Many athletes aspire to play college sports. One of many reasons is to help get them financially get through school. But one local team found a way to help raise money for their post-high school education while still in high school.

The Gibault High School bowling team held its Gibault Bowl-A-Thon last Thursday to help fundraise for their upcoming Gibault Scholarship Fund Tournament.

Thursday at West Park Bowl, the Hawks bowled to raise money for the scholarship tournament by rasing money through pledges that could make a flat donation or pledge a dollar amount per pin they knocked down that day.

One bowler, John Harbaugh, event got a local organization– The Knights of Columbus– to sponsor him for 25 cents per pin.

“They have taken to it very well,” Gibault Bowling Coach Tom Fanara said.

The money raised in Thursday’s Bowl-A-Thon match  goes toward the Gibault Scholarship Bowling Fund tournament to be held on Feb. 12, 13 and 14. The tournament is exclusively for Gibault bolwers, both JV and varsity, who helped fundraise in the Bowl-A-Thon.

The Bowl-A-Thon money goes into the Gibault Scholar- ship Fund held by the school in which the money will be split evenly between both the boys and girls division for the tournament. Fanara says he hopes to pay the top two or three places in each division, as well as the high game not cashed for the series total. Bowlers will bowl four games in the tournament, drop- ping the lowest game to result in a three game total for the tournament standings.

“The reason why we chose this format to pay for the high game out of the money, is that every bowler has a chance up until the very last game to win a scholarship award,” Fanara explained.

The bowlers are then allowed to bowl in the tournament up to two times among the three-day tournament.

“So if they bowl one time and they are not satisfied with the score, they can come back the next day and bowl to see if they can better that score,” Fanara said at the Bowl-A-Thon.

In order for the bowlers to keep their amateur status and not play for money, the school has arranged that it will pay the bowlers declared college or trade school directly after graduation out of the Fund.

By Thursday, the students had turned in just under $800 in pledges, with more to come. The Hawks also won the Bowl-A-Thon match against Althoff with the boys coming out on top, 28- 12, and the girls winning, 25-15. Caleb Weiler bowled a team high series of 714 (206, 264, 244), while Morgan Weber bowled her team’s high series of 462 (139, 148, 175).

If you would like to make a donation or pledge to The Gibault Scholarship Fund contact bowling coach Tom Fanara at 314-517-7759 or by email at tomfanara@cbgundaker.com.

To view and purchase photos from the bowling season, click here.