Former Western Brown High School bowler Austin Grammar led qualifying and advanced to the semifinals in the recent Intercollegiate Singles Championships in Las Vegas.
Former Bronco bowler tops qualifying, reaches semis in national college tourney
Western Brown High School boys bowling coach Chad Sexton isn’t necessarily surprised by the success Austin Grammar has had since he left Western Brown for college three years ago.
Amazed? Yes, but rightfully so.
Grammar, a junior at Webber International in Babson Park, Florida, recently was the top qualifier then advanced all the way to the semifinals in the 2023 Intercollegiate Singles Championships at the South Point Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas.
“It’s amazing to see the progress Austin has made in college,” said Sexton, who coached Grammar at Western Brown. “He continues to work on his craft and that is evident with the success he is having in college. Everyone at Western Brown is extremely proud of him.”
The 24 men who earned spots in the event through sectional qualifying bowled six games of qualifying to determine the bracket for match play. The top eight qualifiers received a first-round bye while the remainder of the field started match play. The ISC tournament was held April 17-22, in conjunction with the Intercollegiate Team Championships, April 19-22.
“The whole experience was amazing,” said Grammar, who graduated from Western Brown in 2020. “Bowling match play at the national level is always fun. It pushes me to want to get better for the next time I get the opportunity.”
Grammar, who also qualified for the ISC national finals in 2022, chalked up his strong qualifying effort to patience.
“I didn’t have a great look at the beginning, so I just tried to grind and wait for the lanes to come to me,” Grammar told bowl.com. “Once that happened and things started setting up better for me and my game, I took advantage of two good pairs and ran down the field.”
According to bowl.com, it was clear that Grammar matched up best with the final two pairs he encountered as he closed his qualifying block with games of 265 and 247 to establish the top men’s total at 1,333 (222.17 average).
After the first-round bye, Grammar rolled a 641 series to win his second-round match by 30 pins. He improved on that in the third round, winning by 75 pins, 688-613, to advance to the semifinals, which along with the final were one-game competition. There, he was eliminated after rolling a 169.
Grammar also led Webber International to a nice run in the team championships, helping the Warriors advance to the quarterfinals before they were eliminated.
“The team portion was a lot of fun to me,” he said. “It’s a lot more enjoyable to win with people you’ve worked all year with, and you really want to win for the non-returners of the team.
“Bowling in college is awesome,” he added. “We go against the next generation of great bowlers, and it just goes to show you how good people are at such a young age. I’m honored to be a part of it.”
