LP_021617

lockportlegend.com SPORTS
the Lockport Legend | February 16, 2017 | 45
Homer Glen man bowls perfect 900 series in Lockport
Becomes only second
bowler in IL, 32nd in
country to achieve mark
Erin Redmond, Assistant Editor
Strike and Spare II was packed
with bowlers Feb. 3, yet it was so
quiet you could hear a pin drop —
10 of them actually.
The silence was deafening for
26-year-old Sam Esposito as he
stepped up the lane for his 36th
and final frame. With two perfect
games under his belt already
and the series of “Xs” lighting up
the monitor overhead, he took a
deep breathe, reeled back and, to
his horror, watched his ball veer
slightly right.
But the bowling gods smiled
upon him, and his ball curved
back to hit dead on for the strike,
causing him to fall to the ground
in celebration and relief. That
final strike made Esposito just
the second person in Illinois
and the 32nd in the country to
bowl three consecutive perfect
games for a 900 series, according
to the United States Bowling
Congress.
“You know all those eyes are
looking at you and you’re just
trying not to mess up,” the Homer
Glen resident said. “The 36th
one for 900 was ... one that I was
really worried about because I
got it a little right off my hand
and I was lucky enough that it
came back and it struck and it
carried.”
With the ever-changing lane
conditions, Strike and Spare II
General Manager Mike Gorman
said it takes a lot talent — and a
dash of luck — to achieve what
Esposito did. He said he was
thrilled to have such a historic
event occur in his bowling alley
and that Esposito was the one to
do it.
“It’s a rare occurrence and we’ll
probably never see it again in this
bowling alley,” Gorman said. “It’s
unbelievable, really. You’ve got
guys that are shooting 800 series
and that’s rare air, but to shoot a
900, that’s amazing.
Sam Esposito poses for a picture
after bowling a 900 series Feb. 3
at Strike and Spare II in Lockport.
Photo submitted
“It happened to a great kid; it
couldn’t have happened to a nicer
guy.”
But Esposito’s perfect night almost
didn’t happen.
After being swamped at work
Friday, he didn’t think he’d make
it to the alley on time for the start
of his Friday night league. He
caught a lucky break, however,
and was even able to squeeze in
a few practice shots before kicking
off what he thought would be
a routine night of bowling.
Esposito, who has been bowling
since he was 12, already held two
sanctioned 300 games prior to his
900 series, but had struggled to
repeat perfection in recent years.
So when he was closing in on his
first 300 game of the night, he had
to tell himself to keep calm.
“Probably about the eighth or
ninth frame of the first game, I
looked up and I had all strikes,”
Esposito recalled. “It was like
‘don’t screw up again on 300.’ After
the first one, I just started bowling
the second game and started to
chit-chat. I looked up again and it
was eighth or ninth frame again
and I was like ‘am I going to do
this twice in the same night?’
“After I got the second one,
I was like ‘let’s just get the first
couple and just shake some of the
nerves.’ From there, every time I
threw the ball and it struck, I just
took a deep breathe and just said
‘thank God.’”
While bowling a 900 series was
always a goal for Esposito, he
never believed it would come to
fruition. In fact, he and his buddy
once joked they would retire from
the sport if it ever happened, but
Espositio said he’s not ready to
hang up his bowling shoes just
yet.
“[My friend] text me the Saturday
morning after it happened and
said ‘are you quitting now?’ But
no, I enjoy the sport too much,” he
said. “I’m just going to keep doing
it because I love it.”
Esposito isn’t expecting to bowl
a 900 series again anytime soon,
but was hoping to tally at least
600 pins at his next league game
— but he might need someone to
pinch him first.
“I can’t believe it,” Esposito
said. “I never thought it would
happen. I’m still actually waiting
to wake up from a dream. I’m still
on Cloud 9.”
Girls basketball
Lockport plays with heart, energy in final regular season game
Seven seniors applauded
prior to loss against
Lincoln-Way East
Randy Whalen, Freelance Reporter
As far as a game goes, last
week’s matchup between Lincoln-
Way East and Lockport Township
will not be put in a time capsule.
In the last regular season game
for both teams, East emerged victorious
with a 38-28 win over the
Porters in a SouthWest Suburban
Blue matchup before a senior night
crowd Feb. 7 at LTHS’s Central
Campus.
While the Griffins (18-10, 7-3)
missed too many shots and Lockport
(16-12, 4-6) turned the ball
over too many times, both teams
took something out of the game.
East reached the 18-win mark for
the 10th straight season and hopes
to reach 20 victories for the ninth
time in that span with another regional
title as the Class 4A playoffs
open this week.
“A win is a win,” East senior
guard Sam Nair said. “We all have
off nights. We have time off [until
the regional], and we just have to
keep practicing and work hard. We
have to tighten things up.”
East shot 16-of-51 (31 percent)
from the field and 3-of-8 (38 percent)
from the line in the game.
Griffins coach Jim Martin chalked
it up to one of those nights.
“It was just one of those things,”
Martin said of his team’s shooting.
“We didn’t shoot well in our last
two games [including a 56-37 loss
to Marist Feb. 4]. We’ve got to get
better and put the ball in the hole.”
Junior guard Carolyn Waleski
(11 points), Nair (10 points) and
senior forward Anna Power (9
points) led East, which jumped out
to a 7-0 lead midway through the
first quarter and led the entire way.
Ahead 8-5 after the first quarter,
Waleski scored six points in the
second quarter, and the Griffins led
20-11 at halftime.
Nair scored five points in the
third quarter, including a layup
for a 31-17 lead with 3:20 left.
The Griffins led 31-21 after three.
Lockport committed 30 of its 37
turnovers in the first three quarters.
“When we pressure the ball,
we’re really good at it,” Nair said.
Power scored on a layup with
6:09 to play for a 38-23 lead. But
East, which committed eight of its
17 turnovers in the fourth quarter,
did not score again.
Lockport — which lost to the
Griffins 52-51 Jan. 17 in the teams’
first meeting this season — had
their last victory over East with a
60-51 win on Dec. 15, 2005. The
Porters are guaranteed to finish
with at least their most wins since
going 16-11 in the 2010-2011 season.
But they also wanted to advance
to a regional title game for
the first time in a decade this week.
“I was proud of how everyone
played and showed how much they
care about each other,” Lockport
coach Dan Kelly said. “That’s one
of our core values, and it was great
to see everyone sacrifice for each
other.
“I don’t care what the scoreboard
said [last week against East]. We
were winners.”
Before the game, the Porters
honored their seven seniors: Melissa
Calvo, Kayla Janssen, Madalyn
Kennedy, Laurel Kucharski, Hailey
Ledbetter, Kaleigh Schmutzler
and Elena Woulfe.
But even after the seniors were
honored, the team made a special
presentation to Kucharski, who
was on the varsity all four years.
“Laurel sacrificed a starting position,
and they wanted to thank her
for everything,” said Kelly, who
started an all-senior lineup. “I was
proud of the energy we brought.”
Kucharski, who has committed
to play next season at the
University of Mary in North
Dakota and missed a month this
season with strained ligaments in
her right thumb, was surprised at
the gesture.
Please see basketball, 43