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NILES — What a debut season it has been for the Niles boys varsity bowling team.

After finishing tied for first place with Allegan at 7-1 during the regular season, the Vikings defeated Sturgis in the conference tournament championship match, which Niles hosted at Joey Armadillo’s Monday.

By tying for first place in dual matches and winning the conference tournament, Niles is the overall Wolverine Conference champion. Allegan finishes second overall, with Sturgis placing third, Plainwell fourth and defending conference champion Three Rivers fifth.

Otsego and Vicksburg tied for sixth, while Edwardsburg, also a newcomer to the league in bowling, finished eighth and Paw Paw ninth.

Niles had a team average of 857.13 in eight conference matches and a Baker average of 170.31.

The Vikings dropped their Wolverine Conference debut to Sturgis 15.5 to 15.0 before winning seven straight matches.

Nathan Ryman led Niles with an average of 184.87 as he competed in 15 games. Trenton Phillips had an average of 183.19 in 16 games, Conner Weston an average of 173.00 in 15 games and Preston Sharpe 172.06 in 16 games.

“Was fun seeing some different teams and playing the matches during the week was a lot different from our prior conference,” said Niles Coach Jim Jaynes. “Winning it is great. Winning is always great. What it boils down to now is, what are we going to accomplish at regionals?”

The Eddies went 1-7 in the first year of bowling with a team average of 695.5 and a Baker average of 133.25.

Colin West led Edwardsburg with an average of 159.75 in 16 games. Brayden Hardy averaged 139.67 in 12 games, Harry Waldon an average of 136.81 in 16 games, Brandon Hosang an average of 132.64 in 11 games and Gabe Campbell an average of 125.85 in 13 games.

For the third straight year, Allegan captured the Wolverine Conference girls championship.

The Tigers were second in the regular with a 7-1 mark, finishing behind undefeated Three Rivers, which was 8-0.

Combining the regular season and tournament results, Allegan wins the outright championship, while Three Rivers is second, Sturgis third, Otsego fourth and Niles fifth. Like the Vikings, Edwardsburg, which finished sixth, made its conference debut in bowling in 2021-22.

Niles went 5-3 during the regular season. The Vikings had a team average of 570.56 in league matches and a Baker average of 113.31. Niles ended the regular season with four straight wins.

Chevelle Jaynes led the Vikings with an average of 173.93 in 15 games. Angel Walsh averaged 130.30 in 10 games, Kaelynn Smith 122.40 in 15 games and Kaitlyn Hopper 112.50 in eight games.

The Eddies were 3-5 during the regular season with a team average of 534.5 and a Baker average of 115.81.

Kayla Tweedy had an average of 127.00 in 15 games, Brianna Longbrake an average of 110.14 in 14 games and Macy Andress an average of 102.00 in 10 games.

Complete results from Monday’s conference tournament are currently unavailable. A complete wrap up of the tournament will appear in Saturday’s print edition of the Niles Daily Star and Edwardsburg Argus.