WATERFORD — Initially, you probably couldn’t have blamed the Caledonia girls bowling team from being a bit apprehensive about facing Rockford in the championship match at the Division 1 Finals at Thunderbowl Lanes. 

“We’ve seen them at two tournaments this year, and there definitely was one last year as well,” Caledonia coach Prescott Holbrook said. “We’ve always lost to them in match play. It’s usually them No. 1 and us No. 2.”

Not this time, as Caledonia picked the perfect time to reverse positions with Rockford. 

Caledonia captured its first Finals championship, sweeping a Rockford team that finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in the state. 

“The fact that we could come in here and knock it out in three is crazy,” Holbrook said. “This is way better than (losing at) all the little tournaments.”

Caledonia was the No. 4 seed out of the qualifying block and started match play with a 3-2 win over Oxford in the Quarterfinals, coming back from a 2-1 deficit.

In the Semifinals, Caledonia then swept No. 8 seed Livonia Churchill, which in the Quarterfinals had defeated the top seed out of the qualifying block, Macomb Dakota. 

In the Final, Caledonia started off by beating Rockford 139-126 in the first game, then caught fire late in the second game to earn a 186-136 win and wrapped up the title with a 1471-35 triumph in the third game.

“This is the best feeling ever,” Caledonia senior Addison Luxford said. “To finally be able to click when it mattered most, it’s amazing. I couldn’t be happier. I couldn’t be prouder of this team.”

Caledonia advanced out of the qualifying block at last year’s Finals, finishing 13^th. Luxford said having three bowlers back from that squad seemed to pay dividends.

“For some of us to have that experience, it was a lot less intimidating,” she said. “We had that experience. I thought we were able to keep calm, and we were just consistent throughout the whole day.”

Rockford was seeking its first Finals team title and coming off a Semifinal appearance last season.

The Rams were the No. 2 seed out of qualifying, swept Davison in the Quarterfinals and then survived a Semifinal against White Lake Lakeland that was as close as can be.

Lakeland won the first game by one pin and the second game by three to take a 2-0 lead. Rockford won the third game by 25 pins and the fourth by 10 before outlasting Lakeland by four pins in the deciding game. 

“They fought hard all day,” Rockford coach Jerry Tarabek said of his team. “Didn’t exactly have the qualifying round we hoped to have, but somehow ended up second. In the Finals, both teams felt the nerves. They just got over them a little bit quicker than we did.”

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