1/16/10 Bergen County Girls Tournament @ Bowler City

Today's episode: "History repeating," although that was not necessarily true in all cases during this past weekend's County bowling tournaments. Let's run down the list:

A.) I just looked back and saw that last year it took me a couple days to post on the Bergen County girls tournament, so it must be something about this weekend in January that gums up the works. Fortunately, UNlike last year, I was not slipping on deadly ice and losing sleep working overnights, rather I was on a day-long retreat and watching the Jets continue to signal a potential apocalypse coming (I've tried pinching myself, and I still can't feel it).

B.) Immaculate Heart Academy won its 6th consecutive County title, but similar to last year when the afternoon Baker tournament was introduced, there was one point where the Blue Eagles had to sweat things out a little bit.

C.) As I did on Sunday, July 18, 1999, I felt I was exactly where I needed to be... yet my decision between which one of two sporting events to witness ultimately cost me the chance to see a perfect game (explanation forthcoming).

Now, for some things that did not repeat for whatever reason: no Clifton winning EITHER Passaic County title? I mean, the girls team had won every County championship since I started covering this beat in 2001-02 — in fact, there was one year where I asked how long the streak actually was, and the tournament directors said they believed the Mustangs had won every Passaic girls title ever, a number I had up to approximately 13 straight as of last year. I plan to research this further, but if anyone has more concrete info, e-mail it to NorthJerseyBRG@gmail.com. Yeah, I know, The Messenger still doesn't have an e-mail address in his name. His real apologies go to those who have sent unanswered messages recently; that is another manner in which we're seeking to change the same-old history around here.

Anyhow... on to explanation time. On 7/18/99, I was back in N.J. on summer break after my sophomore year at Boston College, but I decided to drive up to Fenway Park with my brother because the Marlins were there for interleague play. Now, I'm a Yankee fan, so the meta-explanation is: the first pro athlete I ever interviewed (Dennis Springer) for a work that got published (an essay on the knuckleball in BC's freshman writing journal Fresh Ink) was a member of the Florida pitching staff at the time, so I wanted to see if I could catch up with him before the game, and if he could pitch his way out of the bullpen. The only way I could remember who the Marlins actually started that day was by looking it up on retrosheet.org, but I distinctly remember the Red Sox throwing Pedro Martinez, fresh off his "dominant" All-Star Game performance in the very same stadium (yeah, it didn't count for anything, but he did strike out 5 of the 6 All-Stars he faced)... I also remember getting this strange sensation just before first pitch that something special might happen that day. It did — just not at Fenway. Pedro got shelled, but the Bozos... er, BoSox won anyway, 11-9. The punchline/irony of the story is that David Cone threw his perfect game against the Expos at Yankee Stadium on the exact same day. If I hadn't enjoyed spending time with Dennis Springer and my brother, I would have done much more ruing about not going to Yanks-'Spos.

Anyway, it's not quite the same, but last Saturday, I headed down to Bowler City for the Bergen girls tournament, even though most of the teams I was assigned to cover were not considered top contenders. I briefly contemplated stopping by T-Bowl II for the Passaic tournament in the morning, then heading to Hackensack for the afternoon Baker round, which has become the crux of the Bergen girls tourney. Then, for no apparent reason, I said... "nahhh," and went straight to Bowler City. And, then Lakeland's Zach Zuravner bowled a perfect game. And then and then, on top of that, DePaul ended Clifton's dynastic hold on the Passaic girls crown, 2,589 to 2,305. But hey, now IHA has something to shoot for: trumping the Mustangs' 13-year streak. And, to be honest, Passaic County isn't really my beat anymore, plus it was good too see a lot of the teams that I (quasi) get paid to cover.

So, breaking the Bergen girls tourney down as we did last year, here's how the standings looked after the morning session:
1. IHA 2574*, 2. Bergen Tech 2378*, 3. Bergenfield 2293, 4. Hackensack 2281*, 5. Pascack Hills 2262*, 6. (tie) Indian Hills and Ramapo 2225*, 8. Holy Angels 2177*, 9. Northern Highlands 2119, 10. Paramus Catholic 2072, 11. Fair Lawn 1994, 12. Westwood 1963, 13. Ridgefield Park 1962, 14. Fort Lee 1929, 15. Dumont 1870, 16. Cliffside Park 1865, 17. Ridgewood 1800, 18. Mahwah 1703.
*Top 8 teams qualify for Baker round

A few things jump out at me — I mean, aside from the fact that the Blue Eagles had the only two 900+ games on the day... 1.) Wasn't Ridgewood the runner-up in this thing last year? The Maroons have had quite a precipitous drop-off, and a couple of the girls admitted it's taken the team a while to find its identity after the graduation of emotional leaders Kim Burdi and Courtney Visco. But chin up RHS fans, the Jets had been through 11 rebuilding years since their previous AFC title-game appearance. Persistence pays off, apparently, eventually... 2.) Of course, the one tie in the whole tournament was between intra-district rivals Ramapo and Indian Hills. Bowling seems to be the one sport where the Braves typically have a leg-up on the Green Raiders — once upon a time, a close, personal friend of The Messenger even used that premise to write an essay for his IHHS English class — so naturally, Ramapo won the coin toss to be the No. 6 seed. And yet, the Braves still ended up with the last laugh... 3.) Northern Highlands finished 9th for the second year in a row. Last year, they missed advancing by 140 points, this year it was only 58. As Mr. Powers might say, "Ouch, babe. Very ouch." At least the Highlanders got some recognition when senior Alex Hubelbank won the 2nd-high game medal — she also had 4th-high series, but according to BCWCA rules, a bowler cannot receive both high-game and high-series medals... which might lead me to another tangent, except that I overheard some tournament folk mulling the possibility of dropping that rule next year, so let's move on.

Speaking of high series and game, I left that out of last year's Bergen girls recap. Another vote for not repeating history:
High series medals - 1ST, Nicole Linder (IHA), 655; 2nd, Stacy Fernandez (Ridgefield Park), 593; 3rd, Ashley Johnson (North Arlington), 555; 4th, Nicolette Brenner (Cliffside Park), 553; 5th, Colleen Blake (IHA), 542.
High game medals - 1ST, Bridget Pyryt (Indian Hills), 243; 2nd, Alex Hubelbank (NH), 235; 3rd, Yeliz Inalman (Fort Lee), 233; 4th, Taylor Strothmann (IHA), 221; 5th, Nikki Villani (Lyndhurst), 214.
Actual order of finish:

PLACE	SCHOOL	GAME 1	GAME 2	GAME 3	TOTAL
1st	Nicole Linder, IHA	258	203	194	655
2nd	Stacy Fernandez, RP	244	183	166	593
3rd	Bridget Pyryt, Indian Hills	195	146	243	584
4th	Alex Hubelbank, NH	162	235	184	581
5th	Ashley Johnson, NA	211	173	171	555
6th	Nicolette Brenner, CP	205	181	167	553
7th	Collen Blake, IHA	183	154	205	542
8th	Taylor Strothmann, IHA	170	141	221	532
9th	Nikki Villani, Lyndhurst	168	149	214	531
10th	Cassidy Fiore, B'field	160	200	170	530
11th	Marina Consalvo, PH	147	212	169	528
12th	Carly Bonsignore, Ramapo	201	176	146	523
13th	Yeliz Inalman, Fort Lee	143	142	233	518
14th	Lexus Lopez, Lyndhurst	166	167	180	513
15th	Korey Kozaryn, H'sack	190	167	150	507

Ok, down to the nitty-gritty. Heading into the Baker round, spots 3 through 7 were separated by 72 points. The aforementioned Braves of Indian Hills made the biggest move, jumping from 7th to 4th to advance to the head-to-head semifinals. And guess who they edged out by 5 pins? (History repeating alert!) Yup, the same Bergenfield team that they edged by 1 pin at sectionals last year for a spot in the State finals. Final totals in parens:
1. Immaculate Heart 119-144-191-144 (3172)*
2. Bergen Tech 141-158-133-175 (2985)*
3. Hackensack 178-152-162-121 (2894)*
4. Indian Hills 154-189-137-138 (2843)*
5. Bergenfield 151-133-145-116 (2838)
6. Pascack Hills 159-107-141-163 (2832)
7. Ramapo 152-116-154-170 (2817)
8. Holy Angels 155-149-153-158 (2792)

Have to give some props to Holy Angels as well, since they had the second-highest Baker total but were just too far back to catch up.

In the Bergen Tech/Hackensack semifinal, the Comets were clearly the more consistent team on the afternoon, prevailing 172-136, 170-148 over their sort-of crosstown rivals. I say "sort of" because between Bergen Tech and Bergen Academies, they have campuses in Hackensack, Teterboro and Paramus. Although I'm pretty sure the folks at Teterboro Airport don't have a entry in the NJTCC this year.

The biggest intrigue came in the IH/IHA semifinal (I've been waiting to type that since my prediction of an IH/IHA final in last year's Bergen County softball tournament failed. Insert your own "Old MacDonald" joke here). The Blue Eagles rolled in the 1st game, 194-135. The Braves came back strong in the 2nd game, 190-146. It should be noted that the teams switched lanes after each of the first 2 games, so IHA ended up on the "hot" lane for the finale. IH started off with an open frame, and IHA marked through the first 5. But Pyryt and Breana Parian struck back-to-back for the Braves in the 5th and 6th, while the Eagles left an open in the 6th. However, IH ended up chopping a bit too much wood to overcome... with a chop-chop here, and a chop-chop there— (sorry, couldn't resist). Linder struck out in the 10th to seal a 185-138 Game 3 win, but the Braves had nothing to hang their heads about, considering it was their best-ever County finish.

That left us with an all-NJTCC final: Hackensack's Kelsey Sarro, Jaclyn Draney, Stacie Harewood, Rachel Healy and Korey Kozaryn versus IHA's Colleen Blake, Hanna DiFresco, Murphy McVey, Taylor Strothmann and Nicole Linder. For a Blue Eagles team that returned only one starter and one varsity part-timer, inexperience did not show; they took Game 1, 182-97. In Game 2, Blake led off with a strike — she did that in all 5 head-to-head Baker games, an overlooked tone-setter to which The Messenger, at least, will call attention — while Sarro ended up with an 8-split. The Comets picked her up, though, posting a coveted turkey to counteract three straight spare pickups by IHA. Hackensack then left an open in the 6th frame, but that was not the real turning point.

In the 7th, the southpaw DiFresco struck, while Draney wound up saddled with the dreaded 7-10 split. Right there, it just seemed like things were going IHA's way. Draney did the smart thing and got the wood, knocking down the 7, but the Blue Eagles had clean frames basically the rest of the way. Final game score: IHA 214, Hackensack 175.

So there you have it. In response to a recent NJ.com forum posting, The Messenger's pigeon may move slower than one of Springer's knucklers, but it gets the job done. Said pigeon also has TM considering enlisting another member of the avian family for coverage purposes... it always takes time to type up a good, thorough blog, but what about the N.J. bowling fan just looking for straight results?

As such, this weekend the New Jersey Bowling Blog will be dusting off its long-forgotten Twitter account (which has been SO forgotten that it's still in the name of a former reporter/alter ego). Lord willing, we'll figure out this technology stuff and be able to tweet game-by-game coverage of the Bergen boys tournament. Good thing, too — there's a chance The Messenger may face yet another conflict with his blogging time on Sunday... as in, both recent history and ancient history seem to foreshadow an impending stampede of angry Colts!

1/9/10 North Jersey Singles Classic @ Parkway Lanes

Today's episode: "The BCSL Tango & the Pennsylvania Polka." The boys final was a showdown between Bergen County Scholastic League National/Olympic rivals Dylan Caruso of Secaucus and Matt Priore of North Arlington. On the girls side, Lorisa Jones of Marist squared off with Jillian Keller of Pennsbury (Pa.) — if you thought Howell came a long way to win the Holiday Team Challenge last month, the Falcons one-upped them; Pennsbury is 30 miles west of Philadelphia. And, much like Howell, the Keystone State contingent had an FDU connection: head coach Christi White bowled for the Knights' NCAA championship team in 2006.

Speaking of FDU, Mike LoPresti and the gang did another great job of putting the tournament together, and they made a couple of tweaks this year. Instead of staggering the starts of the boys and girls tournaments, they started both at around the same time — still a long day, but that was a plus time-wise. The concept of byes for the Top 4 bowlers in the first round was a nice addition, too, although once again, neither No. 1 reached the finals. Extra thanks to Lisa (whose computer thankfully did NOT crash this year) for help with score printouts.

There were a fair share of monster scores on the day. Four bowlers took perfect games into the 10th frame, and two of them were Paramus Catholic lefties: Matt Vanderhoof in qualifying Game 2 ended with a 267, and Steve Natoli in the Round of 12 rolled a 276. Also, Michael Higgins of Ridgefield Park took it down to the last ball of Q-Game 3 and shot a 298, and Steven Patchen of Bergen Tech fired a 275 in the Round of 36.

Fans of the old-fashioned 1-on-1 roll-offs got a treat as well. Pascack Hills' Bryan Kist and Old Tappan's Kyle Folkers were tied for the final transfer spot to the "Desirable Dozen" (well, the FDU folks almost rolled a perfecto) — both struck on their first ball and both struck on their second ball, before Kist got a 6 and Folkers shot an 8. In the girls "Great Eight," Crystal Keller of Lenape Valley and Taylor Maurer of Queen of Peace tied for the fourth semifinal spot — both threw strikes before Maurer got an 8 and Keller struck.

Crystal attempted to make it an all-Keller final, but the semifinal scores were quite impressive, and Jones and Jillian Keller advanced. IRONY ALERT: Crystal Keller's 225 in the semis would have been good enough to advance to the boys finals. Thanks to coach LoPresti for pointing that out. Also, big props to second girls semifinalist Maylena Marks of Leonia... she went 154-202 in her first two Q-Games, dropped to 136 in Game 3, but held on to earn the final spot in the Round of 20. Then, in her march to the semis, she also had the top score (205) in the Round of 8. That is a quality bounce-back effort for you.

Caruso, meanwhile, made the boys semifinals for the second straight year and took it a step further. However, he was hurt by an open frame late in the finals, and Priore was just locked in. He started the day with a 181 and threw all deuces the rest of the way to the title match, then wrapped things up with a 191-173 win over his BCSL rival in the finals.

As for Jillian Keller — egads, we just became the New Jersey Bowling Blog, is it time to expand into Pennsylvania already? At least we know the Falcons had something to talk about on the long ride home, and Keller was a deserving champ. Jones threw BB's all day, but Keller left only the final two pins standing in the finals, sealing a 235-156 victory with a late 4-bagger. P.S. If you follow the above link, you'll get more evidence that Miss Keller of Pa. is the real deal. Incidentally, there is no relation between she and Miss Keller of N.J.

Tournament season is starting to heat up in earnest — Counties ahead next weekend, and The Messenger will be at the Bergen Couny Girls Tournament, although he is still contemplating starting a morning-afternoon doubleheader at Passaic County. See you on the other side...

BOYS - ROLL-OFF QUALIFIERS

1. Jonathan Glattstein (North Bergen), 777; 2. Matt Vanderhoof (Paramus Cath.), 733; 3. Brian Galbraith (Pascack Hills), 729; 4. Alex Prell (Wood-Ridge), 716; 5. Kyle Landau (Ramsey), 691; 6. Jaylin Floyd (Manchester Reg.), 662; 7. George Bosch (Queen of Peace), 661; 8. Joshuah Romero (Teaneck), 661; 9. Ted Failla (Paramus Cath.), 657; 10. Nick Roman (Wood-Ridge), 653; 11. Steven Patchen (Bergen Tech), 653; 12. Rob Oszust (Lenape Valley), 647; 13. Nicholas Deliantis (St. Mary-Ruth.), 646; 14. Matt Priore (N. Arlington), 642; 15. Chris Auld (Fair Lawn), 634; 16. Greg Corradi (DePaul), 633; 17. Dylan Caruso (Secaucus), 632; 18. Brian DeMarco (Bergenfield), 629; 19. Jonathan Eckstein (Indian Hills), 629; 20. Brian O'Flaherty (Pascack Valley), 624; 21. Sean Carmody (Ridgefield Park), 621; 22. Ryan Landau (Ramsey), 616; 23. Sam Delgado (Union City), 612; 24. Brian Kist (Pascack Hills), 610; 25. Andrew Suscreba (Q of P), 609; 26. Jimmy Rivers (Westwood), 606; 27. Steve Natoli (Paramus Cath.), 606; 28. Michael Higgins (Ridgefield Park), 602; 29. Nicholas Keim (Ridgefield Park), 600; 30. James Hoover (Teaneck), 599; 31. Larry Tufaro (Wallkill Valley), 599; 32. Marc Solangon (Bergenfield), 599; 33. Soungjin Choi (DePaul), 596; 34. Corey Burtwell (Passaic Tech), 595; 35. Kyle Folkers (Old Tappan), 594; 36. Johnson Pau (Bergen Tech), 594.

BOYS ROUND OF 36 (Top 12 advance): Glattstein, Vanderhoof, Galbraith and Prell — BYE; 5. Patchen, 275; 6. Priore, 268; 7. Tufaro, 259; 8. Natoli, 257; 9. Hoover, 253; 10. Caruso, 248; 11. Suscreba, 245; 12. Folkers, 232*; 13. Kist, 232; 14. Auld, 224; 15. Pau, 223; 16. Floyd, 213; 17. Bosch, 207; 18. Carmody, 203; 19. (tie) O'Flaherty and Keim, 202; 21. (tie) R.Landau and Rivers, 198; 23. (tie) Higgins and Burtwell, 194; 25. Romero, 193; 26. Oszust, 190; 27. Roman, 189; 28. (tie) Corradi and Eckstein, 185; 30. Deliantis, 180; 31. Solangon, 177; 32. Choi, 175; 33. Failla, 172; 34. DiMarco, 169; 35. Delgado, 162; 36. K.Landau, 154.
*Advanced via roll-off

BOYS ROUND OF 12 (Top 4 advance): 1. Priore, 277; 2. Natoli, 276; 3. Glattstein, 258; 4. Caruso, 241; 5. Vanderhoof, 211; 6. Suscreba, 210; 7. Folkers, 200; 8. Prell, 192; 9. Galbraith, 187; 10. Patchen, 172; 11. Hoover, 171; 12. Tufaro, 161.

BOYS SEMIFINALS: 1. Priore, 227; 2. Caruso, 206; 3. Natoli, 191; 4. Glattstein, 177.

BOYS FINALS: Matt Priore 191, Dylan Caruso 173.

GIRLS - ROLL-OFF QUALIFIERS

1. Crystal Keller (Lenape Valley), 641; 2. Jillian Keller (Pennsbury), 634; 3. Nicole Sussman (Raritan), 610; 4. Lorisa Jones (Marist), 601; 5. Ashley Johnson (N. Arlington), 593; 6. Rebecca VanDyk (Q of P), 573; 7. Sonja Shirak (Clifton), 568; 8. Megan McNally (Pascack Hills), 561; 9. Nicole Linder (IHA), 554; 10. Taylor Maurer (Q of P), 548; 11. Taylor Strothmann (IHA), 543; 12. Stacy Fernandez (Ridgefield Park), 538; 13. Colette Malyack (DePaul), 528; 14. Ashley Plenski (Pennsbury), 514; 15. Beth Moser (Pennsbury), 507; 16. Tara Bechter (Pennsbury), 502; 17. Nikki Villani (Lyndhurst), 499; 18. Kim Ercolino (Bergen Tech), 494; 19. Adriana Stapelman (Fair Lawn), 493; 20. Maylena Marks (Leonia), 492.

GIRLS ROUND OF 20 (Top 8 advance): C.Keller, J.Keller, Sussman and Jones — BYE; 5. Shirak, 213; 6. Maurer, 204; 7. Villani, 196; 8. Marks, 195; 9. Johnson, 193; 10. Linder, 190; 11. Bechter, 186; 12. Malyack, 181; 13. Plenski, 177; 14. McNally, 173; 15. Fernandez, 162; 16. Stapelman, 159; 17. Moser, 155; 18. Ercolino, 150; 19. Strothmann, 139; 20. VanDyk, 134.

GIRLS ROUND OF 8 (Top 4 advance): 1. Marks, 205; 2. J.Keller, 193; 3. Jones, 191; 4. C.Keller, 183*; 5. Maurer, 183; 6. Villani, 182; 7. Sussman, 176; 8. Shirak, 169.
*Advanced via roll-off

GIRLS SEMIFINALS: 1. Jones, 247; 2. J.Keller, 236; 3. C.Keller, 225; 4. Marks, 131.

GIRLS FINALS: Jillian Keller 235, Lorisa Jones 156.

HIGH GAMES (BOYS QUALIFYING): Michael Higgins, 298; Jonathan Glattstein, 280; Matt Vanderhoof, 269, 267; Kyle Landau, 265; Alex Prell and Rob Oszust, 264; Nick Roman, 258. HIGH GAMES (GIRLS QUALIFYING): Lorisa Jones, 247; Taylor Maurer, 229; Crystal Keller, 228; Ashley Johnson and Megan McNally, 225; Jillian Keller and Rebecca VanDyk, 222.

12/12/09 - Don't shoot The Messenger (TM)

Greetings and good evening, I have been hired as the new alter ego for the reporter on this site. And, after much divine inspiration — no, seriously, there is no other possible way I could be this clever on my own — the New Jersey Bowling Blog is proud to present to you The Messenger (TM). My goal is to provide wall-to-wall coverage of the best stories I can find throughout the season; you know, because the messenger pin goes from one sidewall to the other when you're trying to make a spli... ah, forget it. I was hired to be LESS wordy.

On we go. The 8th annual FDU Holiday Team Challenge is in the books, and wouldn't you know it — the first tournament we cover after resolving to branch out and observe teams beyond "North Jersey" gives us the first opportunity to do just that. Congratulations to the Howell Rebels, both the boys and girls squads captured titles after going in as the No. 1 seed.

Howell was the only team outside of Bergen, Passaic, Hudson or Essex to enter, begging the infamous one-letter question (Y), which coach David Clampffer answered for the NJBB. HHS grad Lisa Friscioni is now the assistant women's bowling coach at FDU, and Rebels alum Meghan Kelly is currently a sophomore bowler for the Knights, so there's the connection. Hey, The Messenger travels 2 hours from Park to Park (Midland to Seaside) to see his family every other weekend, why can't Howell travel a slightly shorter distance to Elmwood Park once a year to see some old bowling pals? Also, it's pretty worth it when you consider the Rebel girls won for the 3rd straight year.

Anyway, before we post results and all-stars, some of the highlights from the best 2-of-3 Baker game tournament round:

• The second-seeded Bergen Tech boys followed a pattern in the quaterfinals and semifinals — win Game 1, lose Game 2, start off Game 3 with 7 consecutive strikes and leave no doubt. They Baked up a 268 in the quarters, then took their semifinal elimination game from Paramus Catholic, 257-215. As one observer pointed out, how often do you shoot a Baker 215 and lose by over 40? If it's any consolation, props to the Paladins, they threw some great balls. Game 2 of BT/PC was intense: tied at 186 after 9, both teams working off a spare; Paladin anchor gutters his 1st ball, Tech anchor rolls a 9, but then he gutters, and PC anchor finishes spare-strike to give his team a 2-point win. (P.S. The Messenger is obligated to withhold the name of gutter-ballers to protect the innocent - unless it's that WGHT fellow Gutterball Greg. Ahem.)
  
• Not to be outdone, the Howell boys held off Fair Lawn in the semifinals, 2-1, with a 278 in the clincher: two strikes, 9-spare, eight more strikes, and one pin left standing all game on the final roll. Lefty note: Rebels southpaws D.J. Jacob and Arianna Mattera each converted a 2-7 split in the tournament. Clearly, Howell had that team harmony thing going.
• Immaculate Heart graduated 4/5ths of its tournament lineup, but you wouldn't have been able to tell by watching the girls bowl. The Blue Eagles earned the No. 2 seed, reached the finals, fell behind 1-0 before trailing by almost 30 pins midway through Game 2, and still fought back to push Howell to the limit. IHA coach Lynn Gansley used the words "completely thrilled" and "delirious," and after an effort like that, why not? The turning point: In the 7th frame of Game 3, both Howell and IHA bowlers had a 1-2-8 spare (hm, lot of eerie symmetry with this Rebels bunch) — Howell converted, IHA didn't. And yet, in the 10th, Blue Eagles anchor Nicole Linder struck out to keep the pressure on, but Rebels anchor Jess Henri clinched the win with a 9-spare-8. Good stuff.
  

Overall, just what The Messenger needed to get him out of football mode and into bowling mode. Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time for the Heisman Trophy presentation! (Sorry, football never officially ends for me until the Jets are dead and buried. Blame Rex Ryan, I have no idea how that team is still in it.)

8TH ANNUAL FDU HOLIDAY CHALLENGE (Parkway Lanes, Elmwood Park)

BOYS DIVISION PLAYOFFS

Q'FINALS

1) Howell def. 8) Bergen Catholic, 2-1 (180-238, 198-179, 235-184)

5) Fair Lawn def. 4) North Bergen, 2-0 (194-157, 225-158)

2) Bergen Tech def. 7) Union City, 2-1 (209-190, 134-196, 268-187)

3) Paramus Catholic def. 6) Hackensack, 2-1 (193-170, 183-205, 205-194)

SEMIFINALS

1) Howell def. 5) Fair Lawn, 2-1 (212-183, 192-200, 278-193)

2) Bergen Tech def. 3) Paramus Catholic, 2-1 (198-191, 204-206, 257-215)

FINALS

1) Howell def. 2) Bergen Tech, 2-0 (203-189, 256-200)

GIRLS DIVISION PLAYOFFS

Q'FINALS

5) Clifton def. 4) Bergen Tech, 2-1 (107-127, 158-132, 171-121)

6) Fair Lawn def. 3) Hackensack, 2-1 (132-101, 127-134, 191-132)

SEMIFINALS

1) Howell def. 5) Clifton, 2-1 (167-187, 131-200, 181-112)

2) IHA def. 6) Fair Lawn, 2-0 (176-163, 153-126)

FINALS

1) Howell def. 2) IHA, 2-1 (202-136, 164-186, 177-170)

ALL-STAR TEAMS (Top series of qualifying round)

BOYS: 1. Alex Prell, Wood-Ridge, 707; 2. Eric Negron, North Bergen, 687; 3. Andrew Suscreba, Queen of Peace, 681; 4. Brian Galbraith, Pascack Hills, 675; 5. Chris Auld, Fair Lawn, 673.

GIRLS: 1. Crystal Keller, Lenape Valley, 593; 2. Nicole Linder, IHA, 592; 3. Jess Henri, Howell, 591; 4. Ariana Mattera, Howell, 564; 5. Sonja Shirak, Clifton, 556.

Changes coming soon...

The editors of the North Jersey Bowling Blog would like to apologize for giving the appearance that we forgot about the start of high school bowling season in these parts. We are, in fact, fully aware that the 2009-10 season already has gotten underway... we just haven't officially acknowledged it. Until today.

Moreover, we regret to inform you that there are no more editors of the North Jersey Bowling Blog. Well, maybe "regret" isn't the proper word. There are no more editors for that blog because it no longer exists — that's right, say hello to the NEW Jersey Bowling Blog, as it is now so labeled in the header of this page. (Those same editors have returned and did feel the phrase "New New Jersey Bowling Blog" was redundant. But I snuck it through in that last sentence anyway).

Starting this season, we shall attempt to expand our coverage beyond the ever fuzzily-defined "North Jersey" area and into other parts of the Garden State where bowling is equally - if not more - respected, detected and selected (apologies to Arlo Guthrie). Our home-base area will still be in the Bergen/Passaic region (first assignment: tomorrow's FDU Holiday Team Challenge!) but our founder has decided it's time to start living up to the nickname "Mr. New Jersey," so ideally, we'd like to post items on bowling counties from Sussex to Salem as the winter goes along.

Finally, it is with heavy hearts that we must retire the moniker North Jersey Bowling Reporter Guy, a.k.a. the NJBRG. Certainly, it was befitting of both our man's quirky personality and inclination toward wordiness (both written and spoken), but it was a heck of a mouthful to say and didn't fit well on business cards. Not sure yet what we're going to do about the e-mail address, but figuring that out is all part of the re-branding process.

Our new reporter/alter ego shall be deployed for the FDU tournament, and his [trademark-pending] identity shall be unveiled in his first post. We encourage you to greet him the same quizzical looks and eye rolls that you would give to all employees of the NJBB. Yes, we will still use acronyms to refer to the blog itself.

(3/27/09) All the Stars and Bowling Awards

At last! The final installment of the North Jersey Bowling blog for the 2008-09 season has arrived. Clearly, that "target date" of Friday, March 13 that the NJBRG mentioned a couple of blogs ago was a typo -- you see, he hit the 1 & the 3 keys backwards, and meant to write "the LAST Friday BEFORE March 31," and... ah, heck, I made an old-fashioned mistake by promising the moon and not delivering. Next time, I'm just going to promise what I *can* deliver. Hey, I'm only human (Editor's note: the NJBRG is an imaginary alter ego, and therefore technically not human. But you can get on his case anyway).

Thanks again to everyone that helped contribute to the site. Hopefully, I've listed just about everyone along the way, but if you look back and find you were not given due credit, please apply for a profuse apology & a spot on the top of next season's name-drop list at: NorthJerseyBRG@gmail.com. Additional thanks to the band Augustana for inspiring the title of this post with their debut album, random though it may be.

Now, for our final major pop-culture reference of the season, we turn to Prof. Hubert Farnsworth's What-If Machine. Since not all of the media outlets for which I work compile All-Star bowling teams, I'm taking the liberty of creating: What the [publication All-Star] bowling team *would* look like (assuming they had one).

And, now that I think about it, this isn't terribly that late since the Star-Ledger and The Record just finished running their postseason stuff this week. Along those same lines, away we go...

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What the WGHT All-Area bowling team *would* look like (if they had one):

Today is actually a very convenient day for this, since it caps off All-Area week -- Jon & Marco did wrestling on Monday, hockey on Tuesday, girls basketball on Wednesday and boys basketball yesterday. I may even get this posted before they go on the air with today's look-ahead to spring sports.
(That's Sports Overtime, the Friday one-hour edition, today at 2 p.m. on 1500 AM and ghtradio.com. It is with my best Nixon impersonation that I state: "I am not a shill.")

Unlike most All-Star teams, GHT does it a bit differently, in that they pick an actual team of starters and reserves -- who they would pick if they fielded a real team (hey, we're fitting right in) -- plus year-end awards. P.S. that "Area" in All-Area is Passaic, western Bergen (Mahwah, Indian Hills, Ramapo, Northern Highlands, Midland Park, Ridgewood, Glen Rock, Fair Lawn and Saddle Brook) and northeast Morris (Kinnelon, Butler, Pequannock, Montville) counties.

2008-09 WGHT All-Area Boys Bowling Team

STARTERS (in alphabetical order)
Rob Andresen, Ramapo (Jr.) - 212 average; tied for high average in NBIL, led league with 32 games of 200+. High game of 279 and high [3-game] series of 699, both at the North Jersey Singles Classic.
Vincent Buono, Passaic (Sr.) - 221 average, tops in GHT listening area; finished 2nd NNJIL in average by mere decimal points, and had high game of 289 and high series of 799. Finished 7th in Passaic County and led Indians to 2nd-place finish in North 1B, Group 4 tournament. Not bad for a travel-league bowler who joined his H.S. team last November.
Andrew Davidowicz, Lakeland (Sr.) - 219 average, up 18 points from 2007-08; His 692 series at Sectionals was tied for 2nd individually and helped the Lancers claim the first North 1B, Group 3 title in just the program's 3rd year of existence.
Rich Gutches, Passaic Tech (So.) - 218 average; one of the few All-Area bowlers that I unfortunately did not get to see in person -- a shame, because he rolled a 299 high game and tied with Davidowicz for 2nd at sectionals with a 692. On the other hand, I may get to see more of the Bulldogs in the Tri-County Conference next winter, so that's at least one realignment plus.
Tim Scott, West Milford (So.) - 216 average; why, oh why, did I leave the Suburban Trends? The NJBRG used to cover the Highlanders every year, but was unable to deploy a clone to watch Scott clean up at Counties, where he fired a 290—767 to claim the individual title.

SUBS
Jaylin Floyd, Manchester (Jr.) - 211 average; led the Falcons to the B-PSL King Division title on the last day of the regular season, bowling a 223-233—456 to break a tie with Garfield - clutch indeed. Finished 2nd at Counties with a 279—716 and 7th at Sectionals with a 667 series.
Matt Guarino, Passaic Valley (Jr.) - 211 average; a big reason the Hornets won both the Northern Hills-Skyline title and the Passaic County championships. He was 5th individually at Counties with a 236—646.
Greg Kratky, Wayne Hills (Sr.) - 196 average; high game of 299 in NBIL play brought Holiday Bowl to a standstill, and he finished with 20 games of 200+. Despite an uncharacteristic outing at Counties, he finished with a 578 to anchor Hills to a third-place finish, just 3 pins behind Pompton Lakes.
Tom Maggio, DePaul (Sr.) - 195 average; his 662 series at Sectionals put him into a three-way tie for eighth place, giving him a spot in the State singles finals, where he rolled a 610 to place 25th. Anchored the Spartans to their 4th straight trip to the State team finals, shooting an even 600 to wrap up his career at Carolier.
Jake Morin, Indian Hills (Sr.) - 199 average; his six-game series of 1,245 at the Bergen County tournament was good for 11th individually and helped the Braves to their first-ever Groups 1-2 title. Had a high game of 278 and threw 23 games of 200+.
Jon Rizzi, Pompton Lakes (Sr.) - 202 average; had the highest average of the five -- yes, five -- Cardinals to make the All-BPSL Carpenter first team. Anchored Pompton to a 65-5 points record and the Carpenter title, as well as a second-place finish at Counties and the school's first North 1B, Section 2 title. His 672 series at Sectionals was 5th highest overall.
Kevin Seavers, Ridgewood (Sr.) - 205 average; finished 13th at the Bergen tournament with a 1,237. Four-year starter whose high game this season was a 279 and high series was 748. He also led the Maroons to a second-place finish in the NNJIL Division B, a heady enough accomplishment considering the division title went to Nutley, which may or may not be a PBA team masquerading as amateurs (I'm kidding, of course).

BOWLER OF THE YEAR: Vincent Buono, Passaic - the glass bowling shoes fit.

TEAM OF THE YEAR: Pompton Lakes - Did we mention the 5 first-team All-Leaguers?

COACH OF THE YEAR: Frank Ariola, Passaic Valley - guided the Hornet boys to County and League titles and, incidentally, coached a PV girls squad that came within 11 pins of ending the Clifton girls' stranglehold on the County championship.

2008-09 WGHT All-Area Girls Bowling Team

STARTERS (in alphabetical order)
Kim Burdi, Ridgewood (Sr.) - 181 average; The lefty finished 4th at the North Jersey Singles Classic, and that was just the beginning. She anchored the Maroons to their 2nd straight NNJIL-B title and first-ever trip to the State team finals. High game was 242 and high series 647, but she was at her best in the Baker tournament at Counties, twice striking out in the 10th to give Ridgewood a win.
Danielle Gelok, Pompton Lakes (Sr.) - 179 average; if the Cardinals fielded a separate girls team, she would be the anchor. Instead, she led off and set the tone for the Pompton boys' B-PSL Carpenter and North 1B, Group 2 championship squad. Finishes her career as a three-time selection to the All-County first team.
Jen Houseward, Manchester (Sr.) - 184 average; another key to the Falcons' B-PSL King Division title run, she recorded the highest 2-game series in the league all season (473) -- boys and girls included. She finished runner-up at the Passaic County tournament with a 245—570, receiving the medal for girls high game.
Colette Malyack, DePaul (Fr.) - 204 average; freshman boys don't often average over 200, so the Spartans may want to clear out a page for her in the school record book right now. Had the 2nd-high girls game (216) at Counties, then showed remarkable poise for a freshman in the State team finals, shooting DePaul's high game (224) and 2nd-high series (547) at Carolier.
Sonja Shirak, Clifton (So.) - 208 average; the Passaic County individual champ (209—609) anchored the young Mustangs to their 11th straight county team title. She had high series of 735 and 726 (both within a week of each other) and was runner-up at the North Jersey Sectional tournament with a 235—658 before turning in the best finish by an area bowler (14th) at the State singles finals.

SUBS
Damaris Duarte, PCT (Sr.) - 168 average (at Counties, anyway); again, I don't think I missed seeing a whole lot of area bowlers this year, but Damaris unfortunately fell into that category. How fired am I? I saw her older brother (and Bulldogs alum) Carlos Duarte at least three or four times this season, and he wasn't even on the lanes. If I get an e-mail from the Duartes, they get first dibs on the profuse apologies.
Amber Kay, Passaic Valley (Sr.) - 170 average, up from 161 last year; talk about multi-talented -- she helped the Hornet boys to the Northern Hills-Skyline title, and also led the Hornet girls to a runner-up finish to Clifton in the Passaic County tournament, where her 550 series was tied for 4th individually.
Jackie Kurtz, Wayne Valley (Sr.) - 173 average; the Indians have built a legacy of having at least 1 or 2 standout girls on a co-ed team each year, and Kurtz kept that tradition going this season by leading them to a 3rd-place showing in a competitive Northern Hills conference.
Bridget Pyryt, Indian Hills (Fr.) - 165 average; forget averages, how often do you see a freshman anchor? She led the Braves to a second-place finish in the North Group 2 tournament, but was unable to compete at State finals due to illness. Somehow, I get the feeling she'll have another crack at Carolier down the road.
Amelia Silvestro, Lakeland (So.) - 174 average; a varsity newcomer to a relative young program, she placed 3rd individually at Counties with a 205—566 and helped the Lancers shoot a team series of 3,012 to capture the North 1B, Group 3 title.
Courtney Visco, Ridgewood (Sr.) - 163 average; the righty leadoff bowler bookended the Maroons lineup with classmate Kim Burdi, and capped the team's first-ever trip to the State finals with her highest game of the season (218) in the finale. She also played a big part in getting them to Carolier, notching a team-high 559 series at Sectionals.
Debbie Vogel, Eastern Christian (Sr.) - 171 average; along with Pompton's Danielle Gelok, she was one of two girls named to the All-BPSL Carpenter first team. And yes, she added another feather to the girls' cap in the age-old "battle of the sexes," leading the co-ed Eagles in average and throwing their high league series (401) of the season.

BOWLER OF THE YEAR: Sonja Shirak, Clifton - get used to hearing the name.

TEAM OF THE YEAR: Ridgewood - League champs, second to IHA at both Counties and Sectionals. Point of order: IHA was undefeated, and is also not in the GHT listening area. Maroons also get the nod over Clifton for beating them head-to-head in NNJIL play and at sectionals.

COACH OF THE YEAR: Brian Small, Clifton - the thing is, the NJBRG is equal-opportunity. Ridgewood and Clifton were both good all year, so the T.O.Y. debate was between them and the C.O.Y. debate was between Small and the Maroons' Dick Bennett. So, one school gets Team of the Year, the other gets Coach of the Year. Plus, Coach Small had to keep the Mustangs' minds on the County tournament itself and not on the fact that they were 10-time defending champs going in -- no small task, and he did it quite well.

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For our second spin with the "What-If Machine," the NJBRG directs your attention to The Ridgewood News All-Suburban area. For the winter, the paper does All-Suburban hockey, wrestling, boys basketball and girls basketball, as does WGHT. The coverage area, though, is slightly different: Ridgewood, Midland Park, Hawthorne, Hawthorne Christian, Northern Highlands, Indian Hills, Ramapo, Ramsey, Mahwah, Pascack Valley, Pascack Hills, Paramus, River Dell, Westwood, Dumont, Bergenfield, New Milford, Park Ridge, Emerson, Fair Lawn, Paramus Catholic, Bergen Catholic, Don Bosco, St. Joseph and Immaculate Heart Academy. For our purposes, two area schools (Glen Rock, Waldwick) are being discounted, but only because they have no bowling teams.

In addition, the All-Suburban teams have a special category, either for Freshman or Sophomore of the Year, in order to salute an underclassman that might not get the recognition amid the number of junior and senior standouts. (Bear in mind, this tradition dates back to when freshman weren't allowed on varsity, and sophomore varsity players were much rarer). These days, they essentially keep it around to honor an underclassman that did not make the first team, but ought to be a candidate to do so next season.

Anyway, if there was room in a late-March Friday edition of the RN to publish it, we'd have this...

What The Ridgewood News All-Suburban bowling teams *would* look like (if they had them):
*Averages in parentheses, lists in alphabetical order; info added for those not mentioned above.

BOYS TEAM
Rob Andresen, Ramapo, Junior (212) - see above.
Chris Auld, Fair Lawn, Junior (202) - had 3rd-highest game in NBIL (289) and 20 of 200+
Freddy Carlo, River Dell, Junior (187) - to heck with league average. Dude won a Sectional title with a 706 and placed higher than any Bergen bowler (18th) at State finals, that's good enough for me
Nick Corvelli, Bergen Catholic, Senior (219) - one of two Crusaders to roll a 300...
Robert Grippo, Bergen Catholic, Junior (210) - ...and he was the other. Also took 2nd-place medal at Counties with a 1,315. Corvelli and Grippo had the two highest series as BC destroyified the County record en route to winning the Bergen title with a 6,211. And yes, I'm inventing a word, they were that convincing.
Anthony Karalian, New Milford, Junior (199) - All you need to know is that he bowled with a broken finger on his throwing hand at Sectionals, and still shot a 664 to lead the Knights to their 4th straight Sectional title.
Kyle Landau, Ramsey, Soph. (212) - one half of a brother tandem that boosted the Rams to a share of the NBIL-2 title, Kyle had the highest 2-game league series (523) and finished 10th at Counties (1,249). Also took a perfect frame into the 10th frame at Sectionals, settling for a 266—661 that led Ramsey back to Carolier.
Jake Morin, Indian Hills, Senior (199) - see above.
Kevin Seavers, Ridgewood, Senior (205) - see above.
Mike Wuhrman, Park Ridge, Soph. (200) - see previous post (BCSL final).
SOPHOMORE OF THE YEAR: Ryan Landau, Ramsey (197) - How do you tell twins apart? By their bowling average, naturally. All kidding aside, Ryan was equally as valuable as Kyle in the Rams' run to a share of the NBIL-2 title.

GIRLS TEAM
Kim Burdi, Ridgewood, Senior (181) - see above.
Grace Capone, IHA, Senior (183) - headed to Sacred Heart University next season, she had the Blue Eagles' high game (212) at the State team finals.
Brianna Carlo, Dumont, Senior (198) - see previous post (BCSL final).
Victoria Grimshaw, IHA, Senior (191) - the lefty took 5th at the North Jersey Singles Classic, 3rd at Counties, 9th at Sectionals and shot a team-high 548 series at the State finals.
Brittany Kneisler, Bergenfield, Senior (176) - see previous post (NBIL final).
Nicole Linder, IHA, Soph. (188) - won the Singles Classic and earned the high-game medal at Counties with a 256. She also had IHA's top series at Sectionals (642), helping the team to its eighth straight tournament title.
Nicolette Maggiolo, Ridgewood, Soph. (157) - one of three talented Maroon sophomores that started the year as a question mark but finished as an exclamation point. Had the team's second-best series (540) in her first visit to Carolier Lanes.
Lauren Rhein, IHA, Senior (206) - well, she was The Record's North Jersey Bowler of the Year, what more can we add? Numbers-wise, not much. But there's a reason she's ticketed for Vanderbilt, the 2007 NCAA Division I women's bowling champ -- simply put, she's a leader. And she rarely stops smiling, no matter the situation. Okay, that's two reasons.
Amanda Stacey, Midland Park, Senior (160) - as did fellow BPSL bowler Debbie Vogel, Stacey carried the girl-power banner by leading the co-ed Panthers in average. In case you missed her final announcement, the last ball she threw in her H.S. career was a strike.
Courtney Visco, Ridgewood, Senior (163) - see above.
FRESHMEN OF THE YEAR: Cassidy Fiore, Bergenfield (171); Bridget Pyryt, Indian Hills (165) - Fiore's team came out on top in the NBIL-2 title chase, but Pyryt's squad flipped the script at Sectionals, beating the Bears by one pin. If you want a burgeoning rivalry, here it is.

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So that brings us to our final accolades of the season... I wanted to do something original, something with a little NJBRG flair -- something like ESPN.com's Bill Simmons does with his "All-Star" teams, except, you know, not infused with his pro-Boston claptrap. (There's a reason I'm not linking him. Excellent writer, poor choice of fanhood).

At any rate, I've decided that since the NJBRG's top 3 defining characteristics are A) left-handedness, B) a love for his home state of New Jersey and C) a passion for bowling, the icing on this season's cake will be a salute to the southpaw sensations in our area that I had the privilege to see in action. Behold:

*The First Annual Parker Bohn III All-Stars, presented by the North Jersey Bowling Reporter Guy*
(Again, alphabetical order)

BOYS TEAM: Mike Burns (No. Highlands), Mike Carr (Ramapo), Ryan Cooper (Science Park), Jonathan Eckstein (Indian Hills), Jon Frantin (Pascack Valley), Mike Georgetti (Nutley), Patrick Henry (Bergen Catholic), Doug Nemeth (Ramsey), Scott O'Donnell (No. Highlands), Alex Prell (Wood-Ridge), Steve Puzio (Garfield), Brian Vanderheide (Eastern Christian).

GIRLS TEAM: Jolisa Aquino (High Tech), Kim Burdi (Ridgewood), Samantha Callahan (No. Highlands), Victoria Grimshaw (IHA), Shelby Taylor (Ridgewood).

My sincerest apologies if I have forgotten anyone -- but if I did, and you didn't e-mail the NJBRG to correct it, no complaints allowed.

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NJBRG season sign-off:

As I've mentioned before, the one site in the blogosphere that serves as an inspiration to the North Jersey Bowling Reporter Guy above all others is ESPN.com's Tuesday Morning Quarterback by the almost-aptly named Gregg Easterbrook. I've been an avid reader for years, and with apologies to TMQ, I must pay tribute with this winter's sign-off, as no one does it quite like him.

The North Jersey Bowling Blog folds its tent and steals off into the Swamps of Jersey until next December, though may update occasionally if one of our area bowlers is making headlines on the baseball or softball diamond. Until then, take the offseason not just to work on your spares, but to get the most out of life beyond the alley... go for a walk, read a book, move more and eat less. Finish one assignment or task that you just don't want to do and see how it feels. Go for a drive, head down the shore, stop and smell whatever flowers DON'T have bees at work on them. Spend one day with your family or loved ones, even if you don't want to, and see how they feel. Whatever your faith -- follow it.

And hey, try rolling at a new house. I recommend Ocean Lanes for the North Jerseyans who have never been south, and [EDITOR'S NOTE (3/15/10): we retroactively regret suggesting Wallington Lanes for actual bowling, rather than just its ambiance and shiny lights. Check it out if you wish, but revisionist history leads this blog to recommend the new-and-improved Parkway Lanes in Elmwood Park] for the South Jerseyans who have never been north. TMQ is more of a bookworm than I am, but of my own recommendations: "Wild at Heart" by John Eldredge for the boys, "Captivating" by Stasi Eldredge for the girls. To parents, I recommend both. And, at Mr. Easterbrook's suggestion, "'Positive Sports Parenting' by Jim Thompson, a book every youth-league and high-school coach and parent should read." (TMQ, 2/10/09)

Live, love, laugh, cry and serve others: Do these things, and you will feel justified in racing back to the rosin bags, the rivalries and the Bowler City chicken fingers when the varsity bowling universe resumes anew next winter.

Cheers,
-NJBRG

(3/27/09) Unfinished business - NBIL/BCSL

Remember how several decades ago -- fine, weeks -- I said that I was going to try and gather together all the final league standings from the NJBRG coverage area and post them on the site? Well, after finally sorting through all of my piles (and enduring a frustrating but much-needed computer hardware/software update at work), here is the last of the info I have -- Northern Hills was the only league I was unable to come up with. For the HCIAA North Division, please refer to the comment left at the end of the NNJIL entry, courtesy of realkid919 (who did not leave his realname).
Special thanks also to Indian Hills coach Mike Michels (NBIL), the Sports Reporter's Vince Albrect (BCSL Nat./Oly.) and... this website (BCSL American) for their contributions.

Stay tuned, the North Jersey Bowling blog All-Star sections will be posted by the end of the day.

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2008-09 NBIL FINAL STANDINGS - BOYS
Division 1
1. OLD TAPPAN: 99-11
2. Wayne Hills: 77-33
3. Fair Lawn: 74-36
4. Ramapo: 65-45
5. Northern Highlands: 41-69
6. Demarest: 2-108
Division 2
1. (tie) Ramsey: 70-40 (900 avg.)
1. (tie) Indian Hills: 70-40 (895 avg.)
3. Pascack Valley: 65-45
4. (tie) Pascack Hills: 39-71 (857 avg.)
4. (tie) Bergenfield: 39-71 (823 avg.)
6. Mahwah: 19-91

High game: Greg Kratky (Wayne Hills), 299
High series: Kyle Landau (Ramsey), 523*
High average: (tie) Kyle Landau and Rob Andresen (Ramapo), 212
*Remember, the NBIL bowls 2-game series. Landau threw a 661 at sectionals for cryin' out loud, so don't let the league stats mislead you.

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2008-09 NBIL FINAL STANDINGS - GIRLS
Division 1
1. Fair Lawn: 88-22
2. Northern Highlands: 75-35
3. Ramapo: 64-46
4. Wayne Hills: 29-81
5. Demarest: 23-87
6. Old Tappan: 2-108
Division 2
1. Bergenfield: 99-11
2. Indian Hills: 93-17
3. Pascack Hills: 75-35
4. Pascack Valley: 47-63
5. Ramsey: 43-67
6. Mahwah: 22-88

High game, series & average: Brittany Kniesler (Bergenfield), 245 / 448 / 176.0
To paraphrase Larry the Cable Guy - "I don't care who ya are, that's impressive right thurr."

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2008-09 BCSL NATIONAL FINAL STANDINGS
1. North Arlington: 98-17
2. Secaucus: 97-18
3. St. Mary (Ruth.): 68-47
4. Lyndhurst: 61-54
5. Becton: 60-55
6. Wallington: 60-55
7. Harrison: 17-98
8. Weehawken: 10-105

High game: Dante Iyer (Secaucus), 265
High series: Ashley Johnson (N.Arlington), 471*
High average: Matt Priore (N.Arlington), 223.5
Sportsmanship Award: Gary Job (Lyndhurst)
*Yeah, all the BCSL division bowl 2-game series as well. Extra props to Ms. Johnson for beating the boys in that category. Also, I must say I'm a fan of the Sportsmanship Award idea - lest we forget, opponents are our friends... the enemy is those little wooden suckers at the end of the lanes.

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2008-09 BCSL OLYMPIC FINAL STANDINGS
1. (tie) Leonia: 96-24
1. (tie) New Milford: 96-24
3. Wood-Ridge: 92-28
4. Bogota: 77-43
5. Park Ridge: 75-45
6. Hasbrouck Heights: 36-84
7. Ridgefield: 33-87
8. Palisades Park: 14-106
9. Hawthorne Christian: 9-111

High game: William Moore (Wood-Ridge), 279
High series: Mike Wuhrman (Park Ridge), 506
High average: Alex Prell (Wood-Ridge), 212.3
It's a shame I didn't get to see any league action down at Wallington lanes this year, but several things struck me while watching these teams at tournaments: The Record was right, and the NJBRG fully supports their gag order on using the H-word around Alex Prell. He's a great all-around bowler *and* a lefty - double prizes!... Mike Wuhrman blasted 10 strikes in a row at sectionals, and all he wound up with was a lousy 286. Then I found out he's a sophomore, i.e. he's got 2 more years to shoot for the elusive 12-bagger in H.S. competition. Yikes... Finally, being on the Midland Park beat occassionally, I've seen plenty of MP/Bogota volleyball battles, and the Bucs' Janet Snell always throws down pretty hard in those matches. So, naturally, I spot her on the lanes at counties and yup, you guessed it, she's a finesse bowler. Go figure.

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2008-09 BCSL AMERICAN FINAL STANDINGS - BOYS
1. Queen of Peace
2. Westwood
3. Tenafly
4. Rutherford
5. River Dell
6. Ridgefield Park
7. Fort Lee
8. Dumont
9. Englewood
10. Cliffside Park

High average: Chris Hopkins (Tenafly), 208
Umm... yeah, sorry, but the page on the BCSL webpage didn't show the final record for the American Division boys. D'oh.

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2008-09 BCSL AMERICAN FINAL STANDINGS - GIRLS
1. Dumont: 207-63
2. Westwood: 205-65
3. Cliffside Park: 156.5-113.5
4. Tenafly: 147.5-122.5
5. Ridgefield Park: 135-135
6. Englewood: 101-169
7. Fort Lee: 53.5-216.5

High average: Brianna Carlo (Dumont), 198
Coach of the Year: Dan Rattacasa (Westwood)
Fortunately, the girls standings were there. Again, wasn't able to see any BCSL action live, but if the standings tell the story, the girls ostensibly had a close title chase, which is pretty good for a brand-new league... tournament-wise, the American Division story of the year had to be Brianna (Dumont) *and* Freddy (River Dell) Carlo both qualifying for the State finals at Carolier. As the eldest of four siblings, I've learned that you have to cherish those special shared moments -- mostly so your parents forget about all the squabbling and stuff that normally goes on.

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Again, spring season is right around the corner, so my apologies for taking our postseason features down to the wire. Just in case, if anyone has any last-minute additions or corrections, e-mail them along to NorthJerseyBRG@gmail.com.

Moving a couple of boards to the North

The NJBRG has needed a couple of weeks since the state finals to recover. And by "recover," I mean "move." Although still a source of North Jersey bowling info, I've temporarily had to relocate from Bergen County to Rockland County, and will have to commute across state lines for the time being. This has taken a bit of blogging time away, but I'd still very much like to put together some postseason All-Star teams, and for that I still need a bit more info.

If you heard Part 2 of the WGHT North Jersey bowling wrap-up a couple weeks ago, then you heard our pals Marco & John mention a GHT All-Area team for bowling. Since they're experts on the "big four" in the winter -- boys basketball, girls basketball, hockey and wrestling -- and admittedly aren't as up-to-speed on bowling (hence their reliance on Gutterball Greg), they don't do an All-Area bowling team. I've offered before, but air time restrictions kind of make it tough. So, because they were nice enough to name-drop the North Jersey Bowling Blog on Sports Overtime, I will put together: What the GHT All-Area bowling team would look like (assuming they had one). I'm also kicking around some other fun ideas for postseason honors.

That said, I'm still a bit short on some of the necessary info. I'm still in search of averages and final standings from 2 leagues -- NBIL and Northern Hills -- for All-Area. In order to do a full assortment of All-Stars, I'd also like to get a hold of averages and standings from the BCSL American and National/Olympic, as well as the HCIAA. Please notify any coaches/directors in these leagues that they can e-mail the aforementioned info to NorthJerseyBRG@gmail.com.

Our target date to get all of our All-Star teams published is this Friday, March 13 (the NJBRG is reverse-superstitious, and that is his lucky number).