FF_120519

42 | December 5, 2019 | the frankfort station sports
frankfortstationdaily.com
Athlete of the Week
10 Questions
with Matt Kordas
Matt Kordas is a junior
defensive back on the
Lincoln-Way East football
team.
How long have you
played football and
how did you get
started?
I’ve been playing football
since I was 5 years
old. I started with the
Frankfort Square Wildcats
and I played with them all
the way through eighth
grade. It was a great experience
with them.
Did anyone else in
your family play
football?
Yeah, my dad [Greg]
played at Arizona State,
three of my uncles played
in college, one of them
at Notre Dame. A lot of
family, other cousins and
uncles, also played Division
I. That family tradition
means a lot to me. The
family takes a lot of pride
in me and I want to make
them proud and keep it going.
You have had a huge
postseason with five
interceptions in four
games [entering the
state championship
game]. How exciting
has it been?
It means a lot. We’ve
been working hard. It’s
kind of crazy to me to have
five in the last four games,
Julie McMann/22nd Century
Media
because I didn’t have a lot
in the regular season. But
I’ve kept working hard,
and I guess now I’m making
the big plays. I’m really
happy about the way
I’ve been playing.
What do you imagine
it is going to be like
playing in a state
championship game?
I know it’s going to be
crazy. A lot of us have
been dreaming of this
since we were little kids
playing football. I’ve been
watching the championship
games on TV with
my family for as long as I
can remember. I know it’s
going to be a great experience.
Is there a football
player you idolized or
looked up to growing
up?
I like Harrison Smith
on the Vikings. He played
at Notre Dame. I like how
hard he works and how he
plays the [safety] position.
If you could be
anybody else for a
day, who would you
want to be?
I’d want to be Dominic
Dzioban, the kicker for our
team. I think it’d be cool to
kick in games.
If they were making a
movie about your life,
who should play you?
Zac Efron. I think it
would be funny if he
played me.
What is your favorite
TV show?
I like “Stranger Things”
and “Modern Family.”
“Stranger Things” is really
funny and has a good
storyline. My family has
been watching “Modern
Family” as long as I can
remember and we always
laugh watching it.
Do you have any
hidden talents?
I’m actually really good
at fishing. As long as I can
remember, I’ve loved fishing
with my grandpa and
everything.
If you could travel
anywhere in the
world, where would
you want to go?
Hawaii. I’ve always
wanted to go there.
Interview conducted by
Sports Editor Steve Millar.
Boys Bowling
Griffins get a bit of revenge
by beating Warriors in dual
RANDY WHALEN
Freelance Reporter
The Lincoln-Way East
and Lincoln-Way West
boys bowling teams are familiar
with each other.
When the two local
schools squared off in a
dual meet with each other
this past week, it was the
second of three straight
meetings between the two
teams, including a pair
of Saturday tournaments
both were participating in.
Add to that West’s unreal
comeback in the final frame
to beat East out for the final
qualifying spot in last season’s
regional, and this had
the look of a great matchup.
It lived up to that billing
as East gained a small
measure of revenge by being
the team with the better
game down the stretch in
a 1,921-1,900 victory over
the host Warriors on Nov.
25 in a SouthWest Suburban
match at Laraway
Lanes in New Lenox.
It was the first dual meet
loss of the season for West
(4-1, 2-1), while the Griffins
(3-2, 3-1) were happy
to bowl better than on Nov.
lwe
From Page 47
Zvonar said. “These guys
truly did that, and that
allowed us to improve,
maybe with a team that
wasn’t as talented as last
year’s team.”
There is no doubt this
year’s Griffins team had
plenty of talent. Michiganbound
AJ Henning was the
state’s top recruit, defensive
ends Sean McLaughlin
(Northwestern) and Adrian
23 at the 44-team Plainfield
North Invite, where the
Warriors were fourth, while
East was 18th.
“Bowling is a fickle game
and anything that happened
last year doesn’t matter,”
East coach Dan Galligan
said. “What happened last
year doesn’t matter. When
I think of state last year I
think of our bowler [then
senior, Josh Edgin] getting
seventh overall.
“It was nice to see us
bounce back from a subpar
first game [in the dual
meet]. We were down 64
pins and we got our act together
and won by 21 pins.
It came down to the last
two bowlers and this time
we pulled it out. A key for
us is to not get down on
ourselves.”
The Griffins, who had
an all-senior lineup, rolled
a 1,008 in the second game
after a 913 in the opener.
Demitri Przybylinski led
the way with a 445 (245,
200) series. Nick Signore
had a 391, Luke Mittler had
a 381, Anthony Gordon got
a 359 and Anthony Bria
fired a 345.
Wilson (Bowling Green)
are big-time players, and
Dominic Dzioban (Miami
Ohio) is one of the nation’s
top high school kickers.
But this year’s team
did not blow teams away
simply by showing up.
They had to fight a little
bit harder, and they always
did.
Whenever the Griffins
seemed to be in a bit of
trouble this season, they
came up with a big play.
All three units stepped up
8
West was led by a matchhigh
451 (215, 236) by junior
Nick Dudeck. Seniors
Cameron Jablonski (391)
and Ivan Escolar (388) with
a 388 were next. Junior
Glenn Prynn had a 362 and
sophomore Aidan Healy
(308) rounded out the Warrior
scores.
In the Minooka Regional
this past January, the Warriors
(6,053) edged East
(6,050) for the final spot.
West advanced by beating
East by 99 pins in the last
game, much of that coming
in the final frame.
“We’re still obviously a
little mad about that, it was
three pins,” Przybylinski
said. “So, we want to beat
them every time. We had
rallied [from 107 pins down
going into the final game to
beat West by seven] to win
the Lincoln-Way Cup last
year. So, whenever we play
them there’s an extra bit of
energy.
“In order to stay successful
this season we have to
keep our energy up much
more than in years past. We
have to keep our hopes up
and do the best we can.”
at different times.
The motivation was
always there.
“That’s definitely the
biggest reason we’re here
right now,” McLaughlin
said of last year’s loss. “I
don’t think it would be as
sweet right now if we were
going back-to-back. You
can’t change what happened
last year. That’s the
way it is. We’re just happy
to be champs now.”
It was special to watch.