Featuring a roster comprised almost entirely of freshmen and sophomores, the Norwalk girls bowling team showed improvement in Coach Scott McClelland’s first season at the helm. The Warriors finished with a 2-9 dual record against a challenging schedule, placed fifth in the Two Rivers Conference Tournament at Newton and took seventh in the State Qualifying Meet hosted by Ballard. The team’s season-best dual score was 1,989 total pins in a January 3 home dual against Newton.
Coach McClelland was very pleased with the team’s overall performance on the season, noting that the varsity lineup normally consisted of five freshmen and a sophomore. McClelland tells KNIA Sports that all 10 bowlers on the team improved their scores by 10 to 30 pins throughout the season. “It shows that we’re doing the right things,” he said. “From the first part of the season to (the end), everyone has improved. They listen well. Attitude has been great. They’ve welcomed me aboard, so it’s been very fun.”
The 2025-2026 Norwalk roster included six freshmen, three sophomores and one junior in Kayleigh Baldwin. Freshman Baylee Baldwin led the Warriors with a game average of 139.8, followed by freshman Juliana Johnson with a 129.7, sophomore Eva Smith 129.6 and freshman Molly Olson 125.2. Smith bowled the team’s highest individual game and series of the year with scores of 217 and 382, respectively. Baldwin rolled a two-game set of 349 and Johnson logged a 334.
McClelland says that he is excited about the future of the Norwalk girls bowling program. He says that this season was about making it fun for the kids, and next season the intensity will step up a notch. “We talk about the future,” he said. “The future’s not there if they don’t come back out, so that’s why my goal this year was to make it fun; to understand, ‘Hey, we have a coach that’s going to work with us and help us, and he’s going to prepare us.’ I want them to see that and then they come back and prepare for next year.”
McClelland adds that he has encouraged the team to be active during the offseason, taking part in available leagues and tournaments to stay sharp until practices resume in November.