<strong>E</strong>aston Henderson’s bowling shoes toed perfection recently when the Franklin freshman rolled 11 straight strikes to start a game in league competition.
In short, the kid knows pressure.
Henderson, 15, and Grizzly Cub classmate Jacob Dinkens, 14, will sense some Saturday morning when they participate in the high school boys individual state finals at Pro Bowl West in Fort Wayne.
Also competing from Johnson County is Whiteland junior Lilly Pryor, who placed eighth among girls during the semistate at Championship Lanes in Anderson with scores of 162-203-169—534.
“It’s pretty crazy to think I’m going to state in a sport I’ve only been doing for a short time,” Henderson said. “I definitely think I’m good enough to get in the top couple in the state, for sure. My dad says I give off this really confident vibe, but no matter what, I’m going to have fun.”
Henderson rolled an impressive 250 in his first game at semistate, followed by games of 156 and 167. His 573 total positioned him 11th in the final standings with Dinkens, a two-handed bowler, five pins behind for 12th.
Easton had placed fifth and Dinkens ninth at the regional hosted by Heritage Lanes in Kokomo on March 13.
“I kind of expected Easton to get out of sectional and maybe regional,” Franklin coach Mark Armstrong said. “He takes bowling seriously and is always trying to improve himself. Jacob, I would say I was a little surprised. He uses both hands to release the ball.
“It’s a different type of release that takes a while to master, but he’s gotten it down enough to advance to the state finals.”
Dinkens picked up the sport as a 10-year-old when his father signed him up for a bowling league. Henderson started at age 12 after watching the success his older brother enjoyed as a member of the Franklin team.
Their mutual interest brought them together.
“I saw Easton at school and then we started the middle school bowling stuff and became friends through that,” Dinkens said. “I expected myself to do well, but didn’t expect to get this far. I’m really excited and am going to have fun and do the best that I can.”
As for Henderson’s recent flirtation with a 300 score, it ended when he left the 6 and 10 pins standing on his 12th roll at Hi-Way Lanes in Franklin, leaving him with a personal-best score of 298 he someday hopes to eclipse.
“I told them from sectionals on up that it’s one step at a time,” Armstrong said. “When you get to state, that’s when you’re trying to win it all. I would like to see both of them finish in the top four, but like any sport, it’s about adapting to the conditions and who shows up that day.”
