PORT ST. LUCIE — Lincoln Park Academy will have full buses on its way to Central Florida next week.
Both of the Greyhounds' high school bowling teams qualified for the FHSAA state championships after their performances in Tuesday's District 12 meet. LPA's boys team claimed the district title, while its girls team earned district runner-up honors at St. Lucie Lanes.
"I think it was our turn. The kids have worked hard," LPA head coach Rosana Gonzalez said. "Some of the kids have been with us since middle school. ... It was well deserved, and we are all super proud of them and what they accomplished. It's a win-win."
The FHSAA state championships will take place Oct. 27-29 at Boardwalk Bowl Entertainment Center in Orlando. Lincoln Park Academy will be joined in Central Florida by the South Fork boys team, which finished as district runner-up, and the Martin County girls team, which avenged an earlier loss to the Greyhounds and beat them twice to claim the district title.
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The Tigers' victory comes just a year after they knocked down the most pins collectively but failed to qualify for state. They finished the 2026 regular season undefeated and are now state-bound.
"I'm just super excited for them. They worked hard this year," Martin County head coach James Francke said. "Last year was a little devastating. But to see them come through this year and have this joy, this celebration, it's pretty exciting."
Advancing out of the loser's bracket, the Tigers got past Indian River Charter in four games to seal a berth to the state championships. They then beat LPA twice to capture the title, first defeating the Greyhounds in three games before clinching the championship in four games.
The accomplishment was especially meaningful for Siena Ceo. The Martin County senior and reigning TCPalm Girls Bowler of the Year had previously qualified for state as an individual but never as part of a team until Tuesday.
"It's amazing. I've been bowling on this team for four years. Every year, we've gotten one step closer. But my senior year, we got there," Ceo said. "It was just so unbelievable that I started crying. In the beginning, I felt really down because we were in the loser's bracket. But we climbed our way up, the morale came up as well, and we got better."
Despite falling to the Tigers in team competition, LPA did have a pair of girls finish atop the leaderboard in individual competition: freshmen Ashlyn Belisle and Jocelyn Young.
Belisle claimed the district crown with 566 pins, while Young was just eight pins behind with 558 to finish second.
Both bowlers started with the LPA program as sixth graders. Years later, they earned their biggest achievement to date.
"The fact that they are together, have been practicing together ever since they started and won together, it just tells you that we are a family," Gonzalez said.
Port St. Lucie's Kayden McConnell (551) and South Fork's Rachel Kramer (544) qualified individually after placing fourth and fifth, respectively. Ceo (549) finished third.
On the boys side, Lincoln Park won the district title out of the winner's bracket. In the finals, the Greyhounds dropped the first game to South Fork before sweeping the next three to secure the championship.
"We've been waiting for this moment forever, and I'm so glad we got to do it this year," LPA junior Blake Yetter said.
Lincoln Park used eight different bowlers throughout the day, as only Yetter and senior Malachi Henderson competed in each of its three victories. Gonzalez believes teamwork and selflessness were essential components of the team's success.
"We asked them if they would choose their own personal achievement over the team, and they all said, 'No, we roll for the team,'" Gonzalez said. "The most important thing is that Lincoln Park goes to states. ... The most important thing is not me, it's the team."
Yetter was the Greyhounds' top performer, finishing second individually with 726 pins. Somerset College Prep's Dylan Beck punched his ticket to the state championships by capturing the district title. The Spartans senior knocked down 778 pins. Indian River Charter freshman Caleb Crowe (692) also qualified after placing third.
District 12 Bowling results
Boys
Team scores
1. Lincoln Park Academy - 3,088, 2. Jensen Beach - 2,871, 3. South Fork - 2,794, 4. Somerset College Prep - 2,777, 5. Martin County - 2,609, 6. Fort Pierce Central - 2,553, 7. Sebastian River - 2,349, 8. Indian River Charter - 2,207, 9. Vero Beach - 1,966; 10. Port St. Lucie - 1,850; 11. Treasure Coast - 1,785, 12. St. Lucie West Centennial - 516
Individual Top 10
1. Dylan Beck, SCP, 778; 2. Blake Yetter, LPA, 726; 3. Caleb Crowe, IRC, 692; 4. Colton Takas, FPC, 683; 5. Collin Beck, SCP, 662; 6. Max Law, JB, 633; 7. Lucas Lloyd, JB, 603; 8. Anthony Barcia, SF, 601; 9. Russell Law, JB, 597; 10. Walker Myers, FPC, 585
Girls
Team scores
1. Lincoln Park Academy - 2,289, 2. Martin County - 2,267, 3. Indian River Charter - 1,950, 4. Port St. Lucie - 1,886, 5. Somerset College Prep - 1,882, 6. Fort Pierce Central - 1,834, 7. Vero Beach - 1,456, 8. Jensen Beach - 1,293, 9. St. Lucie West Centennial - 1,139; 10. Treasure Coast - 891; 11. South Fork - 864, 12. Sebastian River - 607
Individual Top 10
1. Ashlyn Belisle, LPA, 566; 2. Jocelyn Young, LPA, 558; 3. Kayden McConnell, PSL, 551; 4. Siena Ceo, MC, 549; 5. Rachel Kramer, SF, 544; 6. Dakota Young, LPA, 492; 7. Sara Gambali, MC, 483; 8. Raeana DeBona, MC, 474; 9. Jaylah Klaffer, SCP, 470; 10. Remira Harris, SCP, 448
Patrick Bernadeau is a sports reporter for Treasure Coast Newspapers. He can be reached at 772-985-9692, on X at @PatBernadeau or via email at pbernadeau@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Bowling: Martin County girls, LPA boys win district titles, earn state berths
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