McFeaters

Bowling a 300 game is one of the greatest accomplishments a bowler can earn, but most go their entire lives without bowling a perfect game.

Fontaine McFeaters, a 15-year-old girl from Grove City who’s been bowling since she was 9-years-old, won’t have to worry about being one of those bowlers who never taste perfection.

McFeaters bowled a perfect game April 22 at the Grove City Bowl-O-Drome, and will never forget how nerve-racking the final frames were.

“It was pretty intense,” McFeaters said. “I was shaking, I was scared. I just didn’t want to mess up.”

Bowling a 300 that day wasn’t a fluke by any means, according to McFeaters’ mother Judy Callahan.

“She was hot that night,” Callahan said. “As soon as she walked in that door she rolled off about five 200 games. She was on a roll.”

The highest McFeaters bowled before that night was a 265, getting eight strikes in a row. When she finally saw the last pins fall, she felt extremely relieved and excited.

“It was awesome,” McFeaters said. “I was just so happy that it actually happened. I never thought I’d get it, especially not so young.”

McFeaters has been bowling competitively since the 6th grade, and has had a very successful career up to this point, Callahan said.

Since she started bowling competitively in 2008, McFeaters has placed in more than 15 events, earning $2,227 in scholarships.

She’s currently enjoying her best year so far, earning more than $400 in the 2011 Pennsylvania State United States Bowling Congress Championships.

She took first place in both the Class B singles, and Class B All Events categories, and took third place in the Class A Doubles.

With all of the accomplishments McFeaters has earned, she found it hard to say which one she was the most proud of.

“Bowling states this year was pretty good,” she said. “I’d say that’s right up there with the 300.”

McFeaters plans to continue bowling competitively, hopefully carrying her career into college.

Collegiate women bowlers bowl an average of an 86 to a 209, according to www.collegebowling.com.

With an average of 156, McFeaters is already higher than 30 of the top 275 women bowlers, according to the website.

McFeaters hasn’t worked with a coach, and Callahan described her as a self-helper.

“She practices a lot,” Callahan said. “There’s times where we’ll go up to the bowling alley with her friend, and they’ll rip off 15 games in one night.”

Callahan also said that when McFeaters gets into the thick of the bowling season, she’ll be bowling five days a week at times.