Whitman's Chris Rinaldi rises to task, wins Suffolk bowling singles championship
Chris Rinaldi of Whitman after rolling a strike during the Suffolk boys singles bowling tournament at Sayville on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024. Credit: Neil Miller
Whitman’s Chris Rinaldi was in the zone.
Rinaldi was the No. 6 seed heading into the 10-man roll off to decide the Suffolk boys bowling singles championship, but the junior rose to the task when it mattered most.
Rinaldi rolled a 247 to advance from a group of three to the semifinals against top-seeded Alexander Greaves of Half Hollow Hills. Rinaldi was nearly flawless against Greaves, rolling a 279 featuring 11 strikes to get to the final against No. 2 seed Niko Stavropoulos of East Islip.
Rinaldi then rolled seven strikes in the championship match en route to a 215-168 victory to claim the Suffolk boys bowling singles championship at Bowlero in Sayville.
“The top 10 was nothing short of amazing,” Rinaldi said. “Everybody here was definitely capable of winning this, it wasn’t one-sided. I definitely think that I put the time in for it and I’ve tried and practiced enough to be here, and I’m grateful for it.”
Rinaldi secured a spot on Suffolk’s sectional team, which will compete during the state bowling championships against other sectional teams on March 9 in Syracuse.
“He came to me, I think, in middle school . . . and he said, ‘I wanna bowl, do you have any ideas?’ ” Whitman coach John DiGiacomo said. “(I said,) ‘Yes, go to Larkfield Lanes, go get a ball there and start from there.’ Next thing you know, he just took off.”
ESM’s DiMarco, Genna claim doubles title
Seniors Jonathan DiMarco and Antonino Genna did not come to the county doubles championship with goals of winning, but the Eastport-South Manor duo soon realized it was possible.
The duo, seeded No. 2 in the four-team roll off bracket, turned an afterthought into reality. After defeating Islip’s Gavin Connell and Anthony Bullaro by 58 in the semifinals, DiMarco and Genna would face Longwood’s top-seeded duo of Tyler Uss and Logan Cohen.
DiMarco and Genna squeaked out a thrilling 399-387 win in the championship match en route to being crowned Suffolk doubles champions.
“We looked at each other all week, we were just like, just to qualify to the second round would have been amazing to finish up senior year,” DiMarco said. “But winning was not even in the mindset. It’s just ecstatic. Crazy feeling.”
Genna shot a 221 and DiMarco shot a 178 in the final round.
“Great feeling,” Genna added. “All week we just said we wanted to qualify. After that, we were like, ‘Shoot, we can win this thing.’ And then once we won that first game, we were like, ‘We can really win this thing.’ We got the job done.”
Ben Dickson joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.