A Waterloo High School graduate has made waves in the world of professional bowling just a year into his career, having pushed himself to constantly improve his game throughout high school and college.

River Van Veghel was recently nominated as Rookie of the Year in the 2025 Professional Bowlers Association Midwest Regional Tour, his recent achievements at the pro level made possible thanks to some excellent foundations built while a student at WHS.

Van Veghel and his family are originally from Freeburg, spending a few years in New Athens before he ultimately arrived in Waterloo for fifth grade.

He spent a few years at Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic School before stepping into the Waterloo School District, and while he played baseball for a bit as a young student, it was at WHS he really found an interest in bowling.

The pins were calling to him sooner, however. He recalled spending plenty of time with his family bowling in Belleville, his mother and grandfather having bowling backgrounds of their own.

His sister, four years older, was also a major influence.

“She also started as a freshman when we moved here, and she fell in love with it,” Van Veghel said. “She was always at the bowling alley, so I was always there too… I just grew into that, and whenever it was my turn, when I was a freshman, I was for sure doing bowling.”

Those high school bowling years began fairly rocky, as he recalled. He admitted he wasn’t the strongest bowler on the team from the beginning, and he didn’t see many career-making games in his freshman or sophomore seasons.

Things changed during his time bowling as an upperclassmen, with tournaments lighting a fire in him.

“I didn’t realize how fun tournaments were,” Van Veghel said. “I bowled my first ever tournament my junior year of high school, and I fell in love with it.”

He spoke about being a starter on the varsity team his senior year, qualifying for sectionals and coming just 10 pins away from making it to state.

After graduating, he earned a scholarship to attend Culver-Stockton College in Missouri for four years, continuing to hone his bowling abilities.

Just as he did with his family at the start of his bowling career, Van Veghel found himself inspired and egged on by those around him as he strived to improve in the sport.

He voiced appreciation to Arrowhead Bowl in nearby Keokuk, Iowa, for being his go-to practice spot in college, saying he would always find his way there if he wasn’t busy participating in tournaments.

He also admired his peers for their experience and skill, constantly challenging himself to improve to meet or exceed them.

“I looked up to other people as well,” Van Veghel said. “I noticed how much they were practicing, and I knew how much better they were than me… I used that as motivation, like if I work an extra hour or two more than them every single day, there’s a chance I might catch up to them.”

He recounted some highlights from his commendable college bowling career, earning a spot as a top 10 conference player his sophomore and junior seasons and also serving as a starter.

Van Veghel added that he earned his school’s PAW Award – for displaying passion, attitude and work ethic – also broadly showing his skills in roughly 40 tournaments.

After graduating, he returned home to focus on work – he has found himself working at a bowling pro shop – and enjoy his family, bemoaning the time spent away from bowling and practicing.

Van Veghel took a year off from tournament bowling, ultimately being nudged toward the PBA Regional Tour, encouraged and supported by his father and step-mother, to whom he offered tremendous thanks.

He’s practiced as much as he can, even while balancing work, tournaments and other responsibilities.

“I love this game. I still try to get to the bowling alley as much as possible,” Van Veghel said. “I’m probably here three to four times a week, which is a lot for some people, but I feel like I’m losing a step because of what I did in college.”

This has been quite a successful year for Van Veghel in his first foray into professional bowling, qualifying to play for the whole year and displaying strong performance.

Just around the corner for the PBA is the Regional Players Invitational in Reno, Nevada. An awards night on Dec. 11 is set to have Van Veghel receive recognition as Rookie of the Year, as he recently heard from the Midwest Region director.

He recalled a troubled early high school bowling career and all the effort he felt he had to put in as a student-athlete over the years, saying that such a recognition comes as a very pleasant surprise.

“I definitely didn’t think I would ever win something like this. It feels amazing,” Van Veghel said. “I felt like I have always been behind. Starting as a freshman in high school, people, as a freshman, they’re already bowling, and they’re already learning the game, and I wasn’t able to really do that. I was walking in as the worst bowler… I felt like I was behind, so I had to keep working, keep working, keep getting better. And then whenever I got to college, I was a freshman, and I held myself to a higher standard.”

Set to soon claim his recognition, Van Veghel said he is eager to remain active in the PBA and as a bowler in general, hopefully giving the bowling scene in Monroe County a nudge in the right direction if he can.

“Having a start like this, I definitely am going to hopefully be more competitive in the PBA,” Van Veghel said. “I want to get my name out there a little more.”