The Pats bowling team bounced back from a tough tie against Devon Prep on Jan. 3 by defeating Roman Catholic 3-1 on Jan. 4 at Wynnewood Lanes.
Carroll’s bowling team has had a couple rough patches in its previous few games, and missing two key starters, seniors James Klusarits and Patrick McGonigle, for the Roman match did not help in the quest to right the ship. With these starters not in attendance, senior James Wright stepped in as well as juniors Kebede Miles and Ryan Cook.
“Today is a must win,” senior Stephen Thomson said before the match. “After coming off that bad tie to Devon, we at least need to win three today.”
Down two starters, the Pats really had to bring their A-game. Senior Marco Petroccia started off the game with three strikes in a row, which gave the Pats some confidence heading into the later frames. Although the Pats weren’t bowling bad, Roman Catholic came out of the gate hot. Three out of five Roman Catholic players had a score of 170 and above. The Pats ended up losing the first game by 37 pins.
“Definitely not the start we were looking for,” senior Jesse Ventre said. “Since we are down a couple of guys, that means some of us have to step up.”
After talking to Coach Thomas Quintois and regrouping as a team, the boys were ready for a comeback. The boys started off the second game great, as Thomson collected three strikes in a row. Joining Thomson with some strikes was Ventre, as he had three strikes himself. This game came down to the wire, and the Pats needed this one badly. With only being down one pin in the second game, Petroccia fired two strikes and a nine in the tenth frame, which put the boys up comfortably by 11. The Pats took the second game by 11 pins.
“It was a solid second game,” said Thomson. “That was definitely what we were looking for.”
The Pats needed a big game three to take the win 3-1. If the Pats won the third game by more than 27 pins, they would bring home the much needed win. The boys started off the game burning hot with Ventre racking up three strikes in a row. As the frames went on, the Pats lead grew. By the tenth frame, the boys were up by around 95 pins. The Pats took the win 3-1, and now move to 15-13 on the season.
The Pats next game is against La Salle College High School on Jan.9 at Thunderbird Lanes.
