District bowling: Wadsworth's Hayden Eagon-Mohlmaster digs deep for 716 series

LORAIN — Three-time All-Gazette choice Hayden Eagon-Mohlmaster bowled the best game of his three-year high school career in the most important game of his high school career.Because of that, the Wadsworth junior will get to bowl even bigger games at HPL Bowling Center, which will host the Division I boys state tournament on March 6.In danger of not advancing out of the Northeast District on Sunday at Rebman Recreation, Eagon-Mohlmaster began his third game with 10 strikes before leaving a 7 pin and converting for a prep career-high 289, which gave him a 716 series that placed him second overall and first among the five individual state qualifiers from non-qualifying teams."It's everything I've worked for this year," the left-hander said. "I had most of my teammates here supporting me. Kolony (Bowl, Wadsworth's home lanes) supports me and my coaches support me. To get that support and back it up really means a lot to me."Buckeye's Kevin Miller nearly joined Eagon-Mohlmaster in earning a trip to Columbus, but his 659 series (223-212-224) left him one spot and 26 pins behind the fifth individual qualifer, Louisville's Owen Emerick. Padua Franciscan's Zachary Mayne, who shot a state-record 858 series en route to winning the 2025 state title as a freshman, rolled a 601 (216-207-178) and failed to advance after tying for 36th.The Bucks finished 13th in a 21-team field with a pinfall of 3,871, while Medina was 20th at 3,600. Boardman (4,360), Lake (4,303), Amherst (4,246), St. Ignatius (4,223) and Avon Lake (4,222) were the team qualifiers, with the Shoremen's Jeffrey Toth posting the top series with a 725.Bowling with Lake because Wadsworth did not advance as a team out of a tough Stark County Sectional, Eagon-Mohlmaster finished his first game with five strikes to salvage a 206, then closed his second with a six-bagger to shoot 221 despite leaving two huge splits early."The first two games were important," the reigning Gazette MVP said. "I didn't throw the ball that well, but to come out over 200 in both of them, it helped my confidence. It got me focused on the beginning of my third game."After starting his final game with seven strikes, Eagon-Mohlmaster carried a Brooklyn in the eighth. He then buried his ball for strikes on his next two shots to close within two of his first perfect game in high school competition. After waiting an inordinate amount of time for his ball to come through the return, he buried another shot but left a weak 7 pin."It was probably one of the best balls I threw today," he said. "I was just excited I didn't let the nerves overtake me and I threw a good shot."By the time Eagon-Mohlmaster stepped on the approach in the 10th, all other teams on that side of Rebman Rec had finished their third game, so a lot of eyes were focused on him and a huge crowd had gathered behind Lanes 45 and 46."It was crazy, but I was really focused," he said. "I just tried to leave everything going on behind me in the background. I didn't want (the crowd) to affect me, but when I got that Brooklyn and everyone cheered, I could really tell how many people were watching me."Though Eagon-Mohlmaster has a sanctioned 300 outside of high school, Wadsworth coach George Steele continuously talked to him between frames as his string of strikes grew, but it had very little to do with bowling."He kept my mind off bowling," Eagon-Mohlmaster said. "I don't even know what we were talking about, but I do remember discussing what other bowlers did to keep their mind off things."Eagon-Mohlmaster, who stands throughout a match when bowling with his Wadsworth teammates, took a seat between frames in his final game Sunday."I was trying to keep myself paced," he said. "I loved bowling with Lake and I was rooting for their guys, but they were bowling fast, so I would sit down and talk to (assistant coach) Chris (Steele) or George (Steele) so I didn't rush."The rush came afterward, as Eagon-Mohlmaster received a loud ovation after leaving the 7 pin and an even louder one after picking it up.Buckeye's Miller, a two-hander from the right side, nearly got a similar adrenaline jolt, but he ultimately finished 10th overall and sixth among bowlers not on qualifying teams."I bowled pretty darn well for being sick yesterday," the senior said. "I feel like I was more concentrated than usual, which helped, but after every shot my body was aching. Each frame I had to give it my all."I had one open each game, and that's what did me in. I had a really good shot on all three pairs. I got a couple lucky breaks and a couple unlucky breaks, which is how it always goes."After posting a decent 927 after the first game of individual bowling, which featured a 209 from Carter Fry, Buckeye's chances of advancing as a team unraveled when an 826 in the second game dropped it to 18th place. The Bucks regrouped a bit — John Ambrose shot 582 (172-196-214) to finish 56th, Alex Marconi had a 205 game ad Gavin Onyx rolled a 202 — and had scores of 222, 204, 194 and 180 among their six Baker games, but they could only get to 13th in the standings.Medina's chances ended almost immediately with an 819 total after the first game of individual bowling, but the Bees still managed to post some respectable scores. Jimmy Green led the way with a 577 (170-205-202) to tie for 60th, Mathew Paffumi shot 573 (187-202-184) to finish 67th and Justin Rehner rolled a 541 (158-183-200) to tie for 81st.Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4046 or rnoland@medina-gazette.com.