Every year, the bowling team participates against J.P. Stevens in one of the highest stake matches of the season. This year, boys bowling defeated J.P. Stevens 3–1 at Majestic Lanes.
Following a 97-point loss in the first game, the boys turned it around and dominated the following games. Ultimately, they hit 2,369 total pins compared to 2,357 for J.P.
“That is an incredibly close match—the outcome of the match wasn’t determined until our last bowler in the last frame of the last game,” said Assistant Coach Mr. James Napoli. “We were impressed with our bowlers’ resiliency to fight back after a poor first game, and we hope this victory acts as a springboard towards the rest of our season.”
The team was led by James Stavenick ‘25 with a series score of 522, John Re ‘25 with 509, and TJ Trobliger ‘26 with 489.
Stavenick delivered for the team under pressure, hitting 207 pins in the last and most consequential game. He continued a dominant season with his third 500-pin match in the first four matches, equalling the total number of 500-pin matches he had in his whole career prior to this season. Re has also continued his dominant start to the season, hitting more than 500-pins in all three matches that he played in.
The series saw multiple personal records being broken. Trobliger set his series record and personal game-high record, bowling 181.
Head Coach Ms. Tracie Smith described the win as “one of the more emotion-filled and exciting victories we’ve had over the past few seasons.”
This victory was made possible due to the team’s substantial improvement over the past year. Last year, they started the season 0–4 before making strides to end at 5–10–1. Moreover, their first match against J.P. last year was a 0–4 loss. This year, they started the season 3–1. They have turned things around incredibly and have won their last two encounters against J.P. following the devastating loss last year.
The team looks to continue its winning ways throughout the remainder of the season.
Game statistics are available from NJ.com.
