*This story was originally published in the second quarter issue of the Eagle Eye*

On Oct. 25, juniors Hannah Carbocci and Ashley Paris secured their positions in the Florida High School State Bowling Championships. Although both the men’s and women’s bowling teams fell just short of state competition, Carbocci’s and Paris’ strong performances at districts led to their admittance into the qualifying individual bracket.

Their qualifications speak to their talent and high pin scores throughout the season. Averaging 175 and 164 pins per game respectively, Carbocci and Paris greatly contributed to the success of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School women’s bowling team with their 9-3 record.

The team’s only losses during the 2017-2018 season were to J.P. Taravella High School and Coral Springs Charter School, the winners at the district competition. Carbocci and Paris were among the star players of the team given their high average scores during the season and at Districts. Over three games, Carbocci totaled 588 pins, and Paris bowled a total of 510 pins.

Representing MSD at the Boardwalk Bowl on Nov. 1, Carbocci and Paris bowled their way to the top 5 percent in the state in the individual qualifiers. Paris in particular had an especially strong showing with 690 pins over five games, placing her among the top 50 bowlers in the state.

Despite their efforts, their scores were not enough to advance past qualifying. Nonetheless, simply making it to states is a feat that only MSD student Carbocci herself has accomplished before—last year. Although the competition in Orlando may have been cut short, their teammates are still proud of all they have achieved.

“I am so proud of Hannah and Ashley for making it to states. They really competed and gave it their all, so I feel that they represented MSD well,” junior and teammate Lauren Faulds said. “Although we may have not gotten the result we wanted, we’ll come back stronger next year as a team,”

MSD has had a bowling team for only three years, but they have sent players to States for the past two years. Carbocci, Paris and the team are focused on returning to States again in the upcoming 2018-2019 season. Learning from both the struggles and triumphs from this year, the team hopes to achieve their goal of making it further in competition than ever before in school history.

“We are preparing for the future season by practicing as hard as we can. We bowl in all leagues and come to compete. Next season we are going to make it to States as a team,” Carbocci said.

Amelia Pena, MSD’s registrar and women’s tennis coach, and her husband, Orlando Pena, took up the role as bowling coaches just this year and see a strong future for the team.

“This was Coach P and my first year as bowling coaches, and we saw great improvement in the team,” Pena said. “Hannah Carbocci is an excellent bowler and will lead the team next year… As for Ashley Paris, she is really improving her game and will be an excellent asset to the team next year.”

With both their experienced players and coaching staff returning for next year, the women’s bowling team plans to come back stronger than ever, with their sights set on States once again.