After knocking down seven pins in her first frame, junior Sneha Titi bowled three consecutive strikes in the next three frames, achieving her first turkey of the season at the Palatine Invite on Dec. 2.
“I didn’t expect the turkey and was super happy to get it,” said Titi. “I wasn’t even looking up at the screen until one of my teammates showed that I had gotten two [strikes] in a row and could get one more for the turkey.”
Anytime a player bowls a turkey during a game, the player will be awarded with a turkey stuffed animal hat to wear until the game is over.
“[Head] coach [Laura] Ruesch handed the hat to me and took a picture of me holding it,” said Titi. “I felt like it gave me good luck for the rest of that game.”
According to Ruesch, halfway through the Palatine Invite, the team was forced to move since two of the lanes broke down, trapping players’ bowling balls.
The team is dealing with low participation, with a roster of 18 players, a lower number from previous years.
“People say, ‘It’s not a real sport’ or, ‘It’s not the cool sport to do,’ so we’re trying to get rid of that stigma and show all the fun we have, but it’s not easy,” Ruesch said.
According to senior Nola Fagin, she thinks the team struggles with participation issues since most people are scared to join in fear of being made fun of by others for bowling.
“People get wrapped up in caring about what others think about them, but in reality, if you enjoy doing something or you want to get out of your comfort zone, then bowling is great since everyone on the team is so inclusive and welcoming,” Fagin said.
To get more girls to join, Fagin left small Post-it notes with information about the bowling team on the mirrors in the women’s restrooms.
“I felt like maybe if I left a ton of notes in the bathrooms, at least one person would notice, pick it up and think to themselves, ‘This is something I could do,’” said Fagin. “I had no idea if the messages would work, but surprisingly, we actually did get some new girls to join from it.”
According to Titi, she was surprised by how loud bowling games can get.
“I’m able to stay concentrated while I play, but all the chants and yelling and screaming from other players, parents or even by our team is definitely there,” Titi said.
As of Dec. 18, the team is led by Fagin with an average of 135.67 pins knocked down per game (1-7, 1-5 Central Suburban League South Division).
According to senior Elsie Kang, she likes the small size of the team because it allows the players to become close friends.
“I could be having a horrible start to a game, but my teammates would still be there high-fiving and motivating me to do better in the next frame,” Kang said.