Vikings Roll to Regional Championship, All Six Place in Top Eight

We cover Decorah because we love it. Show your love back — donate today. DECORAH — It was a celebratory day yesterday for the Decorah boys bowling team as they rolled their way to a first-place team finish in the regional meet hosted at King Pin Entertainment. But it didn't start as well as they would have hoped. After the first few Baker rounds, the team found itself ranked in the middle of the eight-team pack. The critical point: Only the top two teams advance to state, and in their first two games, the boys rolled a 131 and a 170. Let's call those first two games warmups. The team shook off its icy start and by the sixth game rolled a 236. By the 12th game, it posted a fiery meet-high 277. By the end of 15 games, Decorah secured a first-place finish with 3,077 pins. Second-place Western Dubuque tallied 2,981. Other teams in attendance were Cedar Rapids Washington, Independence, Marion, Mason City, Waverly-Shell Rock and Xavier. On the individual side, things continued to heat up for the Vikings, who had all six bowlers place in the top eight. Senior Tyler Novak (688) placed second overall; senior Cain Monreal-Rice (666) placed third; senior Jace Buddenberg (628) placed fourth; senior Chase Vick (624) placed fifth; senior Alex Maki (621) placed seventh; and junior Gavin Luzum (606) placed eighth. The two non-Decorah place winners were freshman Samuel Shaffer of Marion (689), who finished first overall, and sophomore Devon Rubner of Western Dubuque (623), who finished seventh. The team will be back in action at the state tournament, to be held at Cadillac Lanes in Waterloo from Feb. 23–25. Get the inside scoop! Subscribe to the free DecorahNews.com newsletter and receive local news, expert analysis, and stories that matter most—straight to your inbox.