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Photo courtesy of Hoover Athletics
Hoover High School's boys bowling team finished second in the Class 6A-7A state tournament on Jan. 30, 2026. Photo courtesy of Hoover Athletics.
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Hoover High School's girls bowling team finished second in the Class 6A-7A state tournament on Jan. 30, 2026. Photo courtesy of Hoover Athletics.
The Hoover High School bowling teams returned home with some hardware last week.
Both the boys and girls teams had great showings at the Class 6A-7A state tournament, finishing second in the state last Thursday and Friday at Bowlero Mobile.
On the boys side, the Bucs nearly pulled off the state title. Hoover defeated Southside 1,594-1,515 in the opening round of the state tournament Thursday. The Bucs advanced to the next round and notched another victory, edging Thompson 1,538-1,462. In the semifinals, Stanhope Elmore squeaked by Hoover 1,456-1,408, sending the Mustangs to the state final.
The loss put the Bucs in the loser's bracket on Friday, and they knocked off Tuscaloosa County 1,603-1,571 to reach the final. Against the same Stanhope Elmore team that put them in the loser's bracket, Hoover rallied and won 1,490-1,422. But in the double elimination format, the two teams faced off again, with Stanhope Elmore winning the decisive matchup 1,586-1,559.
Hoover's girls had a strong run as well. On Thursday, the Bucs opened things up with a 1,198-1,086 win over Grissom. The Bucs then notched another victory over Southside 1,332-1,196 to advance to the semifinals.
In the semifinals, Thompson put forth a dominant performance to beat Hoover 1,371-1,190, sending the Bucs down to the loser's bracket.
On Friday, Hoover then defeated James Clemens 1,303-1,176 to get to the state championship match. Thompson finished off an impressive tournament, winning 1,329-1,165 to claim the state title.
