Berkley High School Senior Bowls in State Tournament

Danny Despard has officially added to his memory bank of high school sports moments.

The senior experienced firsthand what it is like to compete at the state level.

Despard was the lone Berkley representative who made it all the way to the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 2 boys bowling individual finals Saturday at Century Lanes in Waterford.

Despard finished 52nd in the field of 60 competitors with a six-game total score of 1,047.

“He averaged a 175 over his six games," Berkley coach Rob Arney said. "He didn’t bowl badly. He couldn’t make a 10 pin, and he had a couple of unlucky breaks. That’s what happens.”

All 60 bowlers competed in a six-game qualifying block. The top 16 from the opening round advanced to the afternoon session of match play finals. Match play was based on two-game sets of total pinfall.

Zach Fylling of Bay City's John Glenn High School won the Division 2 title by defeating Al Tomassoni of Iron Mountain 511-391.

Adam Streeter of Flint Kearsley was the leader in the morning qualifying block with a six-game total of 1,345. Streeter was eliminated in the semifinals by Fylling.

“The thing is, the bowlers who come on at the day of states are the best of the best, if you will,” Arney said.

Despard opened his day shooting his lowest game of the day – a 159. His game was highlighted by a 196.

“He looked like he had a nice line in practice, then he didn’t throw a whole lot of strikes the first couple of games,” Arney said. “He had a couple of opens in each game and just threw a lot of good balls. He had some unlucky breaks. That’s how it goes.”

This was the first time Despard had competed at the state level in any of his sports teams. He is also a member of the Berkley golf team.

Despard was the first member of the boys team to represent Berkley in the individual finals since 2009.

Attempts to reach Despard were unsuccessful.