Kelli Howiler Bowling

As junior gold had come to the end for me I am making my post. First off I have to say that this was a major learning experience for me and really just reinforced the idea of making spares in my head. Overall I didn’t throw the ball bad. I had some trust issues with myself but other than that when I trusted me and my abilities I threw the ball well and would usually strike but we didn’t have enough of those shots. I finished with a 2685 for the four days. Which for my first year I don’t believe is terrible yet it definitely could’ve and should’ve been better. But yet should’ve, would’ve, and could’ve don’t mean anything and I have to learn how to forget about bad games and frames and move on the the next frames/games and make the best of them. I finished 102nd out of 336 girls so i’m honestly happy with that and I even get a scholarship for it. I just hope I can come back next year and come back even stronger and better. This experience brought me closer to my friends from back home and brought along new friends from new places such as PA and ND and even TX I believe! I honestly am so grateful that I was able to come and made it here. Thank you so much to everyone who supported me and continues to support me. Another thanks to Makayla Davis and her family for helping me and my dad figure all of this out and really supporting no matter hat was happening. I am so honored to have met you guys. And a huge thank you to my mom and dad especially. Without them I wouldn’t have been able to come and they were the ones who helped all of this happen. Oh and my dad had to drive the 12 hours to get here in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Now onto the next adventure and good luck to everyone else still competing!!!

Yesterday I bowled at the RecruitUS Cleveland Showcase! I had a great time meeting new people and new schools! The oil pattern that was used was 2025 USBC Open Championships team pattern. The fresh was not super easy but after that it wasn’t too hard just had to play a tight line and belly the ball out a little bit but not too much. I shot a 149, 210, and a 175 for a 534 series! So not too bad but not awesome. I won my class of 2029 and I had the highest series of all of the girls there! For winning I got a $75 scholarship!! I really enjoy these recruitUS events and like the exposure to new colleges that all of us get so thank you to RecruitUS for all of the events they put on!!

Today I bowled in the Tournament of Champions again. I bowled a 196, 235, and a 194 for a 625 series. At the start, it was pretty oily, and you had to hit your exact mark or you were done for. After the initial few throws, the lanes dried out a little, and it was a very comfortable position I was put into. With my 625 series, I earned first place for scratch in the U16 division, although I didn’t win the handicap. Today was a very good day. I never threw the ball terribly and felt pretty good all day. As always, it made it better that I was bowling with one of my best bowling friends, Makayla Davis Bowling, and some others. Thank you to Tom Carters Pro Shop and Training Center for all the equipment and for the training I have received. And, as always, use code KelliH11 when you order from Bowlifi Bowling Apparel for some great jerseys and most other apparel items you need, as well as some shammys and towels.

Last sunday I bowled in the JTBA held at Wayne Webbs Columbus Bowl! In qualifying I shot 150, 198, 145, 190, and 169 equaling a 852! It was the Wayne Webb pattern which is known for not being the easiest pattern out there. I went 148 which got me second seed in the matchplay rounds so it wasn’t too shabby! In matchplay I definitely need to work on trusting my abilities and not letting the pressure get to me. I unfortunately lost the first round of matchplay even though it wasn’t by that much. I just get nervous during matchplay and I lose trust in my abilities that I should know that I have. I know that I will eventually get used to it and start climbing the matchplay ladder!

Last saturday I bowled handicap for the Pepsi State tournament! I shot a 194, 193, and a 171. I just could not trust myself and my abilities for some reason. I couldn’t stay consistent and couldn’t hit the same mark for two shots. It was a big learning experience especially since I bowl on the same pattern tomorrow for the scratch side of the tournament! If I just trust myself I should do perfectly fine tomorrow but we have to see what tomorrow holds!

On April 18th and April 19th, I bowled the in The Buckeye State Championship! On the 18th, I bowled in the team with 3 other amazing people! I had an individual series of 648! We had a team series of 2,285 scratch and 2,725 handicap unfortunately it wasn’t good enough to get first. We placed 6th in handicap and 7th in scratch. Then on the 19th I bowled doubles and singles. For doubles I bowled an individual series of 626! As a doubles team we shot 1,197 for scratch and 1,467 for handicap! For singles I shot 544 scratch and 670 handicap. I threw the ball well the whole time but for doubles and singles the lanes became super dry and my equipment and me could not find the right line in order to get carry. This tournament showed me that if I make spares I will be fine but I also need to get comfortable and consistent on a dry pattern and get used to playing far left! Overall it was a very good experience! I am very glad that I was invited to bowl in it!

Today was the COHSBC all star tournament! This tournament was seriously so freaking fun! I got the privilege of bowing with 4 other wonderful ladies! We fell a little bit short of first but we got second! As a team the first game we shot over 1000 pins!! Today for me I bowled a 217, 290, and a 186! The 290 is my new high game ever!! I was 7 pins shy of a 700 series which is disappointing but at least I got my new high game beat by 33 pins! This game also might go down in the school records! Now I just have to get one more strike in a row to have the permanent high game! I got tournament mvp for the girls! I am so honored to have been apart of this tournament and I hope to participate again next year!!!

On Wednesday we had our bowling banquet! I was so happy to see everyone again and sad to say goodbye to the seniors! For the girls I won MVP of the year! I had the high game on the team for the season, second for all time. I was in the top five for every other statistic don’t remember exactly want place within that for the rest minus one. I found out that I broke the school record for season high total pins! The previous record was a 8,478 and I had 8,578! I was so happy to hear that I broke a single record already as well as the baker game for teams this season! I really am so proud of the season I had and can’t wait for next season to start already!!!