Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Spend an afternoon at Gilliam Lanes while the Warsaw, Whitko and Tippecanoe Valley bowling teams are vying for position in the Wabacanoe Conference, and you'll quickly learn it's just like any other sport.
With superstitions, trash talking, screaming parents and fans, this isn't your church bowling league.
Started six years ago and rapidly growing since, the Wabacanoe Conference boasts eight teams total with Logansport, Maconaquah, Peru and Pioneer going toe to toe with the Tigers, Wildcats and Vikings.
For now, bowling remains the elephant in the room nobody wants to acknowledge. Without the IHSAA's stamp of approval, teams are forced to scramble for funding, uniforms, coaches and sometimes even players.
Valley head coach Brian Nicodemus, in his fifth year with the Vikings, had to call in a family favor and recruited cousin Lashell Weaver to fill out his girls squad.
For schools like Valley and Whitko, the ability to form a team is hampered by the fact that in smaller communities there are no bowling centers.
"These are good kids," said Whitko head coach Max Julian of his team. "It's hard for them because they don't have a (bowling) center where they live so they have to travel here. And it's hard to get kids to come out too for that reason."
Julian, who has bowled for more than 40 years, took the reins of the Whitko program halfway through last year. He and most everyone involved in high school bowling have the same goal.
Currently, 168 schools in Indiana have bowling teams, fewer than 25 schools from being granted IHSAA status, something that would lend instant assistance to the bowling teams.
Mike Quick, the director of the Wabacanoe Conference, believes that recognition will come sooner than later.
"We petitioned a year ago for a variance," said Quick. "Since we don't have quite the number of schools to qualify, the (IHSAA) is watching us, kind of like a probationary period. But I think in the next two or three years, it'll happen."
Once bowling becomes recognized as a school sport it opens the door to funding as well as other perks.
These kids aren't looking at pep rallies and ticker-tape parades; level footing with other sports not named football or basketball would suffice.
"I wish the school would support us," said Jenn Cordill of the Warsaw girls team. "We have friends who come out and support us, come to the meets, but it'd be nice if the school did."
As a club, and not a school-sponsored sport, bowling can't be run through the school's athletic department.
Wednesday was the last regular conference meet. Next week all eight teams will bowl in a positioning round. With Gilliam's being the home lane for both Warsaw and Whitko, Warsaw's seniors were honored before the match.
Jenn Cordill, Suzi Fluke and Brandi Reis were the three seniors honored, with the boys' squad boasting no seniors.
Cordill and Fluke have been on the team since they were freshmen on a team that essentially had no coach.
"We've come a long way," said Fluke. "When Jenn and I first started, we had team meetings every week about something. Now we have a good team and we all got along with each other."
Reis, in her first year on the team, heard about it through Fluke. The two work at Kmart together.
Word of mouth is the strongest tool to build bowling programs, as tryouts aren't advertised through the school.
Matt Ransbottom and Rusty Curl are the captains of the Warsaw boys team and the duo exemplify the diverse nature of bowlers.
Ransbottom, tall and lanky, looks more suited to be playing for Doug Ogle in the Tiger Den. Ransbottom, who also plays baseball in the spring, says the difference between the two sports is minimal.
"The mental preparation for both is the same and they both take a lot of practice and dedication," said Ransbottom.
Curl, who plays no other sport besides bowling, sees it in less cerebral terms.
"It gives you something to do during the winter and you can't go outside as much," said Curl, who, along with Ransbottom, has been involved in youth bowling leagues for several years.
During Wednesday's meet, where the Tigers took on Peru, Ransbottom and Curl helped Warsaw mightily battle the conference's top team.
Peru is to the Wabacanoe what Penn is to high school football.
That may change soon as bowling becomes more popular among the three area teams. The Warsaw boys went into the Peru meet at 6-0 while the girls were 4-2. Whitko's boys and girls squads are both currently hovering around .500, while Nicodemus says his Valley squad is going through a "rebuilding year."
Warsaw's head coach Glenn Ransbottom sees no difference between bowling and any other sport.
"There is none," said Ransbottom when asked the difference. "These kids treat this with the same dedication that any other varsity sport has."
As the popularity of bowling grows, more people may have the chance to see that sort of determination.
