Strike Force: Comet boy bowlers head into postseason after rolling season-best score against Go-Hawks

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

CHARLES CITY — It would have been like the Chicago Bulls from their dynastic era setting a single-game team scoring record despite Michael Jordan being held under double-figures.

In a makeup bowling meet Tuesday at Comet Bowl, the hosting Charles City Comets boys team compiled its greatest dual pinfall (3,107) while defeating Waverly-Shell Rock by more than 430 pins.

And the Comets did it without the two-game individual total from their resident returning state-qualifier: junior Keaton Ross.

An off night for sure, but Ross didn’t have a terrible individual round as a 189 second game salvaged a 340 series. But it was marked off due to five Comet bowlers — for the first time all season — rolling two-game series scores greater than 400.

Leading the quintet was freshman Noah White, who shot meet-high game and series scores of 246 and 452. Comet sophomore Jayden Lopez started the individual round with a personal season-high 224 in the first game before finishing with another season-high with his series score (436).

Sophomore Sullivan Gerleman and junior Shayne Groesbeck shot respective series scores of 409 and 406 while both averaging greater than 200 for the Comets

In the Baker Rotation round, the Comets averaged a couple of pins under 200 with a five-game total of 989.

The season-high team score was the third time this season Charles City’s boys team reached and exceeded a 3,000 pinfall in dual-meet competition. It also capped a 9-2 regular-season dual-meet record ahead of next week’s Class 1A Bowling State Qualifier.

The Comet girls team also cruised to victory over the Go-Hawks (2,648 to 2,201) while capping their dual-meet mark at 8-3.

For the second time in as many weeks, Comet junior Payton Hadley was able to string six strikes in a row. This swath of strikes paved the way for a 241 first game in the individual round before finishing with a girls meet-high 420 series.

Charles City’s two returning state-qualifiers, junior Isabell Crawford and senior Claire Girkin, recorded respective series scores of 384 and 379 in the individual round, followed by freshman Kinleigh Bahe’s career-best 344 and junior Darian Hesse’s 314.

The aforementioned state-qualifier will be held at the same site for both the Comet girls (Next Monday, Feb. 12) and Comet boys (Feb. 13): Locomotion Lanes and Diner in Sanborn.