MK_011620

34 | January 16, 2020 | the mokena messenger sports
mokenamessengerdaily.com
Boys Bowling
LW Central’s Nolan wins SWSC individual title
RANDY WHALEN
Freelance Reporter
4
Lincoln-Way Central
senior Alex Nolan picked
a good time for his best
performance of the season.
Nolan totaled 1,430 pins
over six games (238 average)
to win his first South-
West Suburban Conference
title Saturday, Jan. 11, at
Orland Bowl.
Nolan topped Bradley-
Bourbonnais junior Eli
Smith by 87 pins for the
crown.
“It’s the first tournament
I’ve actually won this year,
and it’s good going into the
postseason,” Nolan said.
“This is the best finish I’ve
ever had at the conference.
I had never taken first but
got third two years ago. It
feels much better to take
first.
“I’ve stepped up to be
the leader of the team the
past two years and I enjoy
that.”
Nolan’s worst game was
his first, a 214. He had a
high of 257 in the third
game and tacked on a 255
in Game No. 5.
“I don’t know what we
are going to do next season
without Alex,” Central
coach Coley O’Connell
said. “He’s been here all
four-years I’ve been at
Lincoln-Way Central. I’m
very happy for him.”
The Knights (6,100)
finished third in the team
standings behind champion
Lockport (6,288) and
Bradley (6,229).
Lincoln-Way West
(6,036), Sandburg (6,004),
Lincoln-Way East (5,519),
Andrew (5,490), Stagg
(5,447), and Bolingbrook
(5,282) rounded out the
nine-team field.
The Knights were pretty
Lincoln-Way Central senior Alex Nolan fires a shot at the SouthWest Suburban
Conference meet Saturday, Jan. 11, at Orland Bowl. Nolan was the individual
champion. CHIP DELORENZO/22ND CENTURY MEDIA
consistent all day with a
3,062 in the morning and
a 3,038 in the afternoon.
They had a high game of
1,111 in the fifth game.
“Lockport has been on
a roll,” said O’Connell,
whose team was the one to
defeat the Porters in dual
meet play this season by
a score of 2,041-1,919 on
Dec. 12 at Laraway Lanes.
“We just couldn’t catch
them.”
Nolan was the only All-
Conference (top 11) bowler
for the Knights. Tyler
Misch (17th, 1,210, high
of 232 in Game No. 2) was
next. Fellow senior Tommy
Martini added a 1,128
total that included a high of
215 in Game No. 5.
Freshman Ryan Marszalek
(908 in five games,
high of 226 in Game
No. 1), sophomore Luke
Thormeyer - who added
a nice four-game total of
902, which a high of 257
in Game No. 5 - and senior
Austin Zaker (542 in
3 games, high of 213 in
Game No. 1) rounded out
the Knights bowlers.
Central will compete,
along with LW East, LW
West and Providence, at
the Joliet West Regional on
Saturday, Jan. 18, at Town
and Country Lanes in Joliet.
Bradley is also a part
of the 13-team regional,
along with perennial powers
like the host Tigers and
Minooka.
“We kept a top junior,
Jack McCabe, down on
the JV because we wanted
to make sure he got all six
games bowled,” O’Connell
said of his conference lineup.
“I’d rather have him do
that than bowl two games
on the varsity. At the regional,
it’s going to be a
battle between six or seven
teams for four spots.”
Despite a sixth place
showing at the conference
meet, Lincoln-Way East
coach Dan Galligan is optimistic
his team has a shot
at the regional.
The Griffins competed
without one of their top
bowlers, Anthony Bria,
who was attending a family
wedding.
“I let my guys know
they’ve got to be ready,”
East coach Dan Galligan
said. “We were 8-3 overall
and 6-2 in dual meets
in the league. Our only
losses were to Joliet West,
Sandburg, and Lockport.
So, we’ve bowled well. We
bowled well last month at
the Lincoln-Way Cup [on
Lincoln-Way Central senior Alex Nolan wears his
SouthWest Suburban champion medal.
JEFF VORVA/22ND CENTURY MEDIA
Dec. 21 at Laraway Lanes].
“We struggled a bit [at
conference] but that doesn’t
make me any less confident
going into the regional.
Bowling is a sport where
you just shake it off. We just
have to be in the top four
there. So, if we have a bad
morning, we have to shake
it off because the opportunity
to make up ground and
be one of those four teams
should still be there.”
Demitri Przbylinski
(1,225, 15th place, high
of 236 in Game No. 2)
led East at the conference
meet. Junior Jason Ganser
(1,146, high of 246 in
Game No. 1), and seniors
Nick Signore (1,125, high
of 203 in Game No. 5),
Anthony Gordon (1,089,
high of 208 in Game No.
5) and Luke Mittler (934,
high of 177 in Game 1)
also bowled all six games
for the Griffins.
Freshman Jason Laba
led Lockport with a pinfall
total of 1,294 and placed
fourth overall. He had a
290 in the second game,
which included strikes
on the last 11 balls. That
helped the Porter to their
highest game at 1,133.
Laba, who opened the next
game with a strike too, had
a 299 in practice earlier
this season.
“It’s awesome,” Laba
said of winning the conference
championship as
a team. “All the practices,
all the tournaments, it all
paid off. We’ve placed in
the top six of every tournament.
It was surprising that
[Bradley] was right there
with us but it was exciting.
“We just had to pick
each other up.”