Nassau, Suffolk girls glad for experience at state championships
The Suffolk All-Star Team cheers for teammate Kaitlyn Bloch during the 2022 NYSPHSAA Bowling Championships at the Strike N'Spare in Syracuse, N.Y., on Saturday. Credit: Heather Ainsworth
SYRACUSE — The Suffolk and Nassau girls bowling all-star teams were each comprised of six different individuals from various schools across their respective counties. They were competitors during the season, but on Saturday at Strike ‘N Spare Lanes, they came together for a common goal.
A state title was on the line.
"This was my first time competing at the state championship and it was a lot of fun," said Cira Arcangel of Sachem, who led Long Island with a 220.17 average this season. "We had the last month to practice together and it was really nice to have the opportunity to get to know the other girls from Suffolk."
"To be honest, I never thought I would finish the season and hug these girls. During the regular season, we were trying to beat them," said Brillian Soedarmasto of Division, who finished with the highest average in Nassau with a 208.79. "We all got along great, worked well together and everyone did amazing."
Kailyn Bloch (East Islip) rolled a 258 in Game 5 of a 1,256 series, and Arcangel threw a 217 in Game 1 of a 1,197 series to lead the Suffolk (Section XI) all-stars to a sixth-place finish at the state championship with a six-game total of 5,951. Soedarmasto had a 246 in Game 5 and a 247 in Game 6 of a 1,170 series, and Amanda Morris (East Meadow) bowled a 217 in both Game 2 and Game 5 of a 1,161 series to guide the Nassau (Section VIII) all-stars to a seventh-place finish with 5,518 pins. Section III won the event with a total of 6,244.
"It was a great opportunity to get the chance to bowl with the best bowlers in the county," Bloch said. "We were competing at a state championship, it’s pretty huge. Although we didn’t do as well as we would have liked, we just tried to stay positive the entire day."
"We really just bonded with each other over the last month," said Morris, regarding her Nassau teammates. "I think it has a lot to do with our love for bowling and love for the sport. We had a lot of fun on the bus ride up to Syracuse and it was a great experience bowling with these girls."
Dakota Collins (East Islip) rolled a 259 in Game 3 of a 1,124 series, Canan Bademci (Patchogue-Medford) had a 236 in Game 5 of a 1,192 series, Shannon Darby (Sachem) bowled a 219 in Game 1 of a 1,107 series and Leighanna Tolan (Central Islip) had a 217 in Game 3 of a 1,039 series.
Lauren DeMarco (Calhoun) added a 220 in Game 1 of a 1,065 series, Katie Presvelis (Great Neck South) bowled a 193 in Game 6 of a 1,025 series, Tiffany Wong (Valley Stream North) threw a 199 in Game 5 of a 1,079 series and Emily Wong (Herricks) rolled a 159 in Game 5.
"When we had our first team practice back in February, I was named the honorary all-star because I was the only one who had actually come up to states before," Bademci said. "We kept joking about what if it got snowed out today. After having the last two years canceled because of COVID, nothing would have surprised us, but luckily that was not the case. It’s truly special to finish my senior year at the state championship."
