Hanover team rolls rare triplicate

Call it a fluke, a rarity, a once-in-a-blue-moon event.

The Kuhn Brothers Oil team in the Thursday night league at Hanover Bowling Centre recently rolled a triplicate of 1,006.

The team of Doug Raber, Steve Raber, Bill Spangler, Ken Appler and Dan Strausbaugh Jr. tallied 1,006 pins for three consecutive games. A team triplicate is rarer than converting the 7-10 split.

“We knew a team triplicate was a possibility after the second game, but no one actually thought we would do it,” said Steve Raber. “No one was keeping track of the score. It’s not the kind of thing you have much control over.”

Spangler noticed that in the last frame of the game anchor bowler Doug Raber needed to convert the 10-pin for another 1,006 game.

“It was neat that Doug converted the 10-pin,” he said. “It’s not often a team gets a chance to record a triplicate.”

While the team doesn’t receive any kind of award from the USBC for the accomplishment, it’s still special.

“I was shocked by the triplicate because it’s not the type of thing you can set out to do,” offered Doug Raber, who owns a pair of individual triplicates. “I’ve never heard of team rolling a triplicate.”

Although Appler didn’t realize the team finished with a triplicate until weeks later, he said, “We just come out to have fun, so it’s cool to be part of something so rare. It’s nothing you could ever predict.”

All the team members agreed the feat is much tougher to accomplish with a five-man team.

“An individual bowler has far more control over his score than a five-man team does,” pointed out Spangler. “It’s a matter of a lot of luck, at least until you reach the 10^th frame with your anchor bowler.”

The Kuhn Brothers Oil teammates averaged 201 per bowler each game. Doug Raber led the way with a 728 series, while Steve Raber followed with a 658 series. Spangler chipped in with a 645 series. Ken Appler and Dan Strausbaugh Jr. rolled series of 551 and 436, respectively.

The teammates, who have bowled together for more than 10 years, said the best part of the night was beating their opponent, Siddonsburg Garage. Kuhn Brothers Oil won 17.5 of the 23 points.