Fact: one of the most successful sports teams at Jackson-Reed each year is girls bowling.
Being held at JR for the past 11 years, bowling has continually been leaps and bounds above their competition, where the program has won two DCIAA championships. The nine schools that host varsity bowling teams are delegated as either Division 1 or Division 2, where the more competitive teams are the latter. Jackson-Reed is one of the four Division 1 teams.
The goal of team bowling is simple: knock over as many pins as you can in order to have a higher score than the team you are playing against. Four people are selected as a school’s bowling squad (only one player can be switched out) and they cycle through who’s at the lane throughout the entire game. The maximum score a player can reach is 300; most high school varsity bowlers across the United States average about a score of 160.
Bowling season, which spans from January to March, for DC public schools culminates in a DCIAA playoff tournament. Teams play five games, then, based on the results of those games, compete for the overall DCIAA championship.
“When I first took over the team, we won the championship,” health teacher and bowling head coach Rebecca Bradshaw-Smith said. “There have been years that we haven’t won at all. But, it’s a learning experience for the girls and they learn how to actually have fun!”
Since there are no local bowling alleys nearby JR, the girl bowling team travels all the way to Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Southeast DC for practices. The team can hold a maximum of eight girls, who are each released early from class at about 2:45 to make the traffic-ridden journey there and back to school after practice.
Through it all, the girls on the team meet people from other schools who share their same love for the sport. “We just have camaraderie, we are just a tight knit group,” Bradshaw-Smith said. “I know the bowlers from Ballou, the bowlers from Bell, and they know our girls!”
Competitive bowling raises bountiful opportunities for full-ride college scholarships. Mostly centralized on the East Coast and in the Midwest, both men and women bowling teams compete in tournaments sanctioned by the United States Bowling Congress Collegiate Association.
If you’re looking for the opportunity to join a successful bowling program with great girls who pour their heart and soul into the sport, come talk to head coach Rebecca Bradshaw-Smith in room WA302! •