By Matt Browning
Wichita Central Christian bowler Bella Cunningham has had one of the most decorated past two seasons of any bowler in the state.
In 2024, Cunningham was the 4-1A individual champion and she finished eighth last season. The Lions also finished fourth as a team.
Now back for her senior season, Cunningham is excited to see what she and her teammates have in store for 2026.
“What excites me most about the upcoming season is getting to spend it with all of my fellow seniors,” Cunningham said. “This is our fourth year being together, and we have high aspirations for finishing our high school career strong. After a couple of close calls in the last two years, we really want to bring home a State Bowling Championship for Central Christian Academy.”
According to Cunningham, the one area in bowling that can always be improved is spare shooting and she understands that could be the difference in where she and her team place at state.
“Whether it is working on your individual game or bowling with your team in the Baker format, being able to keep the game going by picking up spares is crucial,” Cunningham said. “Shooting spares is very much a mental process, and I’m going to concentrate on keeping it as simple as possible, understanding that each spare has a single target and focusing on that target.”
Winning another state championship would be incredible for Cunningham, but she wants it to look different from her individual title two years ago.
“It would be great to follow up on my sophomore year as an individual champion, but I would gladly give that up to win the state championship as a team,” Cunningham said.
