The home confines of the Walnut Bowl were not so friendly to the Panther boys during Monday's Western Athletic Conference competition. The Lady Panthers cruised to a third-straight WAC win 11-2, but the boys lost their battle 11-2 on the varsity side and 13-0 in junior varsity action.
The Lady Panthers had the top-four individual series and won the team side with 2,342 total pins, compared to 2,052 for Garden City. Kaylin Wahlmeier nearly reached a 700 series to win with a 678. Sahara Rhiza rolled a 600 for second, and Aliyah Fryberger placed third with a 559.
There were just five 200 games rolled on the girls' side and Wahlmeier and Rhiza split four of those. Wahlmeier opened with a 268, went 193 in the middle game, and closed with a 217. Rziha followed that pattern with a 221, 178, and 201. Fryberger topped out with a 197 middle game and finished with a 188.
Zoey Mayberry rolled a 476 for seventh, followed by Emilee Nelson in ninth with a 454, and Rionna Rodriguez with a 401 for 11th.
The scores flipped on the boys' side with the Buffaloes taking the top-four spots. That resulted in 2,584 pins for Garden City, and 2,165 for Great Bend.
Garden City sophomore KJ Burns finished second in Class 6A last year. Monday he opened with a 276 and 200 to finish with a series-high 666. A 577 was needed to crack the top four.
Jalen Daniels paced the Panthers in fifth with a 546, that included a consistent 188, 177, and 181. Dylan Ferguson finished three pins behind him for sixth, including games of 184 and 196 to start his day. Kolby Burnham also started strong with a 183 and 192 before struggling to a 132 in his finale to drop to eighth with a 507.
Jordan Manning rolled a 497 for 10th, Kamron Stude placed 11th with a 481, and Caleb McNett finished at 467 in 12th. Manning rolled a 192 in his middle game but finished with a 138.
The bowlers take a week off from competition before heading to Hays next Tuesday.