BY DAVE LINK
Nobody at Carter knew what to expect when Ray Wynn started a bowling program at the school five years ago.
Surely not a three-peat run by the Lady Hornets to the state tournament.
But that’s where they are next week when Carter (21-0) goes against Dickson County (21-1) in the TSSAA Division I girls’ state tournament at Smyrna Bowling Center.
Two of the Lady Hornets – senior cousins Nevaeh “Gracie” Miller and Kayla Rucker – will compete in the Division I individual tournament next Wednesday (Jan. 24), and the next day their team faces Dickson County in the state team quarterfinals.
“They enjoy it, and it’s a good group of girls,” Wynn said. “They’ve worked hard to get there.”
Miller and Rucker are four-year bowlers for the Lady Hornets.
Miller will be making her third straight appearance in the state individual tournament and Rucker her second.
Other bowlers in Carter’s six-player starting lineup are senior Aaliyah Gentry-Foye, juniors Loren Chamberlain and Madelyn Lewis, and freshman Kali Gentry-Foye, Aaliyah’s sister.
And the Lady Hornets are ready to roll at state.
“I’m not sure four years ago if that was our goal (going to state),” Wynn said. “Our goal was to win games.”
Consider it done.
BUILDING THE PROGRAM
Wynn was approached by a student, from a family he knows, about starting a bowling program at Carter in 2019. He thought the student was kidding.
“I said, ‘All right, you go ask the principal, Ms. (Angie) Messer, if we can do it, and if she says yes, we’ll have a team,” Wynn recalls.
Messer, now the Music and Performing Arts Specialist for Knox County Schools, said yes, Carter should have a bowling program.
“I think you’ll do wonderful,” she told Wynn.
One problem: the 2019-20 season started the next week.
Once Wynn formed a boys and girls team – in about a week — it was too late for other teams to put Carter on their schedules. However, Karns was supposed to have a program and dropped it, so Carter took its place on other teams’ schedules.
The Lady Hornets went 9-6 in their first season, and with several returnees in 2020-21, posted a 14-4 record.
“We peaked at the end and we won the district tournament,” Wynn said. “The kids were really excited. We go to the region tournament, and it’s at Maryville, at Crest (Bowling Lanes), and we end up losing in the first round of the region tournament to William Blount. The seniors I had were pretty disappointed.”
However, Wynn had several returnees for the 2021-22 season, including Miller and Rucker. The Lady Hornets advanced to the state tournament for the first time, posting a 16-1 record.
“That’s when we really started hitting our stride,” Wynn said. “In fact, we haven’t lost since to an East Tennessee school since 2022.”
Their trip to the state tournament in 2022 was an eye-opener once they got to Smyrna Bowling Center.
“It’s 52 lanes long and there’s like 1,200 to 1,500 people in the bleachers, cheering and stomping,” Wynn said. “The first year was a little nerve racking. We were not expecting what we saw. It’s a big-time venue.
“I was typing my lineup on the sheet, and my watch goes off, and I look at my watch, and it says the noise level you’re at, at this decibel will cause you to have hearing loss in 15 minutes. That’s how loud it was inside the bowling alley, and it hadn’t even started yet.”
The Lady Hornets lost to Rhea County 20-3 in the state quarterfinals, but their confidence wasn’t shaken for the 2022-23 season.
Carter advanced to the 2023 state tournament with a 16-0 record before losing in the quarterfinals to Hardin County, 20-3.
Wynn had two senior starters on last year’s roster, Hallie Lane and Belle Gibson. Lane was a two-time state individual qualifier.
Regardless, the Lady Hornets didn’t miss a beat this season, taking an unbeaten record into next week’s state tournament.
Along the way, Rucker set a school record for pin fall in a game with a 266 against Gatlinburg-Pittman.
“We’ve had a real good run here the last three years,” Wynn said, “just beating all the teams around here, and we get to state and it’s a lot better quality than we see here.”
HORNETS KNOCKING ON DOOR
Carter’s boys have enjoyed some postseason success, just not like the Lady Hornets.
The Hornets went 10-7 in their inaugural season, 2019-20.
“We had some really good teams in our district and lost in the district semis,” Wynn said. “It was kind of rough.”
They finished 12-7 the next season, again losing in the district semifinals.
“The year after, in 2021-22, we really started figuring things out and had some kids who had been here a while,” Wynn said. “We went 15-9 and were second in the district tournament.”
Carter built on that success last season, compiling a 20-4 record and winning the district’s regular season and tournament.
The Hornets repeated as district champions this season and finished with an 18-4 record, losing 14-13 to Chuckey-Doak in the region tournament. They’d beaten Chucky-Doak earlier in the season, but the Black Knights won their sectional match for a state tournament berth.
“We really had an opportunity slip through our hands this year,” Wynn said of his boys’ team.
Next season could be their year.
Wynn brings back his entire starting lineup, but must replace senior Ryan Wallace, a team leader.
“Ryan bowled for me one year,” Wynn said. “He really improved a lot and took on a leadership role. He took the opportunity and ran with it. He really helped our team this year.”