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Central Ohio bowlers roll into OHSAA Division II state tournament
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- Central Ohio bowlers roll into OHSAA Division II state tournament
Four high school bowling teams and four individuals from the Central District are preparing for the Division II state tournament Feb. 27 and 28 at HP Lanes, and a fifth area team from the Southeast District will compete on the season's final weekend for the first time.
The boys teams from Heath and Marion Pleasant and the girls teams from Galion Northmor and Mechanicsburg advanced from district Feb. 17 at HP Lanes , and the Westfall boys earned their first district championship the previous day at Shawnee Lanes in Chillicothe.
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Earning individual berths from the Central District were Mount Gilead sophomore Mason Hupfer and Ready freshman Jace James in boys, and Heath sophomore Kiersten Smith and Pleasant senior Breahna Howard on the girls side.
The boys compete Feb. 27, and the girls follow the next day.
Here are four central Ohio storylines entering state:
Ready's Jace James is the first freshman bowler in program history to average over 200 pins per game in a season, according to coach Russ Rehner.
Ready's James enjoys strong debut season
Admitting he did not know James was coming through the pipeline before this school year, Ready coach Russ Rehner now calls the freshman "an individual who comes along once a decade."
The Silver Knights' first state qualifier since Tyler Roof in 2023 , James averaged 202.2 pins per game during the regular season with a high game of 269 and 20 over 200. Sixteen of those have come since Jan. 16, including two each in the sectional and district rounds.
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James finished fourth (634) at district to earn the second of two individual berths to state, 14 pins behind district champion Hupfer.
James is the ninth Ready individual to reach state and the only freshman in program history to average over 200, according to Rehner.
"[Bowlers like him] are so fun to watch because they have so much talent before they even get to you, and you're just trying to give them encouragement and keep them grounded when things don't go their way," Rehner said. "I just told him you have to be consistent and good with spares. Strikes are bonuses and spares are a must."
Heath's Kiersten Smith will compete in her first Division II state tournament. The Bulldogs' boys team also advanced to state.
Heath contingent thinking big
Having gone 30-0 in the Licking County League the last two seasons and with sweeps of the Division II sectional and district championships this winter, Heath's boys squad is back at state as a team for the first time since 2023 with one goal in mind.
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"I absolutely think we can compete for [a championship]," senior Oliver Walton said. "We have to go in with the mindset that we can do it and push each other. We need to go in with the mentality that we play as a team, and we need as many to show out as we can. Nothing means more than wanting the team to succeed."
Walton tied for second at district (639) to lead three bowlers in the top seven. Senior Kamdyn Smith (fifth, 630) and sophomore Vincent Favuzzi (seventh, 611) were close behind.
Senior Payton Love, Smith and Walton were part of Heath's 14th-place team at state in 2023.
Love was 40th individually at state last year. The Bulldogs also reached state as a team in 2018, 2020 and 2021.
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Kiersten Smith was fifth at district (513) to earn an individual state berth, the girls' first representation since 2018.
Westfall boys making state debut
With four juniors and two seniors in the top six, the Mustangs rolled a 3,870 in the Southeast District tournament to clinch the only state berth and the first for the program.
Led by a fourth-place finish from junior Nick Wisenbarger (615), Westfall picked up 313 pins from a third-place sectional finish. Junior Dawson Fannin was seventh (564), senior Dalton Bush and junior Trevor Drone tied for eighth (553) and senior Carson Henning and junior Austin Greer round out the lineup.
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Bush is the varsity team's only senior.
"There are a couple kids ... who have been bowling since they were young, so we knew what they were capable of," coach Vern Carter said. "Just the way they practice. They are more into the game. They see what they can do, so they have practiced more and more. They really wanted to get to this point.
"I told them the only thing they have to do is do their best and bring their best because they are going to be bowling their best."
Carter's daughter, Brianna, was Westfall's first state qualifier regardless of gender a year ago. She tied for 20th place.
Mount Gilead sophomore Mason Hupfer talks with fans after winning the Division II district championship Feb. 17 at HP Lanes.
Mount Gilead's Hupfer looks to build on district title
Hupfer built on a strong regular season with games of 217, 195 and 236 at district, hanging around his average of 211 in Knox-Morrow Athletic Conference play.
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Ultimately, Hupfer edged Pleasant's Tucker Ludwig by nine pins for the individual title and earned his first state berth.
Mount Gilead won the KMAC at 12-0, and Hupfer's high regular-season game was 247. He was ninth at sectional (600), and Hupfer said that sectional and district both being at HP Lanes played a large part in his district victory.
"The sectionals really helped, getting to feel the lanes," Hupfer said. "I did a little better [at district], but definitely having the practice helped."
The Newark Advocate and Marion Star contributed to this story.
High school sports reporter Dave Purpura can be reached at dpurpura@dispatch.com and at @dp_dispatch on X.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio high school bowling 2026 OHSAA state tournament storylines
