With only one loss between them all season, the Waterloo and Columbia girls bowling teams both looked to be on their way to fantastic finishes.

That was not quite the case on Saturday, as both squads ran into some strong metro-east teams in the Alton Sectional, including O’Fallon, Collinsville and Alton.

Waterloo placed eighth out of 12 teams, and Columbia placed tenth. Only the top four teams advanced to state.

“The girls did well at sectionals, but were not able to overcome the other teams that were stronger,” Waterloo head coach Matt Beck said.

The top bowler for Waterloo was Gabbie Hoge, who averaged a 190 for the day. That was good for 15th overall out of 109 bowlers.

Beck said that although the girls fell short of advancing to state, it was still an amazing season.

“The girls finished undefeated at 16-0.  This is the first time any Waterloo varsity bowling team has been undefeated in the MVC, and it is the first time the girls varsity bowling team has taken first place in the MVC,” he said.

Beck said his team had a deep rotation, with each girl coming through in high pressure situations.

“The girls were always physically and mentally prepared, making sure their fundamentals were sound and they helped support each other when bad shots were made,” he said. “I am very proud of this team and they are proud of their accomplishments, too.”

In addition to Hoge, team members were Clare Jouglard, Payge Hunter, Kristen Goersch, Megan Vogt and Sam Matzig.

Columbia coach Bruce Jeffery was equally proud of his bunch.

The Columbia girls had moved as high as third place at sectionals about midway through the day, but dropped to tenth at the end.

Miranda Rodenhofer shot games of 195, 224, 226 and 212, finishing 16th place overall.

Peyton Schmidt had a game of 239 and finished 20th overall.

“I would like to thank all of the girls for a great year and hope to see them back next year. As for our seniors, Miranda, Rachel, and Amanda, I enjoyed having them being part of the team, and wish them good luck and great success on starting the next leg of their journey and adventure after high school,” Jeffery said.