Mavericks co-league champions, as Vasquez heads to state

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks (12-3) are the co-Big Nine champions alongside Eastmont in bowling this season. In addition to a league title, Abby Vasquez is heading to the state competition.  

“It's exciting,” Vasquez said. “As of right now, it's underwhelming almost, because it hasn't set in yet. I'm sure the second I walk into the building, I'm just going to come crashing down.” 

The Mavericks hosted the district competition Friday at Lake Bowl. Their competitors were Eastmont, Eisenhower, Wenatchee, West Valley, Sunnyside and Davis. The Mavericks scored 3,330 as a team, which earned them a third-place finish. Eastmont took first, Eisenhower placed second and Wenatchee took fourth. All remaining schools did not place.  

“After two games, they were all bowling in the 160 average range, which every one of them had a chance to qualify as an individual if we didn't make it as a team,” Head Coach Dan Stevenson said. 

Despite not qualifying for state as a team, Stevenson was proud of how his players competed, he said. 

“Team-wise, we just kind of slipped away on our spare shooting. It wasn't as good as we hoped. We did have a good second game. It gave us a little spark of life, but overall, I really appreciate the way they battled it out and tried hard,” he said.  

Vasquez scored 517 by the end of the competition, which placed her individually in the top 10. Since Eastmont qualified as a team, she was bumped up to second overall as an individual bowler, Stevenson said.  

For Vasquez, the day did not start how she wanted. The first game felt like typical practice, she said. However, in the second game she found herself in a slump and had to refocus.  

“If I want a shot at helping my team to make state and getting myself to state, I have to come out of this slump, and I have to start coming back and helping the team out,” she said.  

Her approach to re-center herself is all mental, she said. When she gets frustrated with how she is playing, instead of letting consume her, she uses it as motivation to snap out of a slump. She learned this from Stevenson, she said.  

“I was talking to my coach about it and he said that it's kind of because I'm getting into this mental state where I want to start doing better and get better at trying to do what I'm doing, because I'm realizing I'm not doing so good, and so I just want to focus in and try to get better,” Vasquez said.  

Stevenson was almost tempted to pull Vasquez out after the first game, he said. Instead, he decided to keep her in, not only because he wanted her to learn how to navigate a tough moment, but because he knew what she was capable of. 

In the second game, she found her rhythm after scoring three spares in a row and logging three strikes. Vasquez said her mental focus also comes from her experience playing other organized sports in the past, like softball.  

The state competition for 4A bowling is Feb. 4-5 at Bowlero in Tukwila. As she prepares for it, Vasquez said she is trying to remain centered and not become overwhelmed by the moment.  

“There's so many people around you, there's so many noises and you kind of have to focus on yourself and just the small lane that you're looking at, because you can't get sidetracked with other people. If you do, then you won't be able to focus on yourself anymore,” she said.  

    The Mavs team sits together in a circle at Lake Bowl prior to starting their competition at a previous meet this season. Head Coach Dan Stevenson said this year’s team has a very strong bond which has helped with their success.