Oberlin’s intercollegiate bowling team competed in the American Heartland Intercollegiate Bowling Conference finals last Saturday at Columbus Square Bowling Palace in Columbus. The event was conducted on a demanding Sport Shot oil pattern, which provided little room for error and kept scores low throughout the conference. Only 10 of 152 bowlers from 14 schools averaged 200 or more for the competition.

Oberlin’s two mixed teams finished 21st and 22nd out of 22 teams in the men’s division but managed to achieve some moments of glory along the way. While not winning any of the five preliminary team games, eight of Oberlin’s 11 bowlers earned points in the individual match-play competition.

Junior Adam Carlson won two matches, a 135-126 third-game victory over a University of Toledo player and a 159-136 defeat of a Youngstown State University bowler in the fifth game. In the same game against Youngstown, senior Jessy Bradish rolled Oberlin’s highest single game of the day to notch a 189-178 win. First-year Daniel Getler posted Oberlin’s second-best individual tally as he toppled a bowler from Kent State University by a 187-159 margin.

Senior Mike McComb led Oberlin bowlers with a 159 average, including a 174-148 opening win over a Kent State opponent. Seniors Tom Hartman (170-153 vs. University of Cincinnati), Ann Stewart (163-126 vs. Kent State) and Andy Seidel (159-146 vs. University of Toledo) also won matches. Sophomore Matt Standeven rolled to a 122 tie with a Kent State bowler in the second game.

As usual for Oberlin’s bowlers, it was in the Baker games (in which each team member rolls two frames of a single score) where things got really exciting. Trailing the A team by only 30 pins at one point, Oberlin’s B squad threatened to take over next-to-last place. The A team dashed those hopes by sweeping the B squad in a three-game set of Bakers. In one of them, anchorman Hartman struck out for a 182, Oberlin’s highest Baker score of the competition.

The A squad won one other Baker game, a 141-120 conquest of University of Michigan-Dearborn to open the final Baker match. The B squad won three matches, one of them by a 153-124 score against the same Dearborn squad to close the second match. In the final match, against Kent State, Oberlin’s B squad squeaked out a 138-134 win to split the first two games. Needing a spare or strike in the 10th frame to take both the third game and the overall match, senior James Peake left the difficult 1-2-4-10 washout, converted it in dramatic fashion and then toppled nine pins on his fill ball for a five-pin win.

Saginaw Valley State University (Michigan) won the conference championship in the men’s division for the second consecutive year, while Penn State University won the women’s division.

Among awards announced at the conclusion of the conference season, four Oberlin bowlers received honorable mention: Hartman, who led Oberlin bowlers with a 155 season average; Carlson, who led Oberlin with six match-point victories and Bradish and K. Strickler, who led Oberlin’s women in full season average and match-point wins.

Next for Oberlin’s bowlers is the Hoosier Classic in Indianapolis, Ind. on Feb. 19 and 20.Tom Reid is the coach of the Oberlin bowling team.