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Kentucky high schoolers have a new avenue to exercise their competitive spirit this year. Last month, bowling made its debut as a recognized high school sport in the Commonwealth.

In its first season as a KHSAA championship sanctioned sport, 80 schools are fielding squads. Bowling was offered as a non-sanctioned club sport last year, with 54 schools participating.

"Once we conducted our triennial survey of schools and saw the interest for bowling, we knew many schools would really take the ball and run with it," KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett said. "Frankly, if someone had asked me if we would have 80 schools participating in year one, I would have thought that might be a little too optimistic, but it shows just how much our schools and student-athletes are craving participation and healthy competition."

The first high school bowler inked her name in the record books last Thursday. Fern Creek's JoJo Miller bowled the first 300 in a KHSAA-sanctioned match against Bullitt Central at AMF Derby Lanes in Louisville.

The KHSAA classifies bowling as a winter sport, with the season beginning the week of Nov. 28. The association will crown its first state champions at the Ebonite/KHSAA State Bowling Championships on the weekend of March 23-24 at Executive Bowl in Louisville.