Blissfield Boys Surge, Then Sweep to Attain Bowling Royalty for 1st Time
By
Perry A. Farrell
Special for MHSAA.com
February 27, 2026
TAYLOR – Plymouth Christian Academy had been consistent Friday at Skore Lanes, earning the top seed for match play, sweeping its first match and winning the first game of its Division 4 Quarterfinal.
Then the Eagles ran into a Blissfield team on a roll as well.
PCA did take a 2-1 lead in their Semifinal before Blissfield won the last two games – rolling a 246 in the match decider. The Royals then swept Riverview Gabriel Richard in the championship match to claim their first Finals team title in boys bowling.
Blissfield’s lineup of Cash Moore, Alex Kudlac, Preston Iffland, Jon Cheney and Matthew Anderson dominated the Final, winning 191-114, 219-157 and 214-137.
The Royals also had reached the Semifinals in Division 3 a year ago but were a few students short of remaining in that classification this year. Moving to Division 4 was somewhat of a disappointment after coming so close in the Division 3 bracket.
“We were kind of upset about it,’’ said Moore, the leadoff bowler in the Final. “We had made the final four a year ago. We adjusted. I thought we bowled well all day. I thought (Gabriel Richard) might have run out of gas.’’
Plymouth Christian capitalized on a 943 score in the second round of singles to claim the top spot in qualifying with a 3,360. Jonesville, which finished Division 4 runner-up the last two seasons and was seeking its first championship since 2014, was second in qualifying at 3,337 pins, and New Lothrop placed third at 3,316.
PCA advanced against Bay City All Saints (3-0) in the first round of the best-of-five Baker game match format. Blissfield had eliminated Burton Atherton (3-0) to advance.
Jonesville’s hope of finally reclaiming the title stayed alive with a victory over Traverse City Christian (3-1) to advance to the Semifinal against Riverview Gabriel Richard, which had eliminated New Lothrop (3-2). Gabriel Richard won 3-1 against Jonesville to advance to the Final.
“We just kept going,’’ said Blissfield’s Iffland. “We didn’t miss our spares. If we got down during the day we got back up. If someone was hot we just kept riding each other.
“This was awesome. Last year we came up just short (in Division 3). It was sweet that we got it this year.’’
Fournier Adds Another Hudson Finals Win with School's 1st in Bowling
March 2, 2024
MUSKEGON – As Hudson boys bowling coach Mike Longmire explained it Saturday, his community is known athletically for football, wrestling and competitive cheer. In fact, the wrestling team repeated as Division 4 champion a week ago, and the cheer team won its fifth-straight Division 4 title Friday.
But sophomore Carter Fournier’s performance to cap the weekend at least puts bowling in the picture.
Fournier became his school’s first MHSAA Finals champion in this sport, qualifying as the 10th seed for match play and surviving a series of strong challenges before breaking away for a 444-392 win over Allen Park Cabrini junior Bryce Cadaret in the championship match at Northway Lanes.
Fournier had started the morning’s six-game qualifying block with a pair of 222 games, but dipped to 148 in the fourth. He rebounded in a big way with a 238 in his final game of qualifying to finish with a 1,194 total – and with the separation between 10th and missing the cut in 17th only 48 pins.
“I thought I wasn’t going to make the cut,” Fournier said. “I made it as the 10th seed, and I just kept grinding away in match play – and winning.”
First up was Burton Atherton junior Michael Demey, and Fournier won by six pins, 385-379. Next was New Lothrop’s Ashtin Andres and another lean win, 390-388.
Fournier rolled a 201 and 258 in the Semifinal to get past Jonesville’s Andrew Sackett 459-431. He carried the momentum of that 258 into the championship match, rolling a 236 to Cadaret’s 190 in the first game and taking the second 208-202.
“He was throwing the ball really well early on, but he was down every match we started, except for the final one,” Longmire said. “(I) just tried to keep him positive and keep him going and not give up, and he did a great job. He didn’t get emotional or anything; he was just steady and made good shots.”
Cadaret finished runner-up for the second-straight season. He qualified for match play as the fourth seed and dominated on his way to the Final with wins of 414-341, 469-351 and 510-364 in the Semifinal.