Frankie Maiorano, Division rally for Nassau Division I bowling title
Members of Division are proud to hold the Nassau County boys bowling championship banner after narrowly beating Sewanhaka on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2034. Credit: Neil Miller
Dreams of a comeback turned into reality for the Division boys bowling team on Saturday morning at Garden City Lanes.
“It doesn’t feel real, it makes it 100 times sweeter to do it in comeback fashion,” Frankie Maiorano said. “We knew were down, but we certainly didn’t know just how much.”
Division captured the Nassau Division I championship after trailing Sewanhaka by 52 pins heading into the deciding Game 6. Maiorano rolled a 232 in Game 6 as the Blue Dragons totaled 5,736 through six games and edged Sewanhaka (5,717).
Through three games Division trailed by 159 pins, by the end of the fourth game they were one of four teams within 47 pins of Sewanhaka. Ryan Klass rolled a 207 in Game 4 as Division crept into striking distance.
“Those last three games we didn’t check scores, we just kept bowling,” Klass said. “To be in first the entire time would’ve been cool, but to have this little comeback story is even better.”
The Blue Dragons will represent Section VIII (Nassau) in the state Division I championship on March 10 at Strike 'N Spare Lanes in Syracuse.
“I’ve been bowling with a couple of these guys since seventh grade, it’s a huge deal to do it with them,” Klass said. “There’s going to be stiff competition, but if we bowl how we did today, we can make something happen.”
Success is nothing new for the Seaford boys bowling team, but the exhilaration of winning a county championship never seems to get old.
Seaford won the Nassau Division II title for the sixth consecutive season in dominating fashion. The Vikings finished with a six-game total of 6,067. Island Trees was second, 526 pins behind.
“This is a great program, we got six in a row and it feels great especially since this is my senior year,” Jason Donovan said. “I think a big part of the reason we bowl well, is that we hype each other up and support one another.”
Donovan who finished the season with the fourth highest average in Nassau (210.47), rolled a 265 in Game 2 of a 1,368 series. Andrew Ceraulo rolled a 236 in Game 1 of a 1,240 series.
The Vikings will again compete in the state championship on March 12 in Syracuse. They will look to improve on their fourth-place finish from a season ago.
“We got fourth last year, this time we need at least third,” Ceraulo said. “We’re going to practice hard and make sure we pick up those spares.”
Christopher Matias covers high school sports for Newsday after spending time in Athletic Facilities and Operation at St. John’s and in Sports Information at CUNY York college.
