There are a lot of sports opportunities here at OP, but one of the more unique sports has to be bowling. Competitively, bowling as part of a team sounded like a very interesting topic to me, so I decided to ask a few of the bowlers on varsity and the other teams. This will be structured in such a way that, for each question, everyone’s responses will be grouped together to form a collage. 

What made you join the bowling team?

James Finnen: “It’s nothing very specific I just loved the sport itself.”
Anthony (Buddy) Marino: “I have always bowled for fun and decided to give the team a try.”

Xander Misrahi (Varsity): “I really had no other sport to do and I thought it would be fun.”

Joshua Costello (Varsity): “At first, I had no interest in joining the team and just wanted to have something to do in the winter.  I had a little bowling experience but nothing crazy, like every now and then. It was mostly a push from my parents that made me join the team.”

What do you think about the commitment to being part of the team?

James: “It’s fair; we only have games on Monday and Wednesday so it isn’t too much to ask for.”
Buddy: “I think that there is not too harsh of a commitment so you can relax.”

Xander: “I don’t really think of it as a commitment and more of a fun activity I get to do with some of my friends.”

Josh: “In general, it isn’t a huge commitment unless someone is really looking to improve.  For school, we normally only have 2-3 days of bowling, but quite a few of the days that I have off, I go bowling with my friends and I do a league on the weekends.  Other than that, it is not a huge time commitment in my opinion.”

Do you enjoy being a part of the team?

James: “I love being part of the team, the people on our team as well as other bowling teams are nice people.”

Buddy: “I do enjoy being part of the team.”

Xander: “Of course yes, there are some times where I get upset with the way I play, but I love being a part of the team.”

Josh: “Absolutely.  I have met a few of the greatest people ever that I’ve grown to become friends with. The team itself has a great bond with each other and is generally very supportive of each other. We always give pointers to each other to try and make each of us the best that we can be.  Also, bowling is really relaxed (always depending on who we are against) and that definitely adds to the enjoyment.”

How would you describe what practice and games are like?

James: “Practice games, like any sport, are more for fun, and there is not a lot of pressure, but in games, you need to do your best.”

Buddy: “The practice is fun and you can improve without the worry of doing bad and the games are fun because you can see the diversity of the people who bowl and different styles of bowling.”

Xander: “We don’t have many practices but when we do they are roughly two hours.  They are laid back and fun and just more like hanging out with friends than a commitment.  Matches are a little different because it depends on the team you are playing against. If we are doing well and having fun it feels like a practice, but if we are doing poorly it feels like a challenge for us to get back into the game and bowl our best.”

Josh: “There are very few practices, but if they roll around they are looked forward to by everyone.  It is probably the most enjoyable part of the season all together since no one has any tension and people also generally do a lot better than they do in games (from experience).  Games are super fun mostly because most of the games that we play are really close in the score (unless it’s Roselle or Plainfield). This especially comes into play during the State and County tournament.  It is probably the most nail-biting experience I’ve ever had while bowling since a lot of the teams are really close together.”

Anything else you’d like to add as well?

Xander: “It’s a very fun little hobby that just takes your mind off of things and I don’t think many people know, but you can join even if you aren’t good at it.  The JV team is, of course, a competitive team, but you do not have to be great and you can just come to have fun with friends.”

James: “Bowling is a sport and not a hobby.”

Josh: “Steve, were you going for that?”

Overall, these responses were very nice to read, as they were similar yet unique.  It’s great to hear that the team can have a great bond and allow for a lot of opportunities and not be too stress-inducing as well.  Knowing that you can discover something you really like just by trying it out is comforting. I’d like to thank everyone who was interviewed for their thoughtful responses and giving everyone a better insight into what the bowling team is like.