Three story lines for Kansas regional bowling

1 Are the Sumner Academy girls on their way to two in a row?

Sumner Academy won the Kansas 5A-1A girls state championship last season, and with five returning bowlers boasting state experience, the team might just start a streak.

But first, Sumner has to get through its regional starting at 10 a.m. Saturday at Mission Bowl in Olathe. That shouldn’t be a problem. Sumner cruised through the regular season and won the Bishop Miege Invitational this year.

Senior Sarah Ottens won an individual regional championship last year and placed second at state. She headlines the squad, which also features junior Morgan Benton (third at state last year) and junior Sierra Martin (12th).

2 What are the Bishop Miege boys capable of in the postseason?

In addition to the Sumner girls, two other Kansas City area teams won state bowling championships last year.

The Leavenworth girls went undefeated on their way to the 6A title, but before the season the Pioneers lost individual state champion Cynthia Veney and last week they struggled at the Sunflower League meet.

The Bishop Miege boys won the 5A-1A championship, but they returned only one bowler from that state lineup — senior Steven Solar, who placed 11th individually last year. The Stags will need to first advance past regionals (10 a.m. Saturday at Mission Bowl in Olathe) before they can think about a state title defense.

3 Can Shawnee Mission West return to its winning ways?

The Vikings rolled through the regular season before hitting a slight setback at the Sunflower League championships last weekend, when the boys settled for sixth place and the girls took fourth.

SM West is as deep as any team in the area and should be a legitimate state title contender if it can advance through its 6A regional at 9 a.m. today at Park Lanes in Shawnee.

Senior Samantha Favrow, the Sunflower League champion, is a top contender for an individual state championship.

SM West senior Adam Lewis was the 6A state champion last year and is one of several Vikings boys who have a shot.

Regional bowling Today: 6A regional at Park Lanes in Shawnee, 9 a.m.: Teams include Olathe East, Olathe North, Olathe Northwest, Olathe South, SM East, SM North, SM Northwest, SM South, SM West.

Saturday: 6A regional at Gage North Bowl in Topeka, 12:45 p.m.: Teams include Lawrence, Lawrence Free State and Leavenworth.

•5A-1A regional at Mission Bowl in Olathe, 10 a.m.: Teams include Piper, Schlagle, Sumner Academy, Turner, Washington, St. James Academy, Oskaloosa, St. Thomas Aquinas, Kansas City Christian, Maranatha Academy, Bishop Miege.

submitted by RYAN YOUNG - 2008-02-21 22:28:02

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