Commack boys bowling makes history: Wild-card winner to Suffolk champions!
Luke Jovans of Commack rolls his team to victory at the Suffolk bowling championships at Sayville Bowlero on Saturday. Credit: /Derrick Dingle
A boys bowling team that earned a spot in the Suffolk championship via the Wild Card tournament had never won the county crown.
That changed on Saturday.
Commack went 11-5 in the regular season and finished fourth in Suffolk League III, earning a county championship spot via Wednesday’s wild-card berth.
The Cougars led from start to finish, totaling 6,435 pins en route to a Suffolk title at Bowlero in Sayville. Freshman Luke Jovans rolled a 690 series (three games) in the morning and a 696 series (three games) in the afternoon.
“It feels amazing,” Jovans said. “I did not think we had a chance. We were ranked like the eighth team in our league. We were a wild-card spot.”
“We just bowled great,” Commack coach Brian Gasser said. “There’s no seniors. It’s all juniors and freshmen and sophomores, and each of them bowled all 60 frames. There were no substitutions. So a lot of hard work and a great payoff.”
East Islip (6,149) finished second and Brentwood (6,098) placed third.
Commack will compete for the state title at Strike 'N Spare Lanes in Syracuse on March 10.
Comsewogue’s Anthony Manetta, East Islip’s Matthew Sundberg and Andrew Jacobsen, Longwood’s Corey Volper and Deer Park’s Vinny Petrillo will join Whitman’s Chris Rinaldi — the county singles champion from Jan. 31 — on the Suffolk All-Star team that will vie for a state title in Syracuse on March 9.
East Islip adds another title
The East Islip girls bowling team was perfect in the regular season, winning each of its 12 matches and the Suffolk League III title.
Against nine of the county’s best on Saturday at the Suffolk girls bowling championship, East Islip still did not blink.
Senior Kailyn Bloch rolled a 691 series in the afternoon’s set of three games, and East Islip totaled 6,066 pins in six games to earn the county title.
“It means a lot,” Bloch said. “It’s my last year in high school to win it as a team and not just [as an] all-star. I really wanted to go out on a high note with the girls we’ve been bowling with since seventh grade, so it felt really good.”
East Islip will compete in the state championship in Syracuse on March 10.
“It’s definitely been one of the closest-knit groups I’ve had since I took over,” said East Islip coach Rob Sconone, who replaced legendary coach Harold Cooley in the 2020-21 season. “They’ve been so friendly with one another and it’s been really nice to be around them.”
Sachem (5,799) finished second and Longwood (5,580) placed third.
Bloch had a 1,340 six-game series, including a high game of 268 in Game 2. Brooke Andresen rolled a 1,234 series for East Islip. Sachem’s Cira Arcangel had the high game of the championship — a 279 in Game 5.
Arcangel, Central Islip’s Leighanna Tolan, Longwood’s Kaylee Dwyer and Ava Mazella, Commack’s Ilana Kaplan and Smithtown’s Trishna Desai will make up the Suffolk All-Star team that will compete for a state title in Syracuse on March 9.
Ben Dickson joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.