ROCKFORD — Ulyssa Garcia was down, but she wasn’t out.
The Richards senior overcame an ankle injury on the first day and rallied to finish sixth in the IHSA girls bowling state tournament Feb. 21 at Cherry Bowl.
Entering the tournament as the defending individual state champion, Garcia opened Feb. 20 with games of 228, 208, and 202 as she aimed to help the Bulldogs advance to the second day and put herself in position to win another title.
Instead, she had a mishap in the third game.
“I had a tragic fall,” Garcia said. “On an approach, I tripped and fell. I threw a gutter ball, and that’s never happened.”
Garcia rallied to make a spare and finished the morning with a 638 total. But with her left ankle hurting, she came out in the afternoon and had subpar games of 157 and 169.
“After winning it last year, I wanted to do it again,” Garcia said. “But in the fourth and fifth games, my ankle was hurting, and mentally and physically challenging. I was focused on the pain, more than bowling.”
But, making her fourth straight state-finals appearance, the veteran regrouped and fired her best game of the tourney, a 279 to finish out the first day. Although the Bulldogs (5,364) missed the top-12 team cut and finished 14th, that moved her from 43rd to 20th after the first day, and she advanced as an individual.
“After the first day, I wasn’t focused on winning,” Garcia said. “I just wanted to grind it out.”
She did, moving up to the top 10 with a 631 morning series, capped by a 235. She had a 233, 182 and 232 in the afternoon, with a double and an eight in her final frame, and finished 249 pins behind the indivodual champ, Sterling junior Sarah Doughty (2,770).
“Ulyssa came in hoping to go back-to-back, but she had a bad fall,” Richards coach Ed Fink said. “But I’m more proud that she came back and medaled. We wrapped her ankle like a football player, and she came back.”
This is Fink’s final season as head coach for the Bulldogs. He goes out with Garcia, who became the first boys or girls bowling multiple state medalist at Richards.
“She’s the best bowler I’ve ever coached,” Fink said. “We had all seniors in our starting lineup, and we’ve had three team appearances in a row. Ulyssa got two individual medals, and I couldn’t ask for anything more. I had great memories with them, and it couldn’t be a more perfect time.”
Garcia will continue her bowling career at Mount Mercy in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
“I’ve been looking since I was a freshman,” Garcia said. “It just stuck out in every category since I want to major in biology and premed.
“I never realized that I had the potential to do what I did until I did it. What will stand out most for me is this weekend. I didn’t win, but I had fun with my teammates and everything.”
Also at state were Morton (15th, 5,313), Stagg (19th, 5,161), and Evergreen Park (23rd, 4,861). Sophomore Gabrielle Janski from Stagg advanced to the second day and placed 46th with a 2,301 total. Jaylen Blancarte, a junior from Morton, placed third with an 848 in the 6-player wheelchair division.