Bowlers shine at NFL Championship

by Eric Keppeler
Lewiston Porter Sentinel, February 3, 2007

The Lewiston-Porter bowling team tuned up for sectionals in fine fashion last week, placing winners in both the boys and girls brackets at the Niagara Frontier League Individual Championship at Parkside Lanes.

In the all-doubles format that featured 48 teams in both the boys and girls competition, Lancers Tabitha Dominguez and Ryan Plante each wound up on the winning pair in their respective divisions.

“We did very well,” Lew-Port bowling coach Mike Kankolenski said. “My top five bowled very well, and I like the way we match up with the rest of the league.”

Dominguez, the only senior on the girls team and in her sixth year in the program, also posted the highest single game of any girl with a 257 en route to a doubles total of 1,133. Junior Savannah Zientara, a five-year Lew-Port bowler, had the second-highest single game with a 244, just 13 pins behind her teammate. Sophomore Breanna Maglio was part of a doubles team that wound up sixth overall with a total of 1,036 pins.

The boys were just as impressive.

Plante rolled a 661 series, which was the fifth highest among the boys, and he and his partner wound up with a doubles score of 1,361. Senior Jeremy Janese had the third highest set with a 684, and his doubles team placed fourth overall with a 1,263 total. Senior Zane Tester had the second highest single game with a 268, and sophomore Kyle Donovan finished with the sixth highest series at 657.

In regular season play, the boys continue to lead the NFL and are closing on a second straight league crown, riding the strength of six-year varsity competitors Janese, Plante and Tester. Winners of nine of their first 11 matches, they close out the season Tuesday against North Tonawanda.

The girls haven’t been quite as lucky – at least in terms of their record. Dominguez and Zientara were the only returning players, so the rest of the squad was made up of first-year youngsters.

Kankolenski says they’ve already come a long way, and with just three wins it’s tough to truly measure their progress in the very competitive NFL.

“The girls are really growing as a team,” he said. “All of the new girls have become very competitive in a hurry. This team has a lot of promise, especially since sectionals are open this year and everybody goes.”

The Lancers will tune up for the sectionals at the Feb. 3 Roy Sommer Tournament at Thruway Lanes. After Tuesday’s match at NT, the Lancers are off for a week until the sectionals. The girls tournament is Feb. 15 at Thruway, and the boys are the following day at the same location.

Beyond that, the state tournament beckons.

Janese and Zientara already are two-time state competitors, and Kankolenski thinks that they both have a shot to return to the state tournament.

“I think both Jeremy and Savannah have what it takes to go back to states again,” he said.