The honors just keep rolling in for the Great Bend High School bowling teams.
After the Panthers won a Class 5A state championship, GBHS had two athletes selected by the Kansas Bowling Coaches Association as all-state players — Dakota Conaway and Miranda Hejny.
“As far as I know, (the Kansas State High School Activities Association) doesn’t have an all-state bowling team,” GBHS head coach Mike Perry said, “so this kind of is the official list for Kansas.
“We’ve had someone on the all-state teams all six years that Great Bend has had a team, so that’s very exciting.”
There will be a banquet on May 18 in Wichita to honor the athletes.
Perry was named 5A Coach of the Year.
“It’s awesome,” Perry said. “When you’re a coach, you don’t do what you do for these kind of awards, but it is a nice feeling when your peers acknowledge what you do.”
Conaway, the Panthers’ leading scorer and Western Athletic Conference MVP, finished with a score of 635 at the state tournament at Northrock Lanes in Wichita for 18th overall.
“It feels great to be an all-state player,” said Conaway, who earned an all-state selection for his third straight year. “It’s an honor to be selected as one of the best bowlers in Kansas.
“This became a goal for me after I made it last year. I wanted to make it three times, and go out as a senior like this.”
Danny Herrman led the Panthers at the state tournament with a 759, seizing an individual state title.
“I’m disappointed that Danny wasn’t on there,” Perry said. “I’ve talked with some of the guys in charge, and they said it was real close.
“The choices are made based on the whole season, and not just on how these players did at the state tournament.”
For Hejny, it is her second time as an all-state selection.
Hejny finished 20th overall at the state tournament with a score of 584 as the Lady Panthers finished sixth.
“I was excited because I know that it’s not a guaranteed thing,” Hejny said. “I knew it wasn’t because I didn’t have the season that I wanted to have. I’ve been back to practice, and it makes me what to get better so I can come back next year.”

CLASS 5A ALL-KANSAS BOWLING TEAM

BOYS
Name                         High School
Dakota Conaway         Great Bend
Ashton Bigger              Topeka Seaman
John Bredehoeff           Lansing
Daniel Coup                Shawnee Mission South
Alec Patterson             Maize South
Chance Rivera             Kansas City Turner

GIRLS
Anna Bohr                   Bishop Carroll
Alanna Dierking           Lenexa-St. James Academy
Miranda Hejny             Great Bend
Hollyann Johansen       Bishop Carroll
Keri Lodigo                 Andover Central
Jennifer Pheigara        Shawnee Heights

Coach of the Year — Mike Perry, Great Bend