LARGO, Fla. — Brady Spencer may be new to bowling, but he quickly found his footing and got on a roll.

“My cousins got me into it,” Spencer said. “I just picked up on it ever since.”

Northeast High School bowling head coach William White said Spencer has embraced a growth mindset, allowing him to become one of the best on the team in just one year. 

What You Need To Know

  • Last season, Northeast High School's bowling team lost their best average bowler and they needed someone to step in.

  • Brady Spencer joined the team and tried bowling for the first time. He quickly excelled, proving to be a difference maker for the Vikings 

  • Northeast High School bowling head coach William White said Spencer has brought good energy, drive and commitment to the team

“This sport is very challenging at first, so for him to embrace the struggle is why he’s successful — because he embraces that and he uses that to motivate to get better and better and better,” White said.

It’s now a family affair. Spencer and his cousins are all on Northeast’s team, with Spencer making a big impact. 

“Brady is great. He’s only bowled for a little while and you wouldn’t know that when you see him,” White said. “He’s put in so much time, his energy, his commitment.”

After losing his grandfather, Spencer had his best match within the same week. 

“They’ve overcome a lot this week. To see him embrace what he was going through as a family and to come back and use that spirit of togetherness to do his best,” White said. “It was really fun to see him kind of use this as his escape from all of that and to do as well as he did, which was incredible.”

Spencer has a 4.0 GPA. Coach White said his work ethic in academics carries over to the bowling alley.

“I have him in a couple dual-enrollment classes myself and looking at his work and the effort he puts in, you can tell why he’s such a good student,” White said. “He really has this depth of knowledge and he’s very inquisitive and he goes to deep analytical levels when he’s thinking about things. And it really does convey well with bowling when you’re looking at how the lanes break down and what you need to adjust with. It’s very analytical, so I can see that working around up there.”

Spencer is honing his craft, and the mental aspect of the game. 

“If you let your emotions get the best of you, it drags the whole team down,” Spencer said. “If you bring negative energy, you’re going to have a negative impact on the team. So you have to learn to keep emotions under control.”

White said Spencer leads by example.

“He’s brought a good energy, and drive and commitment. That is everything we want in our Vikings bowlers,” he said.