By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor
MOBILE – After a year away from the top of the mountain, the Spain Park Jaguars are the Class 7A state champions of boys bowling once again after defeating the Thompson Warriors 4-2 in an all-county showdown in the finals at Bowlero Mobile on Friday, Feb. 2.
The fouth state title in program history capped off a 20-2 season for the Jags, but the road was not easy on the second day of the AHSAA state championship.
Spain Park earned the No. 2 seed in the eight-team championship bracket thanks to their performance in individual play on Thursday, Feb. 1 and advanced to the championship after a pair of 4-3 wins over Hartselle and Sparkman.
Thompson took its own dramatic road to the championship game after the No. 4-seed Warriors survived a 4-3 thriller with Dothan in the quarterfinals and shocking undefeated Hewitt-Trussville in a 4-0 clean sweep in the semifinals.
After a pair of seven-game series for the Jags, their matchup with the Warriors would not require a seventh game to decide a winner, but it was still a hard-fought matchup between two of the best bowling teams in the state.