Harland “Bud” Stebbins III was struggling a little in the Sunday morning Massillon Eagles 190 league at AMF Hall of Fame.
His teammate, Steve Krajci, had bought a new Motive Pride in early October and really wasn’t using it on a day late in the month.
“Steve told me to go ahead and try it,” said Stebbins, a Massillon right-hander who will turn 54 on Feb. 7. “I shot two pretty good games to finish the series. So I’ve been throwing that ball just about every week since.”
Adapting was not a problem since Stebbins and Krajci have nearly identical spans and finger grips. Both use interchangeable thumb slugs.
“The other funny thing is, I had bought a new (Motiv) Iron Forge, and he was throwing that,” Stebbins added. “With the Pride, I can get through three games with it. I just move a little left and it keeps coming up.”
The ball change paid off last week at AMF Hall of Fame when Stebbins put together games of 279, 300 and 241 for an 820 series, his second career 800 and fifth career 300. His last 800 came at Park Centre six years ago — and also included a 300 game.
“I had run the front nine or 10 (strikes) a couple of weeks ago and the nerves kicked in. I grabbed it at the bottom of the swing,” said Stebbins, who is Central Catholic High School’s head coach and leads the girls team. “I wasn’t sure if I would ever get to 800 again and you start questioning whether you can.”
In Game 1, Stebbins started with the first seven strikes before leaving a 10-pin in the eighth. The ninth frame started a string of 20 straight strikes for the Commercial and Savings Bank commercial banker.
“The shots in Game 2 were all there. A couple may have been in or wide a board, but they were solid,” Stebbins said. “The nerves were still there in the 10th, but I just took a little extra time and took a deep breath.”
He started Game 3 with four strikes before leaving a 4-pin in the fifth frame. Stebbins then thought it was time to make a move.
“After I came up a little heavy, I made an adjustment left and pitched the ball out twice,” Stebbins said. “I realized I had a shot at 800, and that was part of the problem. I started thinking about that instead of rolling the ball.”
Stebbins left a 3-6-10 spare in the sixth frame and covered it. Then, he left a 1-2-4-10 washout in the seventh, but failed to convert.
“Then I settled back down and started rolling the ball again. I just said don’t make it hard on yourself,” Stebbins added.
He then struck out to reach another milestone.
“I really wasn’t nervous in the 10th,” Stebbins added. “I hadn’t done the math right and actually had it earlier in the 10th than I thought.”
Another 800 also gives Coach Stebbins credibility with his girls team, which includes his daughter, Alina, a senior who will be attending Wright State University in the fall.
Is it difficult coaching your own daughter?
“It’s challenge. You can’t always leave home life at home with your own child,” said Stebbins, who has been the Crusaders’ coach for 10 seasons. “There are days when some things carry over between home and practice.”
“But for the most part, she is very coachable. She listens to me better on the lanes and anywhere else,” he added, laughing.
Also on his staff is Taylor Sturm, a Jackson High School and Notre Dame College graduate who just finished sixth in the Ohio USBC Queens tournament last weekend.
“She is a huge asset who brings instant credibility when she walks on the lanes,” Stebbins said of Sturm, who serves as head boys coach. “The boys can see it.”
As for the bowling ball situation, Stebbins did not leave his friend empty-handed.
“I’d been using that ball so much that I finally went out and bought him a new Pride to replace it. I kept the old one,” said Stebbins. “He got that one drilled up so now we are both throwing Prides.”
As Central’s head coach gains more credibility on the lanes.