Spain Park takes home inaugural state bowling title

The Spain Park boys and girls bowling teams competed in the inaugural AHSAA State Bowling Championships at Oak Mountain Lanes in Pelham on Jan. 29-30, and the boys came away with a state championship trophy as a reward. 

The first day of the tournament was used for seeding purposes, and the boys team locked down the No. 2 seed for the final day of action, a single-elimination bracket format out of 16 teams.

In the first round of Day 2, the Jags took a 1,714-1,507 victory over No. 15 Fairhope.

No. 10 Benjamin Russell was the opponent in Round 2, as Spain Park took care of business, 1,872-1,654. 

Mary G. Montgomery posed a threat in the semifinals, but a dominant score of 238 in the second game was enough to keep the Jags out in front for the duration. 

The final was virtually a no-contest, as Spain Park saved one last great performance for the matchup against Stanhope-Elmore. After five of the six games had been completed, the Jags held a 237-pin advantage, as they cruised through the final game for the championship.

"I am very proud of Coach (Stephen) Hobbs and our team," Spain Park athletic director Patrick Kellogg said. "Bowling now provides another opportunity for our young people to compete and to earn a college scholarship."

The girls team played the second day as the No. 7 seed, knocking off Pinson Valley, 1,391-1,318. Scottsboro got the best of the girls in the second round, winning 1,423-1,390.