NORTON — After watching the girls team bring home a win Saturday, Conotton Valley High School boys bowling coach Dennis Gordon was hoping to duplicate their success Sunday.
But before leaving for Charger Lanes for the boys edition of the ninth annual Panther Challenge, Gordon received a phone call. His No. 1 player, Bobby Brennan, would be unable to bowl due to illness.
“He called about 6 a.m. and was running about a 101-degree fever,” Gordon said. “So we only brought five kids and bowled with what we had.”
Did they ever.
Although the Division II Rockets didn’t win the title, they made a few Division I teams sit up and take notice, finishing second in the 24-team field.
Nordonia shot 1,162 in Game 1, rolled to a 350-pin lead after the three regular games of the opening session, and cruised to the win with 4,564 total pinfall. The Rockets, who were never lower than fourth all day, took second with 4,245, followed by Tallmadge (4,143), Boardman (4,099) and New Philadelphia (4,098).
ROCKETS BATTLE
“We’ve been in this tournament quite a few times, back to my days at Claymont. It’s always a tough event,” Gordon said. “When you lose your No. 1 and his 226 average, it gets tougher.
“But these boys stepped up and did the job. Am I surprised? Yes.”
Robert Myer shot a low game of 214 en route to all-tournament, second-team honors to lead the Rockets with 681. Nolan Caldwell added 652 and Nathan Downing had 619 to aid the cause.
“We told them we couldn’t throw under 180 in Bakers to have a chance to make the top three, and we only had two 181s,” Gordon said. “We had just three holes overall in Bakers.”
The tournament featured an opening round of three regular games followed by the second round of six Baker System games. Teams stayed on their same lane pairs throughout the event.
“We’re such a small school that these kids really don’t realize who they are bowling against most of the time. They really don’t,” Gordon said.
One of those teams was Nordonia, which continued its early-season success.
KNIGHTS ROLL PAST FIELD
The Knights topped the Suburban League Preseason tournament, led the field at Ravenna’s event and also finished third in the Ohio High School Bowling Coaches Division I Kickoff Classic, falling to Boardman in the semifinals.
“Finishing third at the Kickoff, that was a grind. It was a confidence builder for our kids,” said Nordonia head coach Ty Lachowski, whose team also finished third at the OHSAA Division I State Championships last season.
“Five of our guys are returnees and they are very focused on getting back to state again. Our goal is taking it one step at a time. We were third at state last year; going one step further is our goal.”
The Knights finished the opening three regular games with 3,366, 350 pins ahead of Rootstown.
“Our Game 1 was strong and my seniors were on target today, and that’s a good thing,” Lachowski said. “They’re going to have good days and bad days, but today was a good day for them.”
During Game 1, left-handed two-hander Bryce Lewin led the Knights with 277, followed by another two-handed lefty, Matt Willis, with 267. Kyan Freyhauf also had 235 and RJ Lewis had 214 en route to a 704 series, earning first-team all-tournament status.
Freyhauf had 695 to also make first team, and Willis shot 687 for second-team honors. Lewin had 650. Drew Kitzmiller had 461 for two games. Jeremy Patterson shot just 169 in Game 1, but aided in the Baker System effort.
“All eight of my kids came out and produced today. They worked hard and made good shots. We just had great teamwork,” Lachowski said.
But Lachowski also admitted the Knights’ Baker System performance was “so-so.” Nordonia shot 255 during its final Baker game, but averaged just 188.6 up to that point.
“We have to improve that, so we have some things to work on,” Lachowski said. “Every time we practice, go to matches or in tournaments, let’s go one day better. That’s our goal.
“Some of these kids have been to state three straight years, and we’ve improved every year. We want to really improve this year.”
And the Knights are kicking that goal into gear early.
NOTEBOOK: Boardman’s Daniel Enright and Medina Highland’s Kyle Dunne turned in the top series with 724 each to share honors. … High games went to Lewin in Game 1 (277), Enright in Game 2 (279) and Green’s Anthony Bordanero in Game 3 (267). Green’s boys finished 15th overall after their girls were runners-up to Conotton Valley on Saturday. … The top two teams received free entries into next year’s event.
NINTH ANNUAL PANTHER CHALLENGE
(At Charger Lanes, Norton)
Team standings: 1, Nordonia 4,564 total pinfall; 2, Conotton Valley 4,245; 3, Tallmadge 4,143; 4, Boardman 4,099; 5, New Philadelphia 4,098; 6, Stow-Munroe Falls 4,040; 7, Medina 4,021; 8, Rootstown 4,007; 9, Mansfield 4,002; 10, Highland 3,999; 11, Mentor 3,976; 12, Berea-Midpark 3,962; 13, Norton 3,829; 14, Cleveland St. Ignatius 3,810; 15, Green 3,774; 16, Ravenna 3,725; 17, Woodridge 3,716; 18, Cuyahoga Falls 3,692; 19, Coventry 3,692; 20, Akron Hoban 3,602; 21, Massillon 3,443; 22, Barberton 2,272; 23, Howland 3,232; 24, Claymont 3,000.
High series: Daniel Enright (Boardman), Kyle Dunne (Highland) 724
High games: Bryce Lewin (Nordonia) 277; Daniel Enright (Boardman) 279; Anthony Bordanaro (Green) 267.
All-tournament teams
First team: RJ Lewis (Nordonia) 704; Anthony Bordanaro (Green) 700; Kyan Frehauf (Nordonia) 695; Logan Calo (Norton) 690; Carson Flowers (Rootstown) 688
Second team: Matt Willis (Nordonia) 687; Austin Rule (Boardman) 681; Robert Myer (Conotton Valley) 681; Parker Addison (Ravenna) 666; Isaiah Davis (Mansfield) 666