April 23 was a good day for Kyle Waynick.

Not only did Waynick, a freshman at Eastwood, celebrate his 15th birthday on that date, he also bowled the first 300 game of his young career.

“I was ecstatic, but at the same time it felt like it really didn't happen,” Waynick said. “I rolled it and I knew I had been working for that my whole bowling career. It happened and then it was just over.”

Waynick, who bowls for coach Jay Young's Eastwood bowling team, rolled his perfect game at Al-Mar Lanes in Bowling Green. It was the first game of a four-game series in the Bobcat Two-A-Day League, which consists of boys and girls from seventh grade through high school. Waynick's 300 game came in the penultimate week of the season.

Waynick said he had a 184 average in the Two-A-Day League and a 182 average for Eastwood's squad last season. He also competed for the Eagles' junior varsity golf team last fall.

“Kyle bowled for me on the junior high team, and this was his first year as a varsity player for me,” said Young, whose Eagles defended their Sandusky Bay Area Bowling Conference title this year. “He was my most improved player this year. He's already a good player, but we look for a lot more out of him in the future. He had a good freshman year.”

Waynick has been bowling competitively since he was 8.

“Originally, I had good form and then I formed bad habits,” he said. “I would bring my arm out and around instead of coming on through, and I turned my body a lot. Jay has coached me for three years now and he's doing everything for me. He's helped me so much.”

Waynick said he struggled in his final three games after rolling a 300. He didn't break 200 on any of the three games that followed.

“The other ones were just bad,” Waynick said. “You get a weird feeling after you get your first 300 game, especially when it's the first game of a series. At first it doesn't hit you all that fast, then your mind just starts going wild. I started shaking after the (300) game.”

Waynick said he got a pep talk from a good friend, Juan Ybanes, during his perfect game. Ybanes, a senior at Bowling Green High School who has two 300 games to his credit, was bowling two lanes over from Waynick on April 23.

“You don't talk about it (during a perfect game),” Waynick said, “but people just naturally get quiet and crowd around. I didn't notice it until the last frame. Juan kept encouraging me to not think about it and just go up there and roll it like I normally would.”

Waynick, who bowled a 289 game for Eastwood last season, said he's looking forward to receiving his “300” ring from the United States Bowling Congress.

“It should be coming in late May,” he said. “I'm probably going to wear it a lot.”

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