ROCKAWAY — David Reale let the ball go down the lane. He didn’t even watch to see how many pins fell. Instead, the Delbarton senior turned around, arms outstretched, and walked toward his teammates.
Cole Dionyssiou was the first to wrap Reale up in a hug, quickly followed by the rest of the Green Wave.
Delbarton outlasted Chatham in the final round to capture the Morris County Tournament bowling plaque on Friday. It is the first for the Green Wave, which also won the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference championship last month.
Coach Kacy Kane, a math teacher and lifelong bowler, recalled taking over the program and vowing, “Give me 10 years. We’ll win a county title or a state title.””This is Year Nine,” he noted on Friday. “It’s exciting to have this in the trophy case.”
The Green Wave needed three games to defeat first Kinnelon, and then Chatham, in the semis and final. Kane was particularly pleased because no Delbarton bowler earned an individual plaque on Friday.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
“My team has a lot of trust in me,” said Reale, a four-year high school bowler from Warren. “It’s a lot of pressure, but I’m used to the pressure to bring it home for my guys.”
Though Kinnelon bowlers Michael Sprague and Nate Eisenmenger tied for the high series, and twin brother John Sprague was second for high game during the preliminary round, John said the Colts “couldn’t find their marks” during the semifinal against Delbarton. All three average over 200, but Michael was still surprised to have the best series.
As a senior, Eisenmenger took home the plaque. But Michael Sprague will get one in the mail soon.
“When my name was called, I felt very confident, because that doesn’t happen often,” said Sprague, a sophomore who is 30 seconds younger than his twin. “It’s very different being on varsity, but I’m doing better now.”
MCT girl power
Teagan Mendel wasn’t sure she’d be able to bowl at the MCT until the day before. That’s when the Mount Olive junior got cleared after dealing with the flu and pneumonia. Mendel even asked head coach Dan Gryzwacz to bring an alternate, just in case.
But that wasn’t necessary. Mendel had the best series by a girl on Friday, rolling two 157s and totaling 447. Butler sophomore Mikayla Eutermarks, a bowler since age 7, posted the high game with a 174.
Eutermarks joined the Butler bowling team this winter at the suggestion of coach Brittany Marion, but she’s made the adjustment from competing against family to friends. Mendel only started bowling about 18 months ago because she wanted to earn a varsity letter. She also plays rugby, which isn’t a high school sport in New Jersey.
“I was shocked. I made triple digits in all my games (after being sick),” said Mendel, who now bowls in a Saturday morning league at Rockaway Lanes. “I hope this helps me qualify for states.”
Team scores
Final round
Chatham 155, Delbarton 147
Delbarton 173, Chatham 133
Delbarton 173, Chatham 165
Semifinals
Delbarton 2, Kinnelon 1
Kinnelon 181, Delbarton 162
Delbarton 200, Kinnelon 147
Delbarton 207, Kinnelon 170
Chatham 2, Morris Hills 0
Chatham 233, Morris Hills 168
Chatham 233, Morris Hills 182
Opening round
Kinnelon 123-102-973-3198; Chatham 843-981-989-2813; Morris Hills 955-1025-879-2859; Delbarton 1016-888-885-2789; Morris Knolls 915-899-885-2789; Jefferson 951-940-847-2738; Montville 846-953-935-2734; Roxbury 1001-830-805-2636; Mount Olive 845-792-797-2434; Butler 732-749-825-2306; Madison 731-796-723-2250; Dover 666-812-733-2211; Morris Tech 726-734-682-2142; Morristown 654-741-709-2104
Individuals
Boys high game: Toby Monks (Chatham) 265; John Sprague (Kinnelon) 257; Nick Aiello (Jefferson) 255.
Boys high series: Nate Einsenmenger (Kinnelon) and Michael Sprague (Kinnelon) 678 ; Jake Schneider (Montville) 668.
Girls high game: Mikayla Eutermarks (Butler) 174; Lauren Bubnick (Mount Olive) 169; Teagan Mendel (Mount Olive) 157.
Girls high series: Teagan Mendel (Mount Olive) 446; Lauren Bubnick (Mount Olive) 419; Mikayla Eutermarks (Butler) 415.
