Oskaloosa High School Boys Bowling Team Earns First Trip To State
Oskaloosa High School Boys Bowling Team 2022 (submitted photo)
February 19th, 2022
Oskaloosa, Iowa – A group of Oskaloosa students have done something no other team has done before them, earned a trip to State Tournament.
Trey Van Wyk earned his way to State along with the team, having bowled a perfect 300 game at Districts to set the tone. He ended up with a 743 series on the day.
Helping put his team in a good position was rewarding for 14-year-old Trey. Finally, he got a chance to step out of the shadow of his brother Dylan Van Wyk this year. Dylan was also a stand-out bowler for Oskaloosa in previous years.
On beating his brother’s team, Trey said, “it makes me feel a lot better.”
Picking on each other and trying to have a good time and enjoy has been a staple during the season, but they are enjoying this moment for now.
On the reaction by the student body to the team’s success, Trey says it’s been more than he thought it would be. “A lot of people don’t know we have a bowling team.”
When the season started, Trey says seeing this level of success wasn’t something they could have expected. “We all got better.”
That improvement was visible as each team member’s averages improved over the year.
That team camaraderie is something that Coach Tony Witt has noticed. “They really are a good team together. They actually try to help each other get better and try to give advice to each other.”
“I think it’s paying off,” says Witt of the team’s desire to help each other progress.
This year also had a couple of first-year bowlers that Witt says they worked hard with all year to get to the next level. “They put a lot of extra time in as well,” says Witt of the dedication of the team members, who would come in on their own away from organized practice.
Witt says the team battled all year, and he could see them turning the corner to become a much better team and gain that confidence to become contenders.
Witt has traveled to the state tournament in the past with individual bowlers who had qualified but never a team, and Ottumwa was often that roadblock that stood in the way. “It was nice to finally beat them.”
Beat them they did, stretching out their lead over Ottumwa by 150 pins and in the process gaining a lot of confidence along the way.
The trick now will be to control the nerves at State, but Witt is hopeful that the confidence gained at the District meet will help them feel comfortable there.
The team has one final practice on Monday afternoon and will depart from there to the State Tournament.
Witt is happy for the team, “because they deserve it. They put all that hard work into it.”
