Hard-working Hernandez, Waubonsie Valley back in title picture

ROCKFORD - Hard work really does pay off.

Especially for Waubonsie Valley's Angelica Hernandez, who's seen her bowling average rise by 78 pins in less than a year.

Hernandez had a 118 average last March, but she steadily made gains, practicing and working on her game while seeing improvement all along the way.

The result was an average approaching the 200 mark entering the state tournament weekend at Cherry Bowl.

On Friday, the sophomore started off with a 604 series with games of 224, 181 and 199. In the afternoon, she threw games of 209, 174 and 183 for a 566 series for a 6-game total of 1,170.

"It was a lot of hard work, going six days a week," Hernandez said. "At first it was more physical. Now it's more working on my mental game. I came into bowling just for fun. I didn't even know people use custom bowling balls. It's just a matter of hitting targets and good arm swing. I'm just happy about it, and proud to see where I'm at right now."

Waubonsie Valley's girls bowling team finds itself in search of a state three-peat after winning titles the last two years. The Warriors led the tournament after the first three games with an impressive 3,216 following games of 1,105, 1,039 and 1,072.

They dropped down to fourth place with an 892 in game four but rallied with games of 1,063 and 1,000 for a 2,955 afternoon set. That gave them a 6-game total of 6,171, good for second place behind tournament leader Collinsville (6,310).

"I've learned to be patient with them," Waubonsie Valley coach Marty Miller said. "It's because they become sophomores for a moment. Then I go back to the fundamentals, and they right the ship.

"Where we're at is OK. It takes two days. We're always trying to execute our shots."

The other Warriors contributors include Violet Kirk (1,313 and a high game of 245), Veronica Dreyfus (1,284), Serenity Quinteros (1,222) and Mirica Yancy (1,182).

West Aurora, a team making its first trip to the state tournament, finished the first day in sixth place (5,977) and is still in reach of the leaders for the second day of competition Saturday.

"They really have a good outlook and they have an opportunity show what they can do," West Aurora coach Tawn Williams said. "They're first and foremost a team. They pick each other up. We had some high scores - and not some high scores."

The Blackhawks shot 3,103 in the morning with three games over 1,000 and had a 2,974 for the afternoon. Jamie McCreedy led the way with a 1,271, followed by Paylynn Kuhns (1,245), Sydney Lundell (1,173), Corey McCreedy (1,162) and Samie Reed (1,126)

Individually, Kaitlyn Rudy of Stevenson beat her personal best series for the third straight week on her first trip to state. She rolled a 712 series for her first three with games of 185, 248 and 279. She followed up with the 639 that included a 257 game for a 1,351 series. The junior is currently in sixth place, behind tournament leader Kyra Udziela of Lemont (1,397).

Rudy had the final 8 strikes in her second game and then started with strikes in the front 7 of her third game.

"It was intimidating at first," Rudy said. "Once I got comfortable it was better. The 279 game was exactly what I needed. It got me pumped up and confident for the rest of the games."

Rudy is now looking to become the Patriots' highest-ever-finishing girls bowler at state.

"I just want to stay ahead of the move for the next 6 games," Rudy said. "My coaches believe that I can make the top four. I just want to do my best out there."

Grayslake North was making its second state appearance in the last three years. They finished 20th two years ago and had a big improvement this time, finishing in 15th place, 102 pins out of 12th place.

"It's a step up in the right direction," Grayslake North coach Laura Bertermann said. "When you're building a program, you hope to get better and better all the time. Hopefully, we come back next year and improve more and more."

The Knights had their biggest game of the day in their fifth game with a 1,056 that moved them from the 21st spot up to 14th place, 35 pins away from 12th.

"I was pleased to see that they worked well that game," Bertermann said. "We were just having fun, and that's what its all about."

Sarah Littleton qualified for Saturday's action with a 1,216. Gaby Silva missed advancing by 1 pin with an 1,193. The other Knights' scorers were Jessica Vaughn (1,152), Kait Christiansen (1,097) and Payton Bertermann (996).

Lake Park finished in 14th place (5,682), and York was in 21st (5,469).

Other bowlers to qualify for Saturday include Jordan Newham of Metea Valley (1,342), Kaitlyn Keith of Lake Park (1,305), Amanda Jastrzebski of Addison Trail (1,242), Katelyn Thurnall of York (1,238) and Hannah Schwartz of York (1,224).