Falcon Pride Top Ten #4: Girls Bowling Team Qualifies for State Tournament for First Time in Eight Seasons

As the unofficial start to the 2026 fall sports season quickly approaches, AustintownAthletics.com will close the month of June by taking a look back at the top ten sports moments from the 2025-2026 school year. The list will feature the most memorable and notable individual and team performances, achievements, and milestones as selected by members of the Austintown Fitch Athletic Department. The Falcon Pride Top Ten Countdown will begin on June 20 with #10 and continue through the end of the month with the #1 sports moment of the year. As always, thank you to all of Falcon Country for your continued support of our student-athletes both on the field and, most importantly, in the classroom. Keep celebrating your Falcon Pride! #4) Girls Bowling Team Qualifies for State Tournament for First Time in Eight Seasons The last time the Fitch girls bowling team qualified for the OHSAA Girls Bowling State Tournament, most of the squad hadn't even moved up to AMS for the start of sixth grade. That changed in 2026 as the Lady Falcons advanced to state for the first time since the 2017-18 season with a third place finish at the OHSAA District Tournament in February. Fitch rolled a total score of 3504 at the district tournament in which only the top five teams advance. Finishing ahead of the Lady Falcons was District Champion Massillon Perry with a score of 3737 and District Runner-Up Wadsworth which finished just 12 pins ahead of Fitch at 3516. Emma Casey led the team with a three game series of 554 which was good for 10th place overall among all bowlers in the 19 team field. DJ Iagulli was close behind in 15th place with a 537 set while Tayrismar Mendez-Tirado finished with a 509 for 28th overall. Iagulli rolled Fitch's high game with a 211 while Casey had the second highest game with a 200. Mendez-Tirado was third with a high game of 195. At the state tournament, the Lady Falcons saw one of the most exciting and unexpected runs of the 2025-26 school year finally come to an end as they finished 15th overall to close out the season. The team was just 263 pins shy of making it to the bracket round of the championship in which only eight teams qualify. Bowling in her final contest in a Lady Falcons uniform, senior Emma Casey placed 38th overall in the field of over 100 bowlers. Her three game set of 519 led the Fitch scoring followed by DJ Iagulli who finished tied for 57th with a 479. Rounding out the top three was TT Mendez-Tirado with a two game series of 365. Mendez-Tirado also had the team's high game with a 183 while she and Casey each threw a 182 for Fitch's second highest single game score. The Lady Falcons will be looking to get back to the state tournament in 2027 as they return a young roster which gained valuable experience and saw consistent improvement throughout the 2025-26 season. (Above: The Fitch girls bowlers pose for a team photo after qualifing for the OHSAA Division 1 State Tournament at Rebman Recreation in Lorain, Ohio on February 23, 2026)