Hoffman takes title; Prospect qualifies
Liz Saffold saved her very best for last.
The Hoffman Estates bowler fired a 268 — a performance that included 8 consecutive strikes — in the sixth game of Saturday’s girls sectional tournament at River Rand Bowl in Des Plaines.
Saffold’s final pin count of 1,302 enabled her to claim the first-place individual medal — and she helped lead the Hawks to the sectional championship and a berth at Friday’s IHSA state tournament at Cherry Bowl Lanes in Rockford.
“It was a strong goal of ours to get to state,” said the Vanderbilt-bound senior. “And we didn’t just want to get there today, we wanted to do some damage — and next week at state, we’re going to do some damage as well.”
Hoffman’s final-game pinfall of 1,065 helped the Hawks overtake Prospect for the crown by only 28 pins.
Saffold said that midway through the tourney she and her teammates thought they would be in contention to the end.
“We had a feeling,” Saffold said. “But we wanted to be sure. A tournament like this is a marathon, not a sprint, and we were confident, but not cocky.”
Hawks senior Ashley Femrite rolled a 1,196.
“We have worked so hard for this,” Femrite said. “At this stage of the season it’s all about picking each other up, and we did that today. What an incredible rush — I am so excited.”
The second-place Knights advanced to the state tourney for the first time since 2005. They were led by senior Whitney Schmidt’s 1,225 — which was good for fourth place individually.
“This is amazing,” said Knights senior Emily Victor. “It was starting to sink in that being a senior, this would be my last chance to go to state. My teammates and I were so focused all day. This just feels great.”
Elk Grove junior Tedra Tado (1,270, second overall) and Schaumburg senior Jodi Gawlik (1,263, third) advanced to Rockford as individuals.
“This was so nerve-wracking,” Tado said. “I’m a little relieved right now, to be honest.”
This will be Tado’s second straight trip to Cherry Bowl Lanes. The junior participated in the state meet last season when the Grenadiers qualified as a team. This year, the Mid-Suburban League champion Grens just missed a state berth as they finished third in the team standings.
“Last year was a bit overwhelming,” said Tado of the Rockford experience. “But it was a learning experience, and I’ll be better this year. Unfortunately it’ll be bittersweet because my teammates won’t be coming with me.”
Ashley Dolce (1,183) and Caerlina Williams (1,175) were outstandig for the Grens. Palatine senior Barbie Gutwein rolled an 1,134 and Schamburg’s Anna Marshall fired an 1,101.
For the state qualifiers, Kailey Schlosser (1,196) and Sarah Wille (1,130) made big contributions for Hoffman, the sectional host.
Prospect’s Mary Styzek (1,207) and Kelly Lawless (1,167) helped the Knights punch their ticket to Rockford.
According to Lawless, Knights coach Greg Troyer was trying to keep his Knights in the dark about their chances to advance.
“He wanted to keep it a secret so we’d focus on ourselves and not worry about the other teams,” Lawless said. “But we found out anyway.”
Schmidt said she had no trouble keeping track of the standings.
“I’m sneaky that way,” said the senior. “I found out (how close we were) just by looking over people’s shoulders. Then I told our team.”