HENDERSONVILLE As it turned out, three was not a magic number for the Hendersonville High boys bowling team on Thursday afternoon.
Hendersonville High sophomore Brandon Paul rolled a 213 in the second game of the District 12 Tournament championship match on Thursday afternoon.
The Commandos suffered an 18-9 loss to Lebanon in the championship match of the District 12 Tournament at Strike and Spare Family Fun Center, ending their three-year reign as district champions.
It was the third time the teams have met this season, with Hendersonville (20-2) winning each of the first two matches during the regular season. Those two losses were Lebanon’s only setbacks during the regular season.
“We were hoping for a better result,” Hendersonville first-year head coach Richard Zajac said. “It’s all about maintaining attitude and maintaining focus, and we didn’t do what we needed to do in the third game.”
Lebanon (17-2) held a 134-pin advantage at the conclusion, thanks to winning five out of six individual match-ups in the final game. Prior to the deciding contest, Lebanon only held a 26-pin advantage as the teams were tied 8-8 after two games.
Hendersonville High senior Storm Sparks rolled a 615 series, which included a 230 game, in the Commandos’ District 12 Tournament semifinal victory over Gallatin.
HHS senior Wyatt Patterson tried to keep pace with a 242 in the final game, finishing with a three-game series total of 720 (223-255-242). But three Blue Devils – including senior Peyton Bell, the District 12 Most Valuable Player – rolled games in the 200s to help Lebanon pull away.
“(Lebanon) really stepped up and bowled some of their best,” Zajac said. “We had some matchups that we thought we were going to be able to take advantage of, because we liked the way the first two games went. We had a couple of bowlers bowl consistently well, and a couple of bowlers bowled below themselves.”
Lebanon jumped out to a 6-2 lead after one game, but the Commandos turned the tables in the middle contest to pull even. Patterson’s high game, along with a 213 from sophomore Brandon Paul, helped Hendersonville claim the two-point bonus for total pinfall and cut nearly two-thirds of a 75-pin deficit.
“This is the third time we’ve bowled Lebanon this season,” Zajac said. “We consider this a stumbling point, and it’s a teachable moment. I don’t think it’s anything we can’t recover from.”
The Commandos reached the championship match with a 19-8 victory over Gallatin in the semifinal round earlier on Thursday.
Patterson rolled a 231 in the opening game and a 230 in the third game, while classmate Storm Sparks finished with a series of 615 (230-218-167).
Senior Chris Stoveall rolled a 539 series (127-232-180) to lead the Green Wave (9-9), and classmate Jonathon Salyer had a 203 in the first game.
Gallatin High senior Chris Stoveall rolled a 539 series, which included a 232 game, in the District 12 Tournament semifinals on Thursday.
“We’ve grown a lot as a team, physically and mentally,” Gallatin head coach Jack Overholser said. “We probably have twice the numbers that we did from last year, and while the majority of them are seniors, we’re proud of how far they’ve come.”
After falling behind by a 7-1 margin in the opening game, the Green Wave nearly closed the gap by winning four of the six individual pairings in the second game. However, Hendersonville finished the middle game four pins better, snatching the two-point bonus to take an 11-5 lead into the final game.
“We haven’t made it this far in districts in at least four or five years,” Overholser said. “I’m interested to see where we’ll go. We have only about four or six underclassmen coming back. They’ve grown a lot, and we have a lot of positive players.”
>> Sparks (208.26) and Patterson (207.16) qualified for the individual state tournament by finishing with one of the top four averages in District 12.
Beech junior Mike LaRue qualified as a wild-card entrant by having one of the top 12 averages statewide among those bowlers not among their district’s top four.
“To have two out of seven make it to state is significant,” Zajac said. “And we had six of the seven make the top 15 or 16 in the district, so we’ve got some talent on this team.”
Commando freshman Chandler Griffin was named the district’s rookie of the year, while Sparks had the highest series total (803) and highest individual game (298) in district competition. Station Camp senior Bryce Ebbert was named the district’s most improved player (40.83 pins more per game than last year). Zajac and Hendersonville assistant coach Chris Ashworth were named the district coaches of the year.
Members of the All-District 12 Boys Bowling Team include: (seated, L to R, third-team members) Gallatin High senior Jonathon Salyer, Wilson Central junior Jared Violi, Hendersonville junior Braydon Satterfield, Wilson Central freshman Peyton King, Beech sophomore Alex Ezell, (middle row, second-team members) include Wilson Central senior Cody Fredricks, Wilson Central senior Jordan Anderson, Hendersonville freshman Chandler Griffin, Hendersonville senior Joey Maxey, Hendersonville freshman Timothy Smith, Gallatin senior Andrew Smith, (standing, first-team members) Lebanon sophomore Tyler Moore, Lebanon junior Jarred Bradshaw, Hendersonville senior Wyatt Patterson, Lebanon senior Peyton Bell (most valuable player), Hendersonville senior Storm Sparks, Mt. Juliet sophomore Ben Giacobbi and Beech senior Mike LaRue. Station Camp senior Bryce Ebbert, a third-team selection, is not pictured.
Hendersonville awaits the results of the District 13 and 14 tournaments to determine their Region 6 Tournament opponent. The District 13 champion will host the tournament, with the quarterfinals to be held on Tuesday and the final two rounds on Thursday.
Reach Chris Brooks at cbrooks@tennessean.com or at 615-575-7118. Follow him on Twitter @CB_SumnerSports.
District 12 Tournament
Semifinal
Hendersonville boys 19, Gallatin 8
Game one
GALLATIN (873) – Jonathon Salyer 203, Dylan Hester 114, Andrew Smith 147, Zach Taylor 144, Brandon Sheldon 138, Chris Stoveall 127.
HENDERSONVILLE (1,195) – Brandon Paul 162, Chandler Griffin 198, Wyatt Patterson 231, Timothy Smith 195, Braydon Satterfield 180, Storm Sparks 230.
Game two
GALLATIN (1,051) – Salyer 165, Tyler Lee 191, Smith 160, Taylor 127, Sheldon 176, Stoveall 232.
HENDERSONVILLE (1,055) – Paul 138, Griffin 180, Joey Maxey 181, Smith 199, Satterfield 199, Sparks 218.
Game three
GALLATIN (990) – Salyer 137, Lee 182, Smith 195, Austin Kemp 123, Sheldon 169, Stoveall 180.
HENDERSONVILLE (1,035) – Maxey 160, Griffin/Paul 153, Patterson 202, Smith 204, Satterfield 149, Sparks 167.
Total pinfall: 3,286-2,914, Hendersonville.
Championship match
Lebanon boys 18, Hendersonville 9
Game one
LEBANON (1,202) – Jake Sword 208, Tyler Burton 173, Tyler Moore 259, Peyton Bell 212, Tucker Laszczewski 161, Jarred Bradshaw 189.
HENDERSONVILLE (1,127) – Brandon Paul 168, Chandler Griffin 192, Wyatt Patterson 223, Timothy Smith 177, Braydon Satterfield/Joey Maxey 139, Storm Sparks 228.
Game two
LEBANON (1,145) – Sword 167, Burton 185, Moore, Bell 197, Hunter Fugate 167, Bradshaw 231.
HENDERSONVILLE (1,211) – Paul 213, Griffin 193, Patterson 255, Smith 183, Maxey 171, Sparks 179.
Game three
LEBANON (1,195) – Fugate 187, Burton 227, Moore 177, Bell 225, Sword 208, Bradshaw 171.
HENDERSONVILLE (1,087) – Paul 153, Griffin 183, Patterson 242, Smith 193, Maxey 169, Sparks 147.
Total pinfall: 3,542-3,408, Lebanon.