New seasons ramping up for BCAW middle school and high school programs

Posted September 8, 2023

Bowlers, coaches, coordinators and others across Wisconsin are gearing up for a new BCAW youth bowling season that’s just getting rolling.

The BCAW High School Bowling Club (HSBC) and Middle School Bowling Club (MSBC) will kick off their 2023-24 seasons with district-level competition this fall. Teams will compete in Baker-style matches each week. Bowlers’ individual statistics will be tracked throughout the season, and the top bowlers using fill percentage will advance to state. Top teams and singles players will advance to the HSBC and MSBC state tournaments next spring.

High School program sees a few state tournament changes

The BCAW High School Bowling Club will begin the 2023-24 season with local competition in 14 districts. District competition will run from Nov. 1, 2023 through February 11, 2024. The 2024 HSBC State tournament is scheduled March 1-3 at The Ashwaubenon Bowling Alley in Green Bay.

The HSBC Committee voted to approve a few changes related to the state tournament. They are:

If a district has two or fewer teams in one division, advancement to the state tournament will not be automatic. The won-loss record of the highest team will be compared to the won-loss record of the highest first alternate team in the other division. If the alternate team has a better won-loss record, it will advance to state regardless of division. If those two teams have the same won-loss record, head-to-head results from the regular season will be compared and the team with a better head-to-head record advances to state. If head-to-head results are tied or there was no head-to-head competition between the teams, then the team from the division with two or fewer teams will advance.
In singles competition, bowlers will now move pairs after each game during both the three-game qualifying round and the three-game semifinals. Previously, bowlers stayed on the same pair of lanes for all games.
If there’s a tie in singles for first through fourth place stepladder positioning, a one-game roll-off will determine the higher-seeded player. Previously, the bowler with the highest final qualifying game earned the higher seed.
No electronic devices (i.e. wireless earbuds, cell phones, Smartwatches) or artificial noisemakers will be permitted in the playing area once competition has begun.

In addition, the HSBC Committee approved a proposal to allow up to four 6^th through 8^th graders to compete as junior varsity if that district has no MSBC program.

Middle School competition may start earlier

The BCAW Middle School Bowling Club will begin the 2023-24 season with local competition in 10 districts. District competition will run from Oct. 1, 2023 through April 14, 2024. The 2024 MSBC State tournament is scheduled for May 4 at Dale’s Weston Lanes in Weston.

The district competition window will move up one month to Oct. 1 after the MSBC Committee voted to approve the change. Teams may still begin practice up to one month before their district matches begin.