William Roderfeld celebrates with his Marquette Catholic boys bowling teammates after bowling a strike in the third game of the Jersey Regional on Saturday. The Explorers placed third in regionals to qualify for the Collinsville Sectional next week.
The Marquette Catholic boys bowling team accomplished some history on Saturday.
The Explorers qualified for sectional competition as a team for the first time in their four-year history after finishing third in the Jersey Regional on Saturday at Tri-County Bowl in Jerseyville. Marquette finished with a six-game score of 5,823 to advance to the Collinsville Sectional, scheduled for Jan. 25 at Camelot Bowl.
The Explorers started their bowling program in 2016. They had a total of two individual sectional qualifiers (Luke Simmons in 2018 and Sam Cogan in '18 and '19) in the last two years.
On Saturday, Marquette started regional play in fifth place before moving into third after bowling a 1,052 in the second game. The Explorers jumped into first place in the 10-team tournament after shooting a 1,050 in the third game. The Alton school dropped to third after shooting a 931 in the fourth game and stayed there the rest of the way.
Junior Patrick Wiemers was Marquette's top finisher, placing fifth with a 1,275. Senior Jake Gatermann, who was in second place at one point, finished eighth with a 1,253. William Roderfeld, who was a sectional qualifier in golf last fall, shot an 1,126, Joey Gatermann bowled a 1,098 and Nick Hamm finished with a 1,071.
