 3 points for total pins to achieve a 13.5 - 13.5 TIE!  The TSSAA rules state that the tie-breaker for a tie in total points is TOTAL PINFALL.  WE WIN!!!  By virtue of our 41-pin lead in totals - 3475-3434 - the Wilson Central boys cheered as they are STATE TOURNAMENT BOUND for the first time!! 

Our veteran boys led the way today, with Mr. Roseti rolling a 619 series, and JR Clemons adding a 224-610 total.  Other good scores were:  Spencer Harp with 213-591; and Chris Branner with a 210-597.  We want to congratulate Coach Cliff Stafford and his Station Camp team on their outstanding comeback and great bowling in games 2 & 3!  They were certainly a great team and should be commended on their season!!  Here we go guys...get ready for THE RIDE!!

The 2008-09 WC Lady Wildcats are STATE TOURNAMENT BOUND!  Facing off against a very good Gallatin girls team, the LadyCats finished game 1 with a good 1088-944 score while taking 7 of 8 points.  But it was the start of game 1 that had everyone a little concerned.  With the lanes a little more oily than normal, our girls got off to a very slow start, especially for this team.  After 5 frames we were actually down in total pins and losing 4 of the 6 points!  But as they have done so many times this season, these girls finished with a flurry of strikes & spares to take control!  Game 2 saw three of our ladies really struggle to find the line, and we ended up dropping that game 1051-1078.  But we still took 4 of the individual points, so after 2 games we were up 11 - 5.  In game 3 our girls really nailed it, with 3 200+ games and an 1120-1036 score.  Final score of match was 19 - 8, with total pins at 3259-3058. 

Kirstin Page was our individual leader today - winning 2 of 3 points against Gallatin's very good #1 player Heidi Daniel.  Kirstin rolled games of 199-225-212 for a great 636 series!  Ms. Daniel finished with a very nice 613 series.  Other big scores for us were:  Dani Chaffin with a 206 & 215 and 572 series; Brennan Page with a 216-567; Laurel Everett with 201-550; and Sr. Alyssa Bald returning to action after her 2-month layoff with a super 203 in game 3! 

Now it is "Time to Shine" as Coach Kenny likes to say - so let's go ladies...let's bring home a STATE CHAMPIONSHIP to WILSON CENTRAL!!

In what turned out to be an anti-climactic 4th match of the season vs. Mt Juliet, the LadyCats bowled well enough to secure a 25 - 2 win for their FOURTH CONSECUTIVE REGION 5 TITLE!!  While Coach Kenny & Mark prepared the girls for an anticipated strong rematch with Mt Juliet, it was obvious that ALL of the bowlers on both teams were tiring, and our girls had just enough left to win the Regional!  Dani Chaffin led the girls this match with a nice 205-563, and Laurel Everett had high game with a 206!  With a final pinfall total of 3057 - 2580, the match was won after 2 games, and our "bench" got even more playing time! 

Our LadyCats now get to host the SECTIONAL match this SATURDAY, 1-24-09 at 10:00am at HERMITAGE LANES!  We will face the runner-up from Region 6, the ladies from GALLATIN HS.  ALL CHEERLEADERS ARE NEEDED ON SATURDAY TO ROOT US ON TO A WIN AND A 3RD CONSECUTIVE TRIP TO STATE!!  CONGRATS to our LADY WILDCATS!!

The WC Wildcats ran into that team that Coach Mark said we would - "We are going to hit some really good teams in the post-season and some of them are going to bowl really well against us!"  And that is exactly what played out in today's Region 5 finals vs. Nashville Overton HS.  With 2 bowlers rolling UNBELIEVABLE scores of 757 (Jeffrey Fernandez) and 789 (Markus Betts), and the rest of the team rolling real well, the Overton boys simply out-played us by winning 3867 - 3722.  Yes, that is 3722 in a LOSING effort!  Our guys put up numbers that would win most matches, but it wasn't meant to be today!  Steady, good scores today by most all of our boys - JR Clemons led the way again with a 253-673; Seth Carey had high game with a super 267 & 651 series; Spencer Harp had a very nice 255-640; Geremy Roseti had SO many 9's today in his 232-626 score; and Chris Branner had a great 249-602.  As you can see, our guys bowled well.  They just got beat!

As Region 5 runners-up, our season is not done yet!  We still have an opportunity to reach the STATE TOURNAMENT with a win at Sectionals, which will be at STRIKE-N-SPARE GALLATIN lanes in Gallatin.  We will face Region 6 Champion STATION CAMP HS there on MONDAY, 1-26-09 at 4:00pm in the afternoon.  EVERYONE MAKE PLANS TO COME TO GALLATIN TO CHEER US ON TO STATE!! 

The WC bowling teams continued their trek to a Regional Championship in today's semi-finals with wins over opponents MLK & Page HS.  The LadyCats stormed out to an 8-0 lead over MLK in game 1 with yet another SCHOOL-RECORD performance, rolling 1184 to MLK's 845.  With that huge lead, coach started subbing in game 2 and the LadyCats finished off the win by a 6-2 score.  Jr. Brennan Page was the only girl to stay for all 3 games, and she made it pay off with her team-leading, FIRST-EVER 700 series, an beautiful 709!  Brennan put together games of 215-257-237, and also had the first 8 strikes in game 2!  Way to go, Bren!!  Other great scores in this match were:  Kirstin Page with 219 & 225 in games 1 - 2; Laurel Everett with another monster game of 233; & Kaitlin Page had a nice 202 in game 1.  LadyCats win moves them into a 4th meeting with Mt Juliet in the Region finals!!

The Wildcats had an interesting semi-final match today, thanks to the coaches' discretion.  The boys jumped out with a 1301 in game 1 and a 6.5-1.5 lead, winning by 220 pins!  2 subs come in in game 2 - to try and rest some arms for the likely trip to the finals.  And Game 2 sees a nice 1252 - 1207 win, taking 7 of 8 points for a 13.5 - 2.5 lead after 2 games.  Also up on total pins by 265.  So the match is "in hand" right?  Coaches Mark & Kenny decide to give the rest of our bench an opportunity to bowl and "put it away."  But seeing this "statistical chance" set the Page boys on fire!  After 5 frames, we were losing every point, and were already down by almost 200 pins!  So, Coach Mark went back to the "dugout" and asked Spencer Harp & JR Clemons to come in and close it.  And they did just that!  Spencer took over in frame 7 and promptly rolled 6 straight strikes to win the one point we needed to take the match!  JR also had 4 strikes in his "fill-in" role and helped our team secure total pins as well.  I must say that none of our subs rolled badly, the Page boys were just fired-up and hitting it!  Page won game 3 1235-1036, but as stated we win by a final 17.5 - 9.5 margin.  JR Clemons led our boys in this match with a 255-220; Geremy Roseti had a great 236-215; Chris Branner shot awesome with 234-225; Spencer Harp had 201-202 & finished game 3 with 213!  Also, hats off to a few of our subs who did GREAT - Eric Lane with a 202 in game 2; Josh Leedham with a nice 192 in game 3; and Ryan Peplinski with 188 in game 2.  Now on to the finals vs. Overton HS!  GREAT WIN, 'CATS!!

Sophomore Seth Carey took the team on his shoulders in game 1 Tuesday, rolling 12 perfect shots for his FIRST-EVER 300 GAME!!  With his lead, the boys soared to a near-record 1392 game and won 6 of 8 points in that first game, leading to a relatively easy 22 - 5 win over a pretty good McGavock squad.  Finishing with an 3875 series, the exact same score the 'Cats shot in last weeks' District Finals match, the boys out-distanced the Raiders by over 300 pins.  Seth also had high series for the day with a great 717, following his perfect game with 225-192.  Everyone contributed nicely to the great score today:  Geremy Roseti caught fire with a 259-685; Spencer Harp rolled super again today with a 677 on games of 227-229-221; JR Clemons improved his score with a 236-648; Krishna Patel rolled an awesome 247 in game 2; and Chris Branner had a 214 game.  This team is really coming into their own here at the right time of the season, and we look forward to a big day this Thursday, where they will face PAGE HS in the semi's.  GO WILDCATS!!

The LadyCats had no trouble today winning their first round match, defeating Whites Creek 25 - 2.  Dani Chaffin rolled her personal-best 676 series today, which included her season-high game of 267!  With subs able to come in for some play time today, the ladies finished with a 2928 series.  The LadyCats now face Martin Luther King HS in the semi-finals.  GOOD LUCK, LADYCATS!!

With a day full of UNBELIEVEABLE performances, the Wildcats & LadyCats both rolled big on their way to becoming District 10 Champions!!  Two new school record scores, lots of personal bests, and two BIG wins over our in-county rivals Mount Juliet lead us to the Wildcats' FIRST-EVER District Title, and the LadyCats to an awesome FIFTH-STRAIGHT District Win!!

Starting with the Wildcat Boys, it was the "Start" that set the tone for the rest of the match, as our boys steam-rolled out of the gate with a new school-best 1396 in game 1, doing just what they needed to beat a very strong MJ team with a super 1325 of their own!  Game 2 was more of the same for us, with a great 1295 as we took 6 of 8 points to take control of the match.  Final score was 19.5 - 7.5.  These Wildcats definitely bowled like Champions, and our youngest starters led the way for us today - Fr. Spencer Harp pounded his way to his first-ever 700 series with a 258-706!  So. Chris Branner had high game today with a season-high 267, and he finished with a nice 683 series.  And So. Seth Carey was steady-good today with 242-216-232 for a great 690 series!!  Other good scores were:  Geremy Roseti with a 226-627, Sr. Krishna Patel with a 221 in game 1, and JR Clemons with a 213.  AWESOME WIN, WILDCATS!!

Our LadyCats were not ready to give up the spotlight today, as they cruised to a 23 - 4 win over the MJ Lady Bears by way of an INCREDIBLE 3431 score!!  With every lady rolling over a 500 series today, this awesome performance is almost 200 pins better than their previous high of 3237 set earlier this season!  So. Kirstin Page was our leader today with a great 234-633 series; Fr. Laurel Everett had her first-ever 600 series with a super 235-620!; Jr. Brennan Page had high game today with a 247 (593 series); Dani Chaffin rolled a 233-566; Kaitlin Page had a nice 212-506; and Brittany Sisco bowled a 513.  These ladies have proven time and again this year that they are READY for the next step, which we hope is a trip back to state and a CHAMPIONSHIP!!  Way to go, WC LadyCats!!

Now it is on to the Regions, and hopefully, more titles!!  GOOD LUCK, 'CATS!!

Five WC bowlers have earned a berth in the 2009 TSSAA Individual State Tournament!  They are, for the girls - Brennan Page (Jr) with a 190.09 average, and Dani Chaffin (So) with a 184.48 avg.  For the Boys, it is - JR Clemons (Jr) with a 207.02 avg; Geremy Roseti (Jr) with a 201.18 avg; and Spencer Harp (Fr) with a 197.71 avg. 

Brennan has the sixth-highest average in the state for the girls, and Dani is 15th.  On the boys side, JR is ranked 17th in average, Geremy is 28th, and Spencer is one of only four(4) freshman to qualify for this years' tourney!  The top 4 boys and top 4 girls in average from each district qualify for the Individual State.  Congrats and way to go, WC bowlers!!

All of your POST-SEASON information and results will be posted on this new page!  For more information on the High School Bowling post-season, click on this link:

http://www.tssaa.org/Sports/Bowling/post.htm

This will get you up-to-date information on ALL of the District, Region, Sectional (Sub-State), and State teams, as well as those individuals who have advanced to the Individual State Tournament. 

GO WILDCATS!!