An explosive sound echoes through the room as the pins fall and the bowlers prepare for the state conference Feb. 10. While Coach Alundra Dickson quietly works with a player on the side, the team cheers each other on, creating a safe space to enjoy their sport. Although they work hard, the team also tries their best to enjoy one another’s company and to fully immerse themselves in the moment. Sophomore Adalyn Bishop found this connection after joining.
“It’s just a very friendly environment, and everybody’s very supportive,” Bishop said. “It’s not that big of a deal if somebody makes a mistake.”
While fond family memories often inspire bowlers to join the team, the familial ties are uniquely strong with Bishop.
“So last year, my sister was like, ‘Do you want to join the bowling team?’ and I was like, ‘Yeah, that sounds fun,’ and so I joined. It was actually very fun. Everybody on this team was really nice,” Bishop said.
However, Dickson joined because of friends, not family, and wants to recreate her positive experience for today’s students.
“I [joined], and then I fell in love with it,” Dickson said. “And I got decent at it and was able to qualify for state as well my senior year.”
Almost 10 years ago, she introduced the idea of a bowling team, but wasn’t successful. Several years later, Hall High School’s bowling team wanted to create a district-wide league, so coach Earnest McGee reached out to her to coach because of her initial interest. Because of the long process of creating the team, Dickson doesn’t take coaching for granted, remaining intentional with her actions.
“I am a very introverted person, and I’m a very quiet kind of person as well, whereas a lot of other athletic coaches are a little more aggressive, extroverted, upfront kind of things, which is just not my personality,” Dickson said.
Senior Brennan Horton has bowled competitively for four years with Dickson. After making the varsity team as a freshman, his talent and affection for the sport only grew.
“It’s been a lot of fun for me for all four of those years,” Horton said. “But I never really was into it competitively until I joined the team and saw a bunch of other competitive bowlers, and that’s what really inspired me to take it up.”
The team members played an instrumental role in intensifying Horton’s passion for the sport.
“[The team is] a huge part of any sport, if you get all tense and riled up a lot of times, you’re going to make mistakes,” Horton said. “When you’re comfortable, especially with your team and on the lanes, it’ll really help you stay within yourself and be able to complete your form a lot more comfortably.”
While he’s still in high school, Horton wants to make the most of the time he has left with the team. But after graduation, he hopes to join a college team and have the same level of success as he has with this one.
“We’re just here for the fun of the game and just here to enjoy ourselves,” Horton said. “A lot of us are seniors, so just to have a good time while we still have time in high school, that’s really great.”
Although Horton considers bowling an individual sport, he understands the value of a strong team and the connections within it.
“It’s not like we are not helping each other out, but for the most part, we’re staying within ourselves,” Horton said. “The team is your support crew, and even though it might just be you versus the lane, the team is really, really important.”
