Affton High School’s newest sport has been added to the roster — the Bowling Club. The inaugural season was put together and launched by AHS administrative assistant Danielle Wingbermuehle and her husband, Jeff; now, nine students are wielding bowling balls and hitting the lanes.

“Once we got the ball rolling, we discovered there was a much bigger interest in bowling within the high school than we anticipated and were thrilled to see what could come of this idea,” Danielle said. “After the initial meetings, we had nine students ready to join the inaugural season.”

The club was inspired by the couple’s daughter, Audrey, who bowls. They knew that being able to bowl within her school district could prove beneficial for her. For a few years, Danielle and Jeff considered bringing a bowling club to Affton; Jeff, who coaches the team, has bowled since he was young and attended college on a bowling scholarship.

The team is currently composed of students from each grade level, and they are split into two — Team Gold and Team Purple — to account for the different skill levels of the students. Team Gold is a recreational team, while Team Purple is the more competitive of the two. 

“Our bowlers span from some bowling in leagues for years to some only having bowled occasionally with friends and family,” Danielle said. “We appreciate the multitude of skill levels, proving that anyone can be an incredible bowler.”

Practices are held at Sunset Lanes, 7777 Watson Road, each Wednesday. Danielle says that the bowling alley staff have been “such gracious hosts” and even hung the team’s bowling flag on the wall. 

On Sunday mornings, the team has Match Play, which starts in September and runs to March. Affton’s teams compete against 14 other teams in the MAHS South Division; as of The Call’s press time, Team Gold is in 15th place and Team Purple is in sixth place.

In addition to competitions, these young bowlers have SMART accounts opened for them when they apply for their United States Bowling Congress membership. There, they can collect winnings from tournaments to be used as scholarship money once they’ve made college plans.

At the end of the day, Danielle and Jeff are excited to see the young team up and running; Danielle says she cannot wait to welcome a new batch of eighth graders next school year, including her daughter, Audrey.

“We are beyond proud to see this dream become reality and feel blessed to be able to volunteer our time for the bowlers,” Danielle said. “Their families have been so patient as we learn all the ins and outs of high school bowling, and we are grateful for their encouragement and dedication to the team’s success.”