Katie Dummer may have been a first-time state qualifier this season, but the Lady Hub senior bowler performed at Rockford’s Cherry Bowl this past weekend like she had been there many times before.
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ROCKFORD — Katie Dummer may have been a first-time state qualifier this season, but the Lady Hub senior bowler performed at Rockford’s Cherry Bowl this past weekend like she had been there many times before.
Dummer’s spectacular senior season includes both Northern Illinois Big 12 All-Conference honors and a tournament title at LaSalle-Peru’s Cavalier Classic. After advancing beyond both the IHSA DeKalb Regional and the IHSA Kaneland Sectional at DeKalb’s Mardi Gras Lanes, Dummer’s goal at the state tournament was to qualify for the championship round on Saturday.
Dummer was 20 places out of contention after three games on Friday, but after rolling 645 over her last three games including an astonishing 279 in her fifth game, the Rochelle standout and future Highland Cougar jumped all the way up from 50th to 16th in the individual standings. With the top 30 bowlers moving on to Saturday’s round, Dummer had achieved her goal.
“I was fluctuating all day but once I bowled my high game, it made me relax because that bumped me up quite a bit,” Dummer said. “I was ecstatic because I had achieved my only goal for this tournament... It was a great experience and a great way to close out my high school career.”
Dummer began Friday’s portion of the competition with scores of 175, 234 and 182 for a 591 series. Her total increased to 1,236 pins, an average of 206 pins per game, after her 645 during the second half of state play Friday afternoon. Dummer’s first three-game series on Saturday was 586 which included a high game of 227.
“I enjoyed Saturday’s the most because I got to bowl with two girls from Sycamore that I have become close with,” Dummer said. “Also, bowling my 279 was a big achievement for me… Honestly, I wish I could’ve bowled a bit better. I think the new experience got to me but I’m still glad that I finished in the top 30 and that I show a new high game.”
Dummer’s final three games of her high school career were 160, 180 and 224 for a 564 series. The senior’s final state total over 12 games added up to 2,386 pins, an average of 198.8 pins per game. A four-year varsity member of Rochelle’s girls bowling program, Dummer has been an integral piece to success for the Lady Hubs, and Dummer said she’s ready to take her game to the next level at Highland next year.
“I learned that I need to leave it on the lanes and just relax and enjoy each new tournament I’m going to endure,” Dummer said. “I’m not going to do well in every single tournament but I need to try my hardest anyways and just work on it until the end. I’m excited to start my college career and have the new experiences and make new memories.”
Machesney Park (Harlem) won the 2017-18 team title with 12,111 pins over 12 games, an average of 201.9 pins per game. Harlem’s Rebecca Hageman took home the individual championship with 2,669 pins, an average of 222.4 pins per game.
