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Great Bend's Paige Wagner wins national bowling title
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Great Bend Panther Paige Wagner signs a scholarship offer from Wichita State with her mother Cheri Wagner and her father Tim Wagner.

CBS Sports Network (260 Cox)

6 p.m. Tuesday


BY JIM MISUNAS

jmisunas@gbtribune.com

After back-to-back open frames, Paige Wagner's 42-pin lead had vanished at Saturday's Intercollegiate Singles Bowling Championship at Las Vegas, Nev. Wagner had a 7/10 split and a routine 4/7 miss in the eighth and ninth frames.

Great Bend's Wagner converted a critical 10th-frame spare and 9 pins to capture the 2023 ISC women's bowling championship. Wichita State's Wagner edged Anna Maxwell of Maryville University, St. Louis, Mo. 211-203 for the 2023 national championship. 

"I wasn't too nervous," Wagner said. "That first shot in the 10th frame, I took my time and took an extra breath. I focused on my target."

Wagner left the 4 pin and converted it with her "spare ball" which maintains a straight path.

"I told myself to make this spare," she said. 

Wagner's next shot knocked down 9 more pins to secure the title.

Wagner converted an impressive 2/4/10 split to help outlast Lara Kurt of Savannah College, Ga. 235-226 in a tense semifinal at the USBC Bowling Plaza. Kurt missed an opportunity to eliminate Wagner when she missed the 7 pin on a spare.

The daughter of Cheri and Tim Wagner of Great Bend was greeted by happy teammates and Wichita State coach Holly Harris.

"It was the most exciting moment of my life," Wagner said. "Coach Holly (Harris) was crying happy tears. I started crying. We put my parents on facetime. It was a big 'group hug.' "

Wagner's championship will be aired at 6 p.m. Tuesday on the CBS Sports Network.

She overcame a hip injury during high school that sidelined her for 51/2-months.

"I took my time and performed all the home exercises," she said. "It was a big obstacle to overcome."

Watching Tuesday's replay on national television will be a unique experience.

"Honestly, it hasn't hit me what I've done,' she said. "I'm blown away by it. It shows I can compete at the college level. I focus on having fun, take deep breaths and take one shot at a time.

The No. 8 seeded Wagner won a pair of 3-game matches 709-534 against Alexis Ingersoll of Maryland-Eastern Shore and 668-603 over Carly Snyder of Davenport University, Mich. to reach the semifinals. 

The ISC championship feature the nation's top 24 female bowlers. Wagner averaged 208 during qualifying to earn the No. 8 seed.

Wagner was a 5A state runner-up at Great Bend who set the school record with a 289 game at the 5A state tournament. She was a two-time 5A regional champion and 3-time All-WAC bowler.