By BILL SNIER
Senior player Gary Brobson was coming back from a year off when he shot 800 at Eastbury Bowling Center last season.
Then, there is Canton McKinley High School graduate Andrew Fraleigh, who came into this season looking for his first milestone series.
To say it has been a career year for both would be an understatement.
Bowling in two leagues at Eastbury this season and troubled by a right knee problem, Brobson recently rolled his third 800 of the season recently in the Liberty Vending league. He had a season-high of 815 earlier.
Then there is Fraleigh, who now has four this season — at three different centers, including AMF North Ridgeville, AMF Brookgate and Rollhouse Parma. One included triplicate 279s for a high of 837.
Each has a different story to tell about their success. Let’s look at each.
BROBSON’S THREE
Brobson, a 63-year-old North Canton left-hander who is closing in on retirement from the U.S. Postal Service, admits he has never had a season like this.
“I don’t know what it is … old age I guess,” said Brobson, whose most recent 800 was an 804. “My problem always use to be be that I was real quick and it got me into problems.
“Now, I’m much more solid, slower and actually throwing the ball pretty well. It’s scary when you are solid on every shot at the line.”
Brobson, who had elbow surgery nearly two years ago, now is facing right knee surgery.
“I’m a little more cognizant of what it might do, so I want to stay slow,” Brobson said. “I’ve started bowling with a sleeve on it and it has helped. Get rid of the elbow and now it’s a knee problem.”
The two new balls in his arsenal — Storm Absolute and Columbia Cuda drilled by Frank Testa — also have had an impact
“When the Absolute is not working, I have the ability to make a little move in and the Coda takes over. I’ve used both of them all year,” said Brobson, who bowls in just two leagues.
“Granted, on the left side you don’t have to adjust much. But when the Absolute starts going flat, I can go to the Coda and it’s like wow. With the Absolute, I’m around seven (board) and with the Coda about 12.”
But he knows surgery is imminent.
“My wife, the nurse, says it’s going to be done,” Brobson said. “We’re taking a trip in June, and I don’t know how it will be. We’ll see then.”
But it will be difficult to top this season.
“It’s just crazy,” Brobson said. “Now, you shoot 650 and you’re disappointed.”
FOUR AT THREE FOR FRALEIGH
Fraleigh, a 23-year-old two-handed right-hander who now resides in North Ridgeville, came into this season without an 800 series. He now has four — with two months to go.
“I don’t know what’s going on,” said Fraleigh, who works at Lids at the Great Northern Mall. “Honestly, I haven’t done anything really new. It was just a new year, with a new mentality, especially with bowling. And I went into two centers where I never really bowled league before.”
His triplicate 279s came with the Roto Grip Gem along with his first one. Along the way, he also has used the new Storm Summit Peak, which he threw his latest 800 with fresh out of the box and then a combination of the Roto Grip Tour Dynamix and Storm IQ Ruby for one at AMF North Ridgeville.
“I have three bags that go with me everywhere. My friends tole me that once you get over that hump, they all seem to flow,” Fraleigh said. “I had the first one in October, two in December and then one in January.
“I just went into the season to make a name for myself and stay mellow and low to the ground rather than be the eccentric person I normally try to be in places where I can score well. Just keep a level head and go in with no expectations.”
Fraleigh also has figured out all three centers to an extent.
“Rollhouse Parma is definitely the heaviest oil for me. Concentration allows me to play bigger balls a little longer. Brookgate, there is more miss room inside. If you go outside, you have to play stronger stuff because five-to-seven (boards) are out of bounds,” Fraleigh said. “Ridgeville has been the most inconsistent. It plays different week to week, which is why I’ve struggled recently.
“But it’s a good balance between the two because you have miss room outside. It’s heavy, but not heavy enough where you have to use bigger balls all three games.”
When he had the 279 triplicate, he wasn’t even thinking about it in Game 3 since it was a one-on-one points league.
“I was just trying to win my head-to-head match. The guy I was rolling against also had the front six or seven (strikes),” Fraleigh sad. “I was concentrating more on winning the point.”
But to say this has been a breakout season is an understatement.
“Getting the first one out of the way was huge for me. I finally put the jitters behind me,” Fraleigh said. “It’s the same thing with a 300. It just really eases that pressure.”