By Warren Rappleyea
South Brunswick High School’s boys’ and girls’ bowling teams are both off to 1-0 starts this winter, as each squad bested their respective opponents from J.P. Stevens High School by identical 4-0 scores Dec. 1 at Carolier Lanes.
The Vikings’ boys piled up 3,630 pins, with senior Tyler Kohutanycz rolling a perfect game to go with a 691 series. Sophomores Nick Delacruz and Anthony Fama both had 600-plus series, accumulating 683 pins and 612 pins, respectively, in the win.
The victory gets the Vikings off to a good start following a 6-9-1 campaign a year ago. South Brunswick lost top bowler Alex Sorge, who averaged 235 pins, to graduation. Certainly Sorge’s are big shoes to fill, as he rolled just one sub-600 series, but plenty of talent remains in coach Kelly Forthum’s lineup.
Kohutanycz is coming off a stellar junior campaign, during which he averaged 196 pins and posted several 600-plus pin series. Delacruz averaged 182 pins with a season-high of 235 pins, and Fama averaged 172 pins with a season-best of 219 pins.
Chan Woo Ang showed steady improvement last winter and ended his season with a 608 series. The junior started off with a 597 showing against J.P. Stevens. The Vikings’ roster also includes four-year veteran Eric Plowden, junior Rithvik Nuti and Matt Marich, a sophomore who had a 546 series in the season-opener.
South Brunswick’s girls also looked strong in their victory and are hoping to improve on last year’s 6-10 mark. Senior Emily Alvarez opened the year with a 480 series after averaging 171 pins last season.
Junior Kirsten Thorne rolled a 535 series to lead the Lady Vikings over J.P. Stevens. Thorne averaged 132 pins a year ago. Sophomores Kayla Maharaj and Rachel Guida also started well, posting 521 and 438 pins. Another sophomore, Merin Vattathara, rounded out the starting lineup after seeing limited action as a freshman.
“We have a good mix of veterans and younger bowlers, and we expect to be more competitive this year,” Lady Vikings coach Tara Burniston said. “The key, as always, is consistency and limiting open frames.”
Ice hockey
In ice hockey action, South Brunswick was looking for its first win when it hosted Monroe Township High School Dec. 7 and will welcome Edison High School to town Dec. 9.
The Vikings are coming off a 3-2 loss to Woodbridge High School Dec. 1. Mason Jenne scored both goals for South Brunswick, while Thomas Bansbach, Brendan Kane and Evan Lacino added assists. Clayton Romanok stopped 17 shots in net.
South Brunswick opened the season with a 15-5 loss at Princeton High School Nov. 29. The Vikings fell behind, 6-0, in the first period and could never dig out. Jenne and Vincent Zhang each scored two goals and one assist. Justin Guelph contributed a goal and two assists. South Brunswick went 5-14-1 last season.