MONTESANO — Thursday’s high school bowling match between Aberdeen and Montesano was a significant one, not for what happened on the scoreboard, but more for what the match represented: A sport that has seen a recent growth spurt at the prep level, enough of one to field a full league in the 2A Evergreen.

The Bobcats continued their strong start to the 2018-19 season with a 15.5-2.5 win over Montesano, thier third consecutive victory in as many tries.

In spite of the loss, the match was historic for the Montesano Bulldogs, which played its first home match in program history as the team is in its inagural season. Playing in its second match and its first in front of a home crowd at Bulldog Lanes, Monte faced a Bobcats team that itself has only been around for three years itself.

Bulldog bowlers were greeted with fan support, including Montesano students that cheered the new team on early in the match.

Montesano head coach Virgil Oschner was pleased to see the community show up to support the team and noted that his bowlers were initially caught off guard by the cheering section.

“It was good but I think the girls were a little bit shocked. They weren’t used to the crowd,” he said. “It kind of caught them off guard, but now that we’ve played our first home game they know what to expect. We’ll do better next time.”

Montesano (0-2 overall) joins Aberdeen (3-0) in the 2A Evergreen league, making bowling the only sport in which the two schools compete in the same league.

Montesano’s Izabel Cope, standing, is congratulated by Annalynn Farley and the rest of her team after getting a strike in the first game of a match against Aberdeen. (Hasani Graysom | Grays Harbor News Group)

The addition of Monte into the league is beneficial for the Bobcats as well, who competed without a league last season due to the lack of teams in the area.

With both Montesano and Rochester in their innaugural seasons, the 2A Evergreen is now a six-team bowling league, making the scheduling process less of a hassle than in years past.

“It’s so nice because we used to be begging for matches and now we get 16 matches automatically,” said Aberdeen head coach David Bruncke. “Last year we bowled against Tumwater and Black Hills six times. That was a lot of times to see the same teams, but at least we got to bowl. Now we get to see different teams and different lanes so we’re pretty excited about it.”

The Bobcats have also been excited by their play to start out the season. Aberdeen improved its record to 3-0 with Thursday’s victory and got an impressive performance from Iliana Mercado-George who bowled a 158 in her first game and a 186 in her second game to lead the team with a total of 344 pins.

Aberdeen’s Meghan Howell finished just shy of 300, bowling a 165 in her first game and 141 in her second to put her total at 295.

Izabel Cope led Monte in total pins with 267, but couldn’t get a point for her team in match play as she was outscored by Mercado-George in both games.

The Bulldogs managed to salvage a point in the second baker game, eking out a 118-117 win.

Oschner, who has only been working with his bowlers for about a month, said his team should improve throughout the season if they are willing to learn.

“They have a lot to work on but they’re getting there,” he said. “They’re still working on the fundamentals, but it’s all about repetition. When you fall down you have to get back up and continue to learn.”

Both teams will be back in action Monday with Monte traveling to Tumwater and Aberdeen heading to Black Hills. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.

Bruncke said his team is as confident as it has ever been heading into Monday’s match.

“This is the third year for my varsity players and it’s starting to pay off,” he said. “They’ve been getting good at it and putting in the time. They’re getting to be a lot better bowlers and they’re liking it more. They really like winning.”

Aberdeen (15.5) – Mercado-George (344), Howell (295), Gracie Silvan (236) Brylee Perry (236), Annabelle Micheau (188)

Montesano (2.5) – Cope (267), Annalynn Farley (219) Mercedes Morrill (213), Cassidy Schoenbachler (198), Alexa Couch (171)