By: James McKeever
After bowling in just one varsity match last season as a sophomore, Danny Seyfried of Monroe knew he was taking a big step this winter as he moved up from junior varsity to the big club.
He was ready for it, and it shows.
Seyfried has been one of the best bowlers this season for a Falcons team that took a 5-2-1 record into Wednesday’s match against Woodbridge.
"Danny and Greg Puleio have been two of our most consistent bowlers so far," coach George Packard said. "We expected it out of Greg, but not so much Danny. I knew he had the potential, but I wasn’t sure how he would bowl in his first season on varsity."
In a tri-match Monday, when Monroe lost to Edison and defeated Bishop Ahr, Seyfried rolled a 604 on the strength of 206 and 213 games. He followed up that with a 244-213-204-661 performance in Tuesday’s 3-1 setback to St. Joseph’s.
"I think the big reason for his success so far is that he has really worked on his game," Packard said.
"I came into the season confident because I bowled in a summer league at Carolier Lanes and I did pretty well," said Seyfried. "I’m more experienced and a bit stronger. I throw the ball slowly with a big hook."
Seyfried said he averaged a 175 last year on JV. Now he said he’s up to 185. Seyfried learned a lot by watching his brother Tim, a varsity bowler last year for Monroe who graduated and now attends Rutgers.
Puleio, also a junior, has put up big numbers. On Monday he rolled a 611 (232 high game) and produced games of 205-246-213 in a 664 series Tuesday.
Mike Leatherwood contributed with a 619 (235) in Monday’s tri-match. On Tuesday solid numbers were posted by Derek Witt 226-563.
Last Thursday, in a 4-0 victory over South Plainfield, Shawon Danser led Monroe with a 592 (230 high).
Packard has been pleased with the series his team has recorded this week. Monday’s performance yielded a 2,918 and Tuesday’s a 2,960. The problem was that Edison, one of the best teams in the state, rolled a 3,165 on Monday and St. Joseph’s, Tuesday’s opponent, recorded a 3,159.
It seems like Monroe is bringing out the best in other teams,
"Edison rolled its highest set of the year against us and St. Joseph’s had its highest of the season," Packard said. "In this conference 29 hundred is not good enough the cut it. You have to be around 3,000 to win."
"The key for us as a team is we have to do better in the third game," Seyfried said. "That’s when we’ve been falling apart."
The Falcons’ girls team is remaining competitive, taking a 4-2-2 record into Wednesday’s match vs. Woodbridge.
Last Thursday Monroe tied South Plainfield 2-2 as Nicole Chasan rolled a 497 and Nicole Santiago had a 483. A four-pin loss (761-757) in the first game prevented the Falcons from a victory.
On Monday the Falcons defeated Edison 3-1 and tied Bishop Ahr 2-2. Shannon Weber led the way with a 456. The Falcons broke the 2,300 mark on Tuesday for the first time this season with a 2,323. Mother Seton, however, is a talented team that rolled a 2,657 for the 4-0 victory. Chasan rolled a 499, Weber a 489 and Noelle Trinkler a 467.
"Our girls are much improved from last year," Packard said. "Shannon Weber has been bowling well for us. She’s one of our team leaders."
On Saturday, Monroe’s boys and girls teams will participate in the Joe Romer Invitational at Carolier Lanes. The tournament is open to all GMC teams.
Next week Monroe bowls in a tri-match on Monday with Cardinal McCarrick and East Brunswick, faces North Brunswick in a dual-match on Tuesday, and goes against J.F. Kennedy and Piscataway in a tri-match on Thursday. After that the Falcons won’t return to action until Jan. 3.
