Panther bowlers outmatched by Harlan

Creston bowling dropped both its girls and boys matches Thursday afternoon, facing a strong Harlan team on both sides.

The Creston boys fell 2,302 to 2,035 while the girls lost 2,285 to 1,840.

The boys were led by Eli Hartman’s overall score of 340. Hartman bowled the highs in both game one and two with a 187 and a 153, respectively.

“It was a really close game in round one,” said Creston coach Ron Pendegraft. “It certainly did not feel like we were bowling that close, but we were well within our abilities to win going into the Baker frames.”

The Panthers’ Aaron Pettit scored a 280 and Nate Wells scored a 271. Harlan’s leader, Jake Fotzler, thew a 323.

The Panther boys were edged in the Bakers 806-638, proving to be the decider.

For the girls, they were tasked with facing members of last season’s state qualifying team. The returners proved influential to the outcome as Harlan’s Madison Horn bowled a 405 across to games to lead the team.

“After the long break, we kind of got what we expected. A long lay off without throwing much. We need to shake the rust off. We need to do so quickly because we have a lot of bowling in the next couple weeks,” said Pendegraft.

Kylee LaMasters led the Creston girls with a score of 205 (177, 128). Mason Clayton was the next highest with a 249 (111, 138).

Junior Varisty

For the JV teams, the boys were led by their lone thrower in Isaac Herrera, who threw a 257 (125, 132). Incomplete results were listed for the Harlan boys.

For the girls, JV was led by Aliyah Fry, bowling a 135 and a 105 for a collective 240. As a unit the JV girls lost 1,774 to 1,528.

Tina Sue Richards had praise from coach Jerry Hartman for her 211 (99, 112) day.

“I was happy with the attitude of the girls. Tina Sue Richards took instructions well and threw her best game ever,” said Hartman. “All of the girls had their moments of great shots, and some not so great, but they are having fun and improving. That’s important.”

Katie Buchanan had the high in game two with a score of 129. Across both matches she had a 238.