Nick Moyer, freshman, owns four championship rings for his successes in bowling throughout his high school career. His love for bowling began at his 14th birthday party and, shortly after, he joined a league with friends. Despite being home-schooled, he competed on Apopka High School’s team. During the course of his career, Moyer has won three consecutive FHSAA State Championships since 2013.

Apopka had both men’s and women’s bowling teams, in addition to varsity and junior varsity. A full varsity team typically consists of seven or eight players. The team practiced after school at a local bowling alley, playing three or four normal games then transitioning into other competitions with each other.

“I would throw the first ball and then one of my teammates would try to pick up whatever I left,” Moyer explained.

This past summer, the team competed at the first ever U.S. High School Bowling National Championship in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. Moyer’s second qualifier at the Nationals was a 296, 4 points shy of a perfect score. The United States Bowling Congress awarded Moyer the 11 in a Row award for his 11 consecutive strikes during the 2nd game of the qualifying round. He finished the tournament 14th overall.

Moyer appreciated his coaches during his time in high school. His first two years he was instructed by the wrestling coach John Hauser, and the next two years he had John’s son, Todd, who transitioned over from the women’s team. While they were not extremely versed in the technical aspects of bowling, Moyer praised them as “the best motivators – enablers, I would say.”

When asked about any tips to non-bowlers, Moyer answered, “Always try to have fun, nothing technical, if you try to get too technical it isn’t fun.” Moyer has noticed himself stepping away from bowling recently, but would be interested in starting something at Stetson if the people and resources become available.