Hempfield bowlers dominate WCCA tournament; Valley’s Diehm wins boys title

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Saturday, January 18, 2025 | 4:49 PM


For the second year in a row, the Hempfield bowling team took three of the four championships handed out at the Westmoreland County Coaches Association championships Saturday at Hillview Lanes in Greensburg.

Junior Ashley Bensur rolled a three-game score of 606 to secure the girls individual title after finishing fourth in last year’s competition.

“This is our home here at Hillview, so I feel like we were all comfortable and calm,” Bensur said.

“Personally, I get a little iffy, but I pulled through.”

Bensur opened her morning by bowling the high game with a 234. She fell off in her second game with a 158 but recovered nicely with a 214 to end her day.

Kiski Area standout senior Veronica Flanagan came in second with a score of 582 after placing third in last year’s event.

The Hempfield girls team also won gold, bowling a cumulative score of 2,624 and besting second-place Latrobe (2,196) by 428 pins.

Bensur’s teammate, fellow junior Ameila Droste, won the girls title last year but came in third this year with a score of 577.

“Amelia and I have known each other since we were kids,” Bensur said. “I’m so proud of her, and I think she’s proud of me, too. We’ve just been able to grow so close, and I’m really proud of our friendship.”

Kiski Area came in third with a score of 2,101.

Winning the boys individual championship was Valley junior Baxter Diehm. He rolled a 727 series and had the high game with a 266.

It felt like redemption for Diehm, who finished second last year by 13 pins.

“It feels great,” Diehm said. “After finishing second last year, winning it this year feels really nice.”

Diehm said he was having trouble during the practice and warmup before the event but made the necessary adjustments to come out on top.

“I found the right ball to throw, I found the right line and I kept striking and making spares,” he said.

For the season, Diehm is averaging 215 pins and eclipsed that mark in each of his three games. He bowled a 216 in the first game, 266 in the second and finished with a 245. His average on the day: 242.

Greensburg Salem senior Dylan Megliorino placed second with a score of 683, and senior teammate Sam DeMine placed third.

DeMine tied with Franklin Regional sophomore Brayden Fallon, and the results had to go to the first tiebreaker: whoever had the highest game would be third.

Both bowlers were tied in that category with a score of 241, so the next-highest game score would come out on top, and DeMine’s 214 bested Fallon’s 211.

Speaking of narrow margins, the Hempfield boys team had to fend off Greensburg Salem for the title.

After the boys had finished, one of the team members could be overheard thinking the boys finished second by just 10 pins.

However, when the scores were all tallied, the Spartans again won gold with a score of 3,002. Even with that impressive total, they still beat the Golden Lions by only 34 pins.

For Spartans coach Robin Ross, the size of the winning margin didn’t matter.

“Even by one or two pins, it’s still a victory,” Ross said. “We tried to bowl our best and keep close to the other teams. That’s all we can really do.”

Added Bensur: “It means a lot to us at Hempfield. We try our hardest, and we always seem to pull through like we did today. I’m really proud of both our teams.”

Latrobe came in third, bowling a 2,822.

Bensur and Diehm will turn their attention to bigger goals now.

“Hopefully, I can win sections, win WPIALs and make states,” Diehm said.

Bensur added: “Individually, I hope to make states. As a team, we’re definitely making it to states this year.”

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