Experienced duo makes difference for Penn Hills bowling team

By: Josh Rizzo
Sunday, February 5, 2023 | 11:01 AM

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Logan Kennedy and Nick Hepler didn’t have to wait to form a bond until they were on the Penn Hills bowling team. The duo had already met through club competitions a few years before. Now, the pair are starting to help the Indians form the foundation of a strong boys team.

Hepler, a sophomore, has an average of 177.07 and Kennedy, a freshman, isn’t far behind at 171.48.

Having competition is something Hepler feels has helped him improve.

“It motivates me to want to bowl better so he doesn’t overtake me and take my spot,” Hepler said.

While Penn Hills’ team is 2-7 in Section 1, the Indians are happy to have some depth. Kennedy is part of a roster influx for the Indians, who only had three bowlers on the team last season. This year, Penn Hills has six.

“From last year to this year, there’s been a big improvement,” Hepler said. “It’s better to have a full team instead of a couple guys. It’s more fun. I’ve known Logan for a while now. I met him four or five years ago. It’s easy to make a bond because we already have one.”

Adding Kennedy was important because of his experience. Kennedy started bowling when he was 3 years old and plays year-round. He remembers meeting Hepler as part of the Nesbit’s Lane Junior League in 2016-17.

“That league is more of a friendly bowling type thing,” Kennedy said. “We started to talk more as the years went on. We’ve always been friends.”

Angela Hepler, who is Nick’s mom and Penn Hills’ coach, sees the competition between the pair.

“Those two are characters,” Angela said. “They push each other. They help each other and they work well together. They are the only two that know how to bowl on the boys team. They are good role models to the other bowlers and help them as well. They have done well this year, and I look for them to advance to the championship round as well.”

Nick Hepler said he has identified a few areas where he would like to work on in order to keep raising his average.

“I want to stay down at the foul line,” Hepler said. “I keep popping up out of my stance and that makes me inconsistent.”

Both Kennedy and Hepler are hoping to do well at the WPIBL championships, which will be held Feb. 22. They each have aspirations of qualifying for regionals or making a trip to the state championships.

For Kennedy, he is worried about making sure everything is fine-tuned when playoff season rolls around.

“Consistency and where I should play on the lanes with the oil patterns,” said Kennedy on what he is working on. I struggle with inconsistency. I’m practicing and working on specific techniques I haven’t mastered yet.”

Tags: Penn Hills