But the Pointers' bid came up just short in Friday's second day of the 5A state tournament in Jonesboro.
Van Buren, which won the 6A state title last season, finished runner-up to Greenbrier, which completed its portion of the 5A state competition on Wednesday. Bowling tournaments across the state finally finished up Friday after two postponements due to inclement weather.
The Pointers trailed Benton, who won the 5A-West Conference title, by six pins after the first game. Van Buren took the lead in the second game and stayed ahead of Benton.
“Greenbrier had put up some amazing numbers and we knew that we couldn’t catch up with them,” Van Buren coach Kevin Ross said. “We were talking during the match and we knew we had to stay ahead of Benton if we wanted to finish runner-up and that became our focus, beating Benton.”
Caleb Jenkins earned 5A All-State honors as he finished seventh overall and a three-game total of 606. On the girls side, Miranda Lockey also earned All-State honors.
“She was down on herself, but when she learned she made All-State, that brought a smile to her face. I’m proud of her and all the kids,” Ross said. “For us to finish second overall with only one all-state bowler showed that this was truly a team effort.
"We had all six of our guys finish in the top 25 and that’s pretty impressive.”
Van Buren will graduate seven seniors, including all six who participated in the state tournament.
Greenwood's boys finished 10th led by Taylor Morehead, who placed eighth with a total score of 601 and all-state designation.
Riley Golden of Greenwood placed 12th with a total o... Click here to read full article
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