Three bowlers from the boys’ team placed fourth or better in the MHSAA individual regional, qualifying them for the Division 2 individual state final.

Junior Bryce McKerchie finished as the regional runner-up, while seniors Chad Stephen and Phil Hawes placed third and fourth, respectively.

McKerchie started the day off slowly, shooting only a 148 in the first game.

He picked up the pace in the rest of the games, however, bowling in the 200s for the rest of the day. His final score was a 1,273 — just two pins behind first.

Lansing Waverly’s Nick Behrens, a junior, won the regional with a pinfall of 1,275.

Stephen came out of the gates with a strong performance, bowling a 225. He stumbled in the second game, which brought him down after a pinfall of 170. He was unable to catch up to his teammate and ended just four pins out of second and six out of first.

Stephen is no stranger to the finals, having beaten Charlotte’s Collin Fox for the state title in 2015.

Hawes started the day with a 209 and was able to bowl consistently with scores hovering around the 200 mark and one big game of 246.

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There was a comparatively wider gap between him and Stephen — a difference of 27 pins — as he finished with 1,242.

Going into the last game, there were five bowlers from Kearsley set to qualify: McKerchie, Stephen, Hawes, junior Zach Timm, and senior Chris Dye. Timm and Dye came up a few pins short in the final game, however.

The three Hornets will compete in the individual state final Saturday, March 5, one day after defending the team’s state title. The team and individual final is at Super Bowl in Canton.