Mon - 21 Nov
Written by Jim Ecker
The Cedar Rapids Prairie boys bowling team put up a spirited fight in the Class 2A substate tournament last season and lost to Marshalltown by just 15 pins.
Marshalltown went to the state tournament as the substate champ and Prairie stayed home, the unfortunate victim of being on the short end of a 3,151 to 3,136 final score.
It became even more unfortunate when Marshalltown placed fourth out of 10 teams at the state tournament. If the Bobcats were good enough to finish fourth, then surely the Prairie Hawks were good enough to finish in the top-10 as well.
"We lost an opportunity," Prairie Coach Don Willfong acknowledged. "It was one of those things. Yeah, it could have been better."
Willfong thinks the Hawks did pretty well last season, compiling an 8-3 record in Mississippi Valley Conference matches and nearly making the state tournament.
"It was a rebuilding year for us and I think the boys did a fantastic job," he said.
Six of the top-7 bowlers from last year's club are back, giving Prairie the nucleus to have another successful season. The Hawks host Iowa City West in the season opener Tuesday at 3:45 p.m. at Lancer Lanes.
Willfong doesn't like to engage in a lot of preseason hype, preferring to let his bowlers to their talking in competition, but he's optimistic as the year begins.
"Coming into the new season, I feel good," he said. "There again, I don't like to over-emphasize some of that stuff. Eastern Iowa has a lot of good bowlers."
Chase Bicket, Nick Blood, Jeremy Cline, Brogan Fiala, Ryan Ask and Brandon Wagner are back this season. Sean Steichen was the only regular from last year who graduated.
Cline, Fiala and Wagner are seniors. Bicket and Blood are juniors, while Ask is a sophomore. Willfong declined to identify who might emerge as the No. 1 bowler, preferring to let results speak for themselves.
