STEP Bowls
Kingswood High Bowls Report
Term 1 has already been a busy one for our school’s high-performance bowlers. Our six students have been attending the STEP program for two hours each Wednesday afternoon at Glenbrook Panthers Bowling Club. The experience of the squad is wide-ranging - from complete novice to multiple representative experience at NSW Combined High School events.
The players have all become members of Glenbrook Panthers and have been competing in a range of Championship events at the Club, including u18 Singles on Monday afternoons, Open Club Mixed Pairs on weekends, and the Club’s Open Men's Premier League on Tuesday nights. Add in Saturday morning coaching and Wednesday STEP, these kids' dedication to the sport is almost 7 days-a-week. The team, aptly named “The Kids”, finished second in the Premier League - an awesome achievement from such a young side!
The KHS Squad is headed by the experienced Jayden Lewthwaite of Year 11. Jayden has represented Sydney West for several years. At the recent Sydney West Singles Championships, Jayden finished in 5th position after slipping up in the Semi-Final. A pair of 12 year old girls, who have shown amazing progress in such a very short time, finished in 6th and 8th. They were Sophie P and Lara H of Year 8. They were also the #3 and #4 females in the event. Cleo B lost by a single shot to the eventual 4th placegetter and Reaghan B defeated a Senior from Glenwood High School in the positional play-offs in her first-ever Championships. As a result of their performances, Jayden, Sophie and Lara were selected by Sydney West to play at the NSW Combined High Schools Singles & Pairs at Warilla in June, and Cleo will also get through as a reserve. Due to sponsorship, these players will be outfitted with a combination of free and discounted Sydney West apparel for the event.
The Sydney West Championships were held last week and our squad again performed amazingly. As part of the Werrington Zone side, they finished runners-up in a tight battle against a Nepean Zone side which has only lost a single Sydney West Championship in over 20 years! Our Kingswood squad was under-strength for a couple of reasons, but they did the school, and their Zone, proud. The Sydney West side for the CHS Championships held in Penrith in June was announced at the conclusion of the event. Three Kingswood students were selected in the side of eight - namely Jayden, Lara and Sophie. In the Driving Competition, Reaghan was outstanding - setting a record unprecedented at any school level including Australian Championships!
Last year, Jayden and Cleo led Kingswood High to the Finals of the Statewide Competition (formerly known as the CHS Knockout). Unfortunately, Covid lockdowns ruined their chances at a tilt for the State title in Tamworth. They are now looking forward to the Sydney West Gala Day in May with an eye on qualifying again for the State Finals held in August, and have several other players vying to be on the starting side.
Sydney West Singles Summary:
Jayden - W v Blaxland, L v Nepean, W v Blaxland, L v Blaxland, W v Blaxland, W v Sophie (5th)
Sophie - W v Crestwood, W v Glenwood, L v Blaxland, L v Blaxland, L v Jayden (6th - 3rd in Girls)
Lara - W v Blaxland, W v Reaghan, L v Nepean, L v Sophie, L v Blaxland (8th - 4th in Girls)
Cleopatra - W v Crestwood, L v Blaxland, W v Crestwood, L v Blaxland, W v Glenwood (11th)
Reaghan - L v Blaxland, L v Lara, L v Blaxland, W v Glenwood, L v Crestwood (14th)
