Evidence suggests that bowling dates back 7000 years and moved from throwing a ball at a stake or pin, to rolling the ball at 10 pins. For Edison High School, the bowling team only started in 2022 but already has its own legacy, being the first and only sports award winning team in the school’s 50 year history.
The team bowls in the “Baker Format,” which was designed in the 1930’s to improve the excitement of the sport and move it from an individual sport to a team sport. Each bowler bowls one frame at a time and each team member is responsible for two frames each, equaling a 10 frame game. The “anchor,” bowler five, has the chance to bowl three strikes which give a total of 30 points in that frame.
SuperPlay, located next to Edison and Jesuit, allows the players to play every day after school for free. The team only has one official practice per week, however head coach, Neil Allen gives the players an opportunity to practice with him on Fridays.
This young team started from learning how to bowl to competing at a state level. In the 2022/23 season, the team had 7 bowlers with less than 4 months of training. The team placed third in District one, qualifying for State finals. They finished the season 14th in the State.
In 2024, the team expanded to 3 teams with 18 bowlers. The top team is Edison Green, second is Edison Black, and the third is Edison White. In December, they won their first event in District 2 (Salem). Additionally in January they placed second in District 1 (Portland) which came down to the wire between Edison and Aloha. Both teams qualified for state, which was held in February down in Salem. Edison tied for 9th out of 16 teams which was a huge leap from the previous year.
Sophomore and anchor AJ Colenso has been bowling with the team since his freshman year.
“Our biggest accomplishment as a team has been the fact that we have made states two years in a row in one of the best districts in the state,” Colenso said.
The team chemistry is extremely strong. In such a small and intimate team, support and encouragement are important to maintain.
“They really love each other. They really do,” coach Neil Allen said.
Colenso loves the team because, “[They’re] super fun to be a part of. We have incredible coaches who love to teach people how to bowl.”
The team will have to fill in the gaps that their strong seniors, Carson Jess and Reif Larson will leave. However, the team is still growing and the returning players will continue to improve and fill the shoes of the seniors. Additionally Allen hopes to start a separate girls bowling team.
“Next year we are aiming not only to make state but to win. Bowling team is one of the most fun things I have been a part of and we are always looking for more people to join whether you want to compete in tournaments or not,” Colenso said.
