Lake Zurich, Vernon Hills earn state berths
Time for that coveted road trip again.
Both the Lake Zurich and Vernon Hills boys bowling teams will be making another trip downstate to St. Clair Bowl in O’Fallon to compete in the IHSA state tournament that begins Friday.
On Saturday, Lake Zurich jumped out to an early lead and held on to capture its own sectional with 6,419 pins at Brunswick Deer Park Lanes.
Vernon Hills advanced with a sizzling rally in its final three games to earn runner-up honors with 6,350 pins. Deerfield finished third (6,294), Stevenson (5,901) was fourth and Libertyville (5,593) took fifth in the 14-team field.
Lake Zurich opened with a season-best 3,307 that included games of 1,054, 1,189 and 1,064.
“We’ve been bowling on this shot all week in practice,” Bears sophomore Mike Schmitt said. “We were loud all day and that was the important thing. Loud is like not having a voice left. We were cheering and supporting the team.”
Schmitt began with a 694 series that included games of 263, 237 and 194. Over his final three games, Schmitt rolled 277, 214 and 217 for a 709 series — a total of 1,402 that earned him fourth place in the final individual standings.
Senior teammate Kyle Hunter had a 279 high game and a career-best 769 series over the first three games. Hunter finished sixth with 1,334.
“I always come out strong and then I cool down,” Hunter said. “I guess I took advantage of the house. Once one person gets hot, it’s like a chain. Everyone has his own game.”
Other Bears results included Tony Giannecchini’s 1,292, Steve Garcia’s 1,192, Mike Wormley’s 673 (three games), Quinn Nelson’s 415 (two games) and Jeremy Krause’s 173 (one game).
“The kids peaked at the right time,” said coach Peter Kupfer, whose Bears feature four veterans. “They showed up when they needed to show up. This is the best we’ve done this year. They can still do better at state if they show up again.”
Vernon Hills needed to make a move to get back downstate because it was sitting in fourth place after three games. The Cougars trailed Deerfield by 166 pins after throwing a morning session of 3,077.
The Cougars came alive and rolled a season-best 3,273 over the final three games, firing games of 1,128, 1,090 and 1,055.
“This is definitely the hardest-fought one,” Vernon Hills coach Ron Long said. “We just wanted to get to state and see what happens. Guys came out more ready in the afternoon. Conditions were much better and they were rolling the ball much better.”
The Cougars’ Mason Medaj was a big part of the rally. He rolled a 725 series over his final three games that included a 277. Medaj had been inserted into the lineup in the second game and bowled five games with an 1,146 pinfall.
“I wanted to stay focused and do the best for the team,” said Medaj, a senior, who rolled a 300 game in practice earlier in the week. “I had the front 8 (strikes) in Game 5 before leaving a 7-pin. I thought it helped the team and got them more excited at that point.”
Eric Swanson led the Cougars, finishing third with a six-game total of 1,414. Swanson rolled 718 and followed up with a 696. Other Cougars results included Jimmy Tyrcha with 1,216, Steven Linda with 1,212, Nick Garpow with 1,185 and Jeremy Steininger with one game of 177.
Deerfield’s top two bowlers advanced to state by finishing 1-2 in the individual standings. Quinn Thomas rolled a six-game series of 1,462 that included a 300 game. Zach Cole finished second with 1,431 after opening with a 299.
Zach Jarecki was the top Libertyville bowler in 16th place (1,206). Stevenson’s Paul Ritt (1,205) and Chris Kosky (1,204) finished 18th and 19th.
Huntley, a second-year program, started near the top of the field but settled for seventh place (5,552). Dalton Slator was the top Huntley bowler, rolling a 1,206 that was good for 16th-place tie.