By Susan Jenior

Staff Writer

If the State Kick-Off Tournament is any indication, the Rootstown Rovers are going to have an outstanding season in the bowling lanes across Northeast Ohio and the state.

The tournament, competing at HP Lanes in Columbus, is an invitation-only event that features 27 boys teams and 20 girls teams which are considered among the best in the state of Ohio for Division II.

The Rovers’ girls were crowned the champions after earning ninth place in the qualifying round and working their way through the stepladder finals to win the event.

The Rovers’ boys took home ninth place overall after qualifying in fourth place for the stepladder finals.

The Rootstown boys and girls were the only teams from Portage County in the tournament

ROOTSTOWN GIRLS

Rootstown was led by Olivia Davies rolling a 170-501 and Kaitlyn Hammerschmidt (180-493) in the qualifying round, with Cassie Egli (164-424 and Emma Day 134-122 adding the needed scores to push the Rovers into a qualifying spot for the final round.

The Rovers began their journey against eighth place Bucyrus and won all three Baker games to advance and compete against first-place qualifier Napoleon, earning a three-pin victory in three Baker games.

The Andy Day coached team then continued to climb the stepladder against fourth place Urbana, winning 602 to 485 to give the Rovers a spot in the semifinal against Mechanicsburg.

The Rovers fought through three Baker games to a 460 total that bested Mechanicsburg by 20 pins, earning the overall championship.

It was a true team effort by the Rovers.

ROOTSTOWN BOYS

The Rootstown boys, coached by Thom Butcher, finished in the top 10 of the tournament, finishing ninth in the stepladder finals and fourth among qualifying teams.

In the stepladder finals, the Rovers met a tough Wynford (Bucyrus) team that topped Rootstown in the three Baker games 550-395.

The Rovers’ Justin Miller finished fifth as an individual in the tournament, landing on the All-Tournament team after bowling an outstanding series of 226-214-204 for a 644 total, only 13 pins from the runner-up spot.

The rest of the Rovers bowled solid series to qualify in the fourth spot, including: Sean Boveington 204-581, Caleb Stevens 211-578, Nick Morehead 198-555 and Anthony Cambareri with a high game of 174 and Elijah Birch 133.

It is a solid way to start the season, proving the Rovers are among the very best teams in the state before they start their journey through the regular season working towards the sectional tournaments in February.

GIRLS BOWLING SCOREBOARD

GIRLS DIVISION II STATE KICK-OFF TOURNAMENT

(At HP Lanes, Columbus)

CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND: Rootstown, Mechanicsburg, Urbana, Greenon, Napoleon, St. Marys Memorial, Versailles, Kenton Ridge Springfield, New Bremen, Wynford, Fort Loramie, Willard, Northwestern, Middletown Christian, Liberty-Benton, Benjamin Logan.

QUALIFYING ROUND (top 16 teams to Championship stepladder): Napoleon 2,848; St. Mary’s Memorial 2,802; Versailles 2,541; Urbana 2,532; Kenton Ridge 2,511; Mechanicsburg 2,504; New Bremen 2,443; Wynford 2,440; Rootstown 2,415; Greenon 2,331; Fort Loramie 2,294; Willard 2,277; Northwestern 2,259; Middletown Christian 2,222; Liberty-Benton 2,166; Benjamin Logan 2,130; Wauseon 2,011; Heath 1,806; Bucyrus 1,748; Coldwater 1,685.

ROOTSTOWN (2,415): Olivia Davies 170-164-167 501, Kaitlyn Hammerschmidt 162-151-180 493, Cassie Egli 164-129-131 424, Emma Day 134-122, Substitute Score 109.

BOYS BOWLING SCOREBOARD

BOYS DIVISION II STATE KICK-OFF TOURNAMENT

(At HP Lanes, Columbus)

CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND: Coldwater, Coventry, St. Henery, Van Wert, Pleasant, Benjamin Logan, Versailles, Wynford, Rootstown, Northwestern, Greenon, Hubbard, Bucyrus, Urbana, Lutheran West, Mechanicsburg.

QUALIFYING ROUND: Coldwater 3,523; Pleasant 3,192; St. Henry 3,190; Rootstown 3,139; Van Wert 3,086; Benjamin Logan 3,081; Northwestern 3,078; Versailles 3,071; Greenon 3,066; Coventry 2,976; Hubbard 2,970; Bucyrus 2,948; Wynford 2,923; Urbana 2,913; Lutheran West 2,902; Mechanicsburg 2,896; New Bremen 2,894; Minster 2,866; Utica 2,819; Heath 2,769; Fort Loramie 2,766; Napoleon 2,759; Liberty-Benton 2,716; Willard 2,685; Evergreen 2,658; Old Fort 2,192; Middletown Christian 2,075

ROOTSTOWN (3,139): Justin Miller 226-214-204 644, Sean Boveington 204-184-193 581, Caleb Stevens 187-180-211 578, Nick Morehead 198-175-182 555, Anthony Cambareri 174-132, Elijah Birch 133.