Boys Bowling had difficulty gaining traction at Niles North after the 2015–2016 season, when the sport stopped being co-ed. Along with the loss of an entire gender, the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019 especially had a detrimental effect on both teams’ participation turnout and skill level. Since the pandemic, Boys Bowling only ever saw one student participate in state competitions—Russel Rosa in 2022—and North hadn’t beat West in any bowling matches since 2018.
However, the 2023–2024 season saw great change in Boys Bowling. This included a large increase in participation (full Varsity and JV teams), the first victorious match against West in six years, and an individual player’s advancement into the IHSA Bowling Sectionals. The team even created the @nnboysbowling Instagram page, run exclusively by the team’s most senior player, which has gained 490 followers since its creation in September, 2023 (as of Nov. 6, 2024). These increases in both popularity and skill level, along with the success of the team’s first week, show great promise for this year’s season, expected to be the best in several years.
Since the October informational meetings, 19 players were expected to participate. On the season’s starting day, Oct. 28, 18 players showed up, several of whom were previously unknown to the team and had not attended the meetings. By the start of the second week, 26 players were registered. Several of the team’s new players are either seniors who were invited by their senior friends or underclassmen who found out about the team through its promotional efforts. During the team’s first two weeks, many of the new players spent the day having fun with their friends or learning from the team’s coaches: Matthew Holbrook and temporary assistant coach Thomas Marinis.
Many of the team’s best returning upperclassmen—including Jared Belen, Colin Sucherman, and Neo Balogo—have been practicing since the end of last season, including in weekly bowling leagues. Some have even gone as far as to seek out private lessons from professional coaches. On top of this, almost all of the team’s best current players only started bowling regularly once they joined the school team during their sophomore or junior years. Some players are even considering collegiate bowling and plan to seek out scholarships from colleges with competitive boys bowling teams, such as Roosevelt University.
In addition to the aforementioned positives, senior and varsity bowler Jacob Titsworth beat his PR twice before the end of the first week, a recording of which is available on the team’s Instagram account. Titsworth transitioned from an established PR of 215, to a 225, to a 276. This is the second-highest single-game PR of the team, the first being a 278.
Since day one, @nnboysbowling has been keeping its audience updated on the team’s happenings and is expected to announce many of the team’s upcoming matches and tournaments.
Competitions begin Nov. 9 with a Saturday tournament at River Rand Bowl. The first match will be a home game against Glenbrook North, whose team placed 3rd in State last year.
In contrast to last year, Niles North’s home alley will not be Classic Bowl in Morton Grove. The team will play and practice at Bowlero Niles (formerly Brunzwick Zone Niles). Due to these changes, 11 out of the 18 non-IHSA competitions this season will be home matches at Bowlero Niles, with at least 3 of the away matches being at Bowlero Vernon Hills. This will provide the boys with a large advantage regarding lane-oil familiarity.
As the boys continue to improve in their practices, every Monday through Thursday, things are only looking up for this year’s boys bowling season. Even in upcoming weeks, players still expect to see new rookies. With a surge in participation and popularity, the team may not only see improvements on the lanes but possibly in the crowds as well; the boys might see more than just a few spectators at their competitions. As the winter months go by, it will be no wonder why bowling will be a school-wide topic more than ever before.
