Senior Standouts Rally & Reign in D1
By
Perry A. Farrell
Special for MHSAA.com
March 7, 2020
ALLEN PARK – Denny O’Neill described Cheyenne Washington as a four-year stalwart in the Lake Orion program, coachable and a leader.
He could now describe her as a champion as she rallied from a 19-pin deficit against Lauren Slagter of Jenison to claim the Division 1 Finals singles title Saturday at Thunderbowl Lanes, 392-353.
Slagter opened in the second, fifth and seventh frames to open the door for the Dragons’ senior.
“I just wanted to keep making good shots and have fun,’’ said Washington. “It really didn’t matter about the score. Instead of playing in, like the girls were playing, I had to play outside. I had to change balls because the boys pushed the oil to the outside, but that’s the line I like playing. It’s a great feeling.’’
“She’s my team captain this year, and she has great family support,’’ O’Neill said. “She has been a pleasure to coach – very trainable and she listens.’’
Slagter advanced to the final by beating Carrington Beaman of Farmington, 483-385, while Washington eliminated Anna Maxwell of Westland John Glenn, 418-351.
In the boys division, Utica Eisenhower’s Dylan Kelley was trying to add a singles title to his team’s championship on Friday. Standing in his way was smooth lefty Izaac Goergen of Midland. Splits on Lane 5 had Goergen searching for an adjustment. He found it and claimed the title against Kelley, who couldn’t find the pocket.
“I had been throwing urethane all day, the purple Hammer, and we noticed the shot was tighter,’’ said Goergen. “With the girls pushing the oil inside, I had to change balls. I went to my pearl Idol, and it made all the difference. I guess it worked.’’
The Macomb Area Conference bowlers dominated the top spots in both divisions as junior Dani Decruydt of St. Clair Shores Lakeshore was the top qualifier in the girls division at 1,268. Second was Samantha Mason of Sterling Heights (1,267), and third was Allyson Sand of Macomb L’Anse Creuse North (1,262).
Decruydt made a quick exit as the top seed as she was knocked out by 16th seed Kayla Mazure of L’Anse Creuse North (389-382). Mazure advanced to face Washington, who eliminated Noelle Phillips of Traverse City West, 459-417.
Second seed Mason was knocked out by the 15th seed, freshman Angelita Rodriguez of Wyandotte Roosevelt, 372-332. Rodriguez moved on to face Beaman, who had defeated Evelyn Cano of Flushing, 391-380. Beaman overcame some thumb issues and dispatched Rodriguez to advance to the semifinals.
The top remaining seed was Sand, who downed of Carmen Corona of Warren Cousino, 448-336.
Jenison also had two bowlers make it to the round of eight as Anna Bartz beat Ondrea Ream of Traverse Central 403-315 and Slagter knocked out Katherine Dybicki of Belleville, 421-378.
LCN’s Sand and Mazure lost in the round of eight; Sand to Jenison’s Slagter, 472-373, and Mazure to Washington 341-329. Jenison’s Bartz was eliminated by Maxwell, 380-326.
In the boys division sophomore Carter Milasinovich of Utica Eisenhower was the top marksman at 1,395 followed by Noah Samuels of Salem (1,377) and Goergen of Midland (1,365).
The upsets in the boys division started early as well as Samuels lost to sophomore Ben Augustitus of St. Clair Shores Lakeshore (446-393). Salem teammate Jon Hall also lost to a sophomore, Justin Strait of Grand Haven (436-378). That ended the weekend for Salem, which finished runner-up in the Team Final on Friday.
Strait ended Augustitus’ day in the quarterfinal, 409-355, to advance to the semis.
Eisenhower’s Milasinovich also didn’t last long, as he was beaten in the first round of match play by Matt Buck of Rockford (437-373). However, teammate Kelley advanced to the quarterfinal round, opening match play with a win over Julihanni Alcini of Roseville.
Marco Ramirez of Brownstown Woodhaven advance to the semifinals by beating Buck, 484-378 while Goergen bettered Davison’s Brendan Ashley, 428-380. He then faced Kelley, who had beaten David Schaberg of Holt, 474-386.
Click for full girls results and boys results.
Vicksburg's Butler Adds to Legacy as School's 1st Bowling Finals Champ
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 1, 2025
WATERFORD — Vicksburg junior Jordon Butler walked into Century Bowl for the Division 2 Singles Finals on Saturday having already made history.
He later departed after making quite a bit more.
Already the first bowler from Vicksburg to qualify for the MHSAA Finals, Butler now is the first bowler from Vicksburg to win one as well, earning a 400-387 win over DeWitt junior Griffin Lindemann in the championship match.
“I came here and my goal was top 16,” said Butler, who qualified seventh out of the qualifying block. “I got top 16 and I was like, ‘All right, let’s keep working.’”
Butler worked his way all the way to the top, first earning a 427-363 win over Tecumseh senior Palmer Ziemer in the round of 16. He then bowled a first game of 279 en route to a 486-358 win over St. Clair Shores Lake Shore junior Gregg Winters in the quarterfinals.
Butler then earned a 420-359 win over Iron Mountain senior Blake Flaminio in the semifinals.
In the final, Butler started off hot, bowling a 246 to take a 37-pin lead over Lindemann going into the second game.
Butler started off hot again, but he admittedly started feeling some pressure in the middle of the game, which turned into a couple of open frames due to splits.
“I started bowling a little shaky there,” Butler said. “I was getting nervous.”
Lindemann gave himself a chance, getting into a position where if he would have struck out in the 10th frame, he would have won.
However, on the first shot of the 10th, Lindemann bowled a nine, with the 4-pin wobbling a bit, but not falling, to end his hopes.
“Today he was probably 10-15 pins higher than his average,” Vicksburg co-coach Chris Adams said of his champion. “He has got the best mental attitude. Level-headed and always has a smile on his face. That’s who Jordon is.”
As was the case with Butler, Lindemann was making his first appearance at an MHSAA Finals, and was thrilled with how his day went despite falling just short at the end.
Lindemann, who was the No. 12 seed out of qualifying, defeated Carleton Airport sophomore Brayden Siders in the semifinals, 406-323. He also didn’t have a series below 400 until the final.
“I came into this thinking to just bowl my best and if I made the cut, I made the cut,” Lindemann said. “I didn’t expect to get all the way to the finals. I’m proud of myself that I did it.”
While Butler and Lindemann advanced the furthest in the tournament, the game of the day belonged to New Boston Huron senior Nicholas Suemnick, who bowled a 300 in the first game of qualifying.
Last year’s individual champion, Flint Kearsley junior Jameson Vanier, finished 18th in qualifying and missed the cut by 17 pins.