Wunschel: Preparing for a “Strike” of a State Competition
Photo by Debbie Wunschel.
What are your future plans for Bowling?
My future plan for [bowling] is to hopefully play in college.
How have you improved your game in the past year?
I have improved myself a lot this year, I have recently been working on my release, since I was dropping the ball a while back. I have fixed that by standing up straight, pushing it out straight, and letting it drop and swing back, instead of pushing it up and out, and then letting it drop.
What expectations do you have for State?
I expect State to be really crowded for sure, but I also know that it will be a tough round of matches. We play 18 games, or two matches, each match is 9 games, but the first team to win 5 games takes the win for that match.
What hobbies do you do outside of school?
I tend to read a lot and play video games.
When did you start playing this sport?
I was first introduced to bowling by my dad when I was 8, and I got my own ball at 10 years old.
What's your best score ever?
My best score ever was in the fall-winter season of last year. I was in another bowling league besides the high school’s, I had gotten scholarship money from bowling in tournaments there, and I got a perfect game: a 300. 12 strikes in a row, first 9 then 3 in the tenth frame. The thing was, though, when I was bowling that game, the person on the lane next to me who was bowling—I was in that other league so I was bowling against him—kept up with me all the way until the tenth frame where he got a strike and then a 7 spare (10 strikes in a row then 7 spare). That is still one of my best moments in my bowling career.
What's your warm-up routine?
Before every practice and match, we all stretch. We stretch our hands/wrists, then our arms, and then our legs.
Is this the first sport you played/ was this your first choice? Describe your journey to finding this sport.
No. Surprisingly, or not, depending on your point of view, bowling was not my first sport. I did baseball, soccer, basketball, and flag football when I was a kid. All in that order, actually. And after all of those, I managed to stumble into bowling.
Why do you continue to play this sport?
I think this is an easy straightforward one: It is because I love this sport. It is the one thing that I take pride in, and what I enjoy the most.
What’s your favorite memory from this season?
Honestly, I think the best memory that I have is just all the friends I make along the way through bowling. Adam, Joey, Ty, Austin, Ricky, Scott, we are not just a team, but we are our own crazy, dysfunctional friend group, if you will.
What advice do you have for younger athletes playing your sport?
Well, first when you start, you might not be that good, but if you keep at it, you will gradually get better over time. Seriously, trust me, I am speaking from experience here. And that even if you can ́t make every spare, or get a consistent strike shot each time, it is okay. You take those mistakes or minor inconveniences and use them to improve yourself on your next ball or frame or game that you are bowling. Ex: I would miss a ten pin to the left, and so I would think to myself, ¨Okay, so if you get that again, make sure to move more left with your feet, and throw through the same spot with the ball.¨ And when I would leave a ten pin, and adjust accordingly, I would then be able to pick it up.
