The junior led the team to MEAC semis
PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland — Junior Brooke Roberts (Port Orange, Florida) put a bit of an exclamation point on a bittersweet season on the lanes when she was named National Tenpin Coaches Association Second-Team All-American. It was her first All-American honor.
Roberts wins the first NTCA All-American honor of her career
Roberts also made First-Team All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference this season and was named to the MEAC All-Tournament team. She was a standout among competitors despite what she considered to be a sub-par performance personally.
“She’ll tell you that she didn’t have a good event,” Hawks coach Roger Petrin said. “She is not necessarily wrong either. It wasn’t her best performance, but she was still one of the best performers of the weekend.”
When a talented athlete has such a high ceiling it’s tough to remember that a bad day is still really good. The All-American nod capped off a season where she finished in the Top 15 in the country in 11 key statistical categories.
Roberts also averaged 215.3 in traditional play during the MEAC Championships and 209.4 in Baker play. But afterward, it was hard for her not to focus on the 179 in the final match against Delaware State.
“How differently would she feel if that had been her first match of the weekend rather than the last?” Petrin said. “It’s not just about one event. She had a great year. Ultimately, from the start to the end of the year she has maybe grown more than any other person on the team. It’s not just about bowling, but growth as a person.”
After building some momentum by winning the 2021 Junior Gold Under-20 Championship over the summer, she ranked in the NTCA Top 15: Overall Scoring Average with 208.66 (13), Traditional Scoring Average with 212.18 (7), Overall Strike Percentage with 53.8% (13), Traditional Strike Percentage with 55.7% (6), Overall First Ball “9+” Percentage with 78.6% (11), Traditional First Ball “9+” Percentage with 80.7% (3), Overall First-Ball Average with 9.147 (11), Traditional First-Ball Average with 9.207 (3), Anchor Bowler 10th Frame Scoring Average with 21.117 (7), Anchor Bowler Fill Percentage with 88.7% (13) and Anchor Bowler 10th Frame Double Percentage with 30.5% (11).
In addition to her national rankings, the Pre-Vet major also led The Shore tied for the team lead in Overall Fill Percentage (86.5%) with teammate Paulin Torres (Ponce, Puerto Rico).
She came into camp in August already leading the way on the lanes, but still found a way to evolve during the year. Early on, Petrin found that she had put herself in a box that she didn’t think she could escape.
“She would say ‘I’m just this or I’m just that’ but I wanted her to know she is more than that. You can be more than what you think you are,” Petrin said. “You can be a good communicator with your team. You can be a good leader and you can provide energy to your teammates and she does that now. I think she recognizes that growth and she appreciates it.”
It was a gradual growth and her level of trust in her teammates, her coach, and herself gave her a different level of confidence and awareness of what she can become in the game after her college career.
“I think she has always known that is there as an option, but I think now she is starting to believe what is there,” Petrin said.
For more information on Eastern Shore Athletics visit http://www.easternshorehawks.com/.