On Dec. 2, the Niles North Boys Bowling team competed in the Vernon Hills Invitational, the team’s first tournament. Many schools from all around the Chicago area showed up to partake. The bowling tournament is a long and intense experience for the high school bowler, one that requires full energy, commitment, and positivity to play well, usually resulting in a tiring drive back home, victory in hand or otherwise. This tournament was no exception.
“The tournament was very long but it was pretty fun,” Varsity bowler Jacob Titsworth said. “I got to hang out with the team; the environment’s great. It’s very welcoming, everyone has a good time. It’s taken seriously but there’s also a bunch of jokes around. It’s really the kind of environment I like to be at. I hope to see some Ws from the team in the future, I very much want us to win. I strive for that.”
The tournament was pretty good. I think we did really well because, in the first game, we actually came really close to beating New Trier, but the lanes themselves were very greasy; it was hard to get a hook on the ball. By the end of the tournament I was very tired but I was proud of how far we got that day. So far, I’m really proud of how the seasons have improved from previous years. We have a lot of people that are very fast learners, we’ve been bowling much better as compared to the past, and I think we have potential to move further up this year than we ever have.”
— Brayden Tratt, Varsity bowler
Many familiar schools showed up to play, including Evanston, Vernon Hills, Glenbrook North, Notre Dame, Mundelein, and of course, Niles North. But many less familiar schools showed up, ones that Niles North’s team has never played a match against, including Grayslake, St. Patrick’s Lake Park, Streamwood, Freeport, Libertyville, and even Hononegah. Coach Louie Lainez brought eight players to compete: Jared Belen, Marvin Yelda, Jacob Titsworth, Colin Sucherman, James Prizant, Brayden Tratt, CJ Hood, and Nikolas Sikoral, with half the players having joined this year. Niles North itself had a hard time of keeping consistent scores and maintaining high energy, especially as the games progressed and lane conditions worsened.
In general, the sport of bowling has gained lots more popularity this year. For the first time in years, Boys Bowling has a full Varsity and JV team, and the sport itself has seen mass promotion this year through posters, emails, media recognition, and even social media. The team also plans to team up with Girls Bowling for a performance during the Winter Pep Assembly on Dec. 8. Not only that, but student-run Boys Bowling instagram account, “@nnboysbowling,” has gained much unexpected traction since its creation in Sept. Their most popular video, posted on Nov. 15, gained over 1000 likes in just two weeks. The video features Varsity bowler and Junior James Prizant picking up a split (a combination of leftover non-adjacent pins) by knocking the pins against the wall of the bowling lane. This video was even reposted on TikTok by Keaton Hendrix, @bowlingguy92, a bowling account with nearly 290,000 followers. As of Dec. 7, the original Instagram post has over 1,500 likes.
“The Instagram account is good because it highlights players and them having their good days and having their good games,” Titsworth said. “It’s also got some jokes on it like with Marvin. It shows good team bonding.”
Girls Bowling has also seen its fair share of positive improvement. This year, the team has enough people to fill the Varsity slots but are still looking for additional players to fill in their JV spots. They have also been facing off against other teams in weekday matches and also had their first tournament on Dec. 2, which also proved to be difficult though entertaining in its uniqueness for the players.
“Our tournament was fun; it was like a whole different experience,” Varsity bowler Caeli Henson said. “We have another tournament this Saturday, so that will also be exciting. It’s kind of difficult seeing other teams doing better but I just try to have fun. I hope that all of us improve, keep having fun, and keep being friendly towards each other with good sportsmanship. I think I might join again next year.”
The improvement from our school’s bowlers is unseen and their dedication to improvement and brotherly support persistent as ever. More matches and competitions are just around the corner; the next tournament will be for JV players, hosted by Glenbrook North, at River Rand Bowl in Des Plaines, on Dec. 9 between 10 AM and 5 PM. The Conference tournament is not too far away as well, taking place at Vernon Hills the Saturday after Winter Break (Jan. 6, same times). Lastly, the big game for the team, the IHSA Regional, will be just a week later (Jan. 13, same times). Much of the season has flown by, but much more is yet to come for the boys, and hopefully, it won’t be long before the team takes a big win for Niles North.
