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Midwest report
February 28 , 2008

Jeff Crowley

Christina Oschman

Christina Oschman, a senior at Castle High School, capped off her high school bowling career in style. Bowling in the Indiana High School State Bowling Finals, Saturday 2/23/08, at Cooper’s Sport Bowl, in Anderson, IN, Christina paced the field with a 707 series. Oschman bowled games of 213, 300, and 194, and won her first high school state singles title by defeating Carly Grover, of Kankakee Valley, 184 to 207.

Christina said, “It doesn’t seem real yet, that I won the State Championship. After the first game (213) I was in the middle of the pack. I wanted to get off to a good start in the second game, to get into the top four. As the strikes kept coming, I just focused on bowling well. If I didn’t bowl a 300 game, I still wanted a big game. I recalled the lessons learned from my last 300 game and a couple 296’s: take your time, breathe, and stay calm, and I did. The 300 was an added bonus.”

“I made the third game more difficult than it had to be. People were coming down to congratulate me, and I found myself focusing on people rather than my game. When I finished the third game (194), I had no idea how close the standings were.”

Christina was the number one qualifier (707), but fourth place was 690, just 17 pins away. Christina said, “I wanted to be the number one qualifier, to ensure second place. The higher my finish, the more points I earn for All State honors.”

“While waiting for my match in the step ladder finals, to pass the time I called Charley Burge, who coached the Castle girls’ team last year before becoming Commissioner of the Tri County Conference, and my friends.”

This year my dad, Marvin Oschman coached the Castle girls’ team. It was tough being coached by my dad, because I take his coaching more personally, but he told me to keep my head in the game and everything would be fine. It meant a lot to me to have the backing of all the people who drove up from Evansville to watch. I’m not sure how well I would have bowled without their support, I really appreciated it.”

Christina’s 707 series is almost 100 pins less than her high series of 806, which she bowled in the Youth City Tournament. She has qualified for the Junior National Gold tournament later this summer in Detroit.

Christina has 10 bowling and academic scholarship offers, from as far away as University of Central Florida, Southern University, and Robert Morris. She said, “I’ve narrowed my list to two, Bellermine University and Martin Methodist College. Both schools are close to home, but I’ve been taking lessons from Norm Titus, who coaches at Martin Methodist College.”

The Harrison Warriors represented the Tri County Conference at the state team competition and finished fourth. Randy Robertson, coach of the Warriors, said, “Our success this year was due to our teamwork. We’ve had good individual bowlers in the past, but this year, we were a team.”

“We had John Hall (our only senior), Alex White (our anchor bowler), Luke Ringham, Jacob Hurt (who really bowled great for us when he got a new ball), Ty Stone, Roger Crowe, and Adam Wuertz. Ty, Roger, and Adam split time as our fifth bowler. Everybody on the team knew their role and pulled together, we also had great parents who supported our team.”

The Jasper High School bowling teams, boys and girls, each won the Semi-State this year and finished eighth in the state competition. Paul LeMond, Jasper girls’ coach said, “We came together at tournament time, which is what any coach would want. We were please to make it to the State Championships. We were a team of over achievers. I have high hopes for next year’s team, as we have only one senior, Sarah Berger.”

Harrison’s Luke Ringham, also bowled in the singles state finals and placed ninth. Luke was one of three boys to bowl in both events. “I thought it was going to be an advantage, but it turned out to be a hindrance. I got mentally tired in the singles” Ringham said.

“I bowled well, but could not carry. I kept leaving back row pins, while the guy (Kevin Kelley) on a pair to my left, shot 828. I kept waiting for a break, but it never came, and a couple mental mistakes really hurt me.”

Robertson said, “Luke deserved a better fate in the singles. He bowled well enough to make the step ladder, but could not carry. He left three eight pins, the difference between a top four finish and 9th place.”

Ringham said, “All of my success was due to my teammates. We’re good friends and we hang out together. Coach Randy was another big factor in my success. He has always been there for the team. He has never missed a practice or meet, and if we would have won the state, he was going to dye his hair pink.”

Two returning underclassmen to watch next year are Kraig Meyer, (Memorial freshman), and Chelsea Lemond, (NE Dubois sophomore). Chelsea won the Sectional crown, placed third at the Regionals, and missed by 14 pins from advancing to the State Championships. She led all girls in the Blue Chip South Conference with a 189 average. Chelsea’s father, Paul LeMond, said, “Chelsea has qualified for the Junior National Gold Tournament later this year.”

Kraig Meyer won the Sectional and Regional Championships this year as a freshman. Memorial’s high school coach, Brandon Schenk, said, “Kraig is the first Memorial bowler to win in the post-season and to advance to the Semi-State, where he missed by 14 pins from advancing to the State Championships.”

Until next time, may the high scores be yours!

Jeff Crowley covers bowling for the Evansville (IN) Courier Press. He has graciously allowed AlabamaBowling.Com to republish his articles. Jeff can be reached by e-mail at CrowleyJA@thegleaner.com

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