By BILL SNIER
CANTON — Kaleb Devaul always considered himself a competitive person.
“I played sports growing up … baseball and golf,” the 27-year-old East Sparta resident said. “When I started dating my wife, she was a bowler in college. So I was like I might as well give that a try.”
His wife, the former Taylor Sturm, was a former All-Stark County High School Bowling Conference player at Jackson who also bowled for Notre Dame College. She now serves as boys bowling coach at Canton Central Catholic High School.
Although she helped get her now husband of 28 months into bowling, she didn’t like the way he threw the ball.
“I was just sort of pushing it out there and she started talking to me about going to two-handed. I was pretty much kind of doing that anyway,” said Devaul, a right-hander who is employed as an inside counter sales associate at Airgas. “She just didn’t like the way I threw the ball.”
It’s been a nearly six-year bowling odyssey for Devaul since.
“I went from a 197 average to 205 and then stayed consistent there before I jumped up to 215,” said Devaul, who bowls regularly in the Tozzi’s league at Park Centre Lanes with Taylor’s father, Jeff Sturm. “The goal was to throw a 300. Then, after I got to that, it was to try to get to 800.”
He reached the 300 goal a year ago while rolling his previous high series of 761. The second came while subbing on his wife’s team in the Sunday morning Eagles league at Park Centre recently.
Devaul had games of 279, 298 and 257 for an 834 series.
He came out of the gate with the first five strikes before leaving a 10-pin in the sixth frame.
Devaul followed that by striking out the remainder of Game 1 and running off the front 11 strikes in Game 2 before leaving a 6-10 on the final ball.
“I just didn’t get the ball outside enough and it went through the nose,” said Devaul, who now owns two career 300 games. “But I was way more nervous on the 300 than going for the 800. I just wanted that 300 and got nervous.”
But after using his Storm IQ Solid and playing an inside-out line most of the day, Devaul started to see a different ball reaction in Game 3.
“I used the IQ Solid all the way up to the seventh frame of the last game,” said Devaul, who left a 2-pin and a 4-pin along with a “lazy” 9-pin. “The first two, the ball just overreacted. I needed something that would go down the lane farther.”
He then switched to the Storm IQ Tour Ruby.
“I left that lazy 9, but it wasn’t a good shot. But I knew the move I had to make,” said Devaul, who finished with the final five strikes to clinch the 800. “Going into the 10th, I really didn’t know where I stood. I thought I needed the first two strikes to get there.
“I was a little nervous, but just kept telling myself to make a good shot on the first ball. Then I made a great shot on the second one so I just needed to throw another one to clinch it.”
Devaul made just a small move the entire day, going a couple of boards left.
“Basically, every one else on the pair was playing up 10 (board), so I had room,” Devaul said.
Now that he has two milestones under his belt, what’s next on his list for bowling?
“With this first one,” Devaul added, “it’s trying to get another one. I’ve only been bowling for five or six years and I have those first two goals.”
It also helps to have a coach in the family.
NO. 2 FOR BALL
On the eve of capturing the College Bowl Tournaments 50-50 doubles with partner Dylan Rinella at AMF Hall of Fame Lanes, 51-year-old Brian Ball added another milestone to his résume.
Ball had games of 267, 299 and 279 for his second 800 of the season — an 846.
As he had in his previous 806 during the Las Vegas Mixed league at Eastbury, he again used the Track Stealth Hybrid for this milestone in the Liberty Vending league.
“I’m not one to throw the same ball and play the same area every week because it gets boring,” said the 51-year-old Massillon right-hander. “But that ball just matches up for me so well out there. I just can’t put it down.”
One change he did make was hooking the lane that night instead of a more direct route to the pocket.
“My elbow was bothering me so we curved it a little more or as much as a 51-year-old can do it,” said Ball, who also has a pair of 300 games this season.
Why the fast start this season?
“I don’t know what it is (about Eastbury),” said Ball, who doesn’t bowl during the summer in favor of golf. “I never expected this as bad as a start as I has last year. I just needed a break I guess.
“It’s just stay healthy now and keep throwing.”
Zach McCutchan, another right-handed two-hander, had a pair of 800s in three days at Park Centre Lanes.
Then, on Thursday night in the SharpShooters league at Park Centre, left-hander Jason Corrin recorded his third 800 of the season with 845, including a 300 game. His previous two 800s (836,, 818) both came at Eastbury Bowling Center in Canton.