McCann Tech Claims County Crown
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – Michael Oakes Friday led the McCann Tech bowling team to its first Berkshire County title since 2018.
And the Hornets beat the league’s two best teams from the regular season to get there.
Oakes rolled a spare in the 10th frame of the deciding game to clinch a 4-2 win over Lee and claim the county crown at Greylock Bowl and Golf.
To get to the final, McCann Tech had to battle through Pittsfield, which ended the season tied on points with the Wildcats atop the six-team league.
“It means a ton to us,” said Oakes, who rolled in the anchor spot in all 13 games the Hornets played on Friday. “We’ve spent the last 10 or so weeks working our butts off here at Greylock, grinding away at what our demons have been all season with making spares and just executing and rallying together with each Baker game, like we saw tonight.”
In the regular season, where up to five bowlers from each team bowl two full games apiece head-to-head against an opponent from another school before the teams square off for a best-of-three Baker format series. The county championships, on the other hand, are contested entirely as Baker games, where bowlers roll a maximum of two frames per game for their teams.
Each round is a best-of-seven competition.
In the semis, Lee cruised to a 4-1 win over fourth-seeded Taconic.
The Wildcats jumped out to a 3-0 lead and clinched it when anchor Emily Holian threw a spare in the 10th frame to secure a 157-145 win.
The Hornets had to fight tooth and nail with Pittsfield to get out of the semi-finals.
The tone was set in the first game, which ended with the teams tied, 159-159.
That sent the contest to a roll-off, repeating frames nine and 10 – the first time the tie-breaker was needed in league history.
Pittsfield’s Ryan Russo and McCann Tech’s Ryan Putin rolled the ninth frames, each getting a split on their first goal. Russo ended up leaving two pins standing; Putin left one.
In the 10th frame of the roll-off, Oakes and Pittsfield’s Matt Dupuis each rolled a turkey, giving the Hornets a win by a one-pin margin.
McCann Tech rode that momentum to a 20-pin win in Game 2. But Pittsfield came back with a dominating 204-134 win in the third game.
After the Hornets won to take a 3-1 win in the series, the Generals again rallied, edging McCann Tech when Dupuis finished with a turkey in the 10th to clinch a 167-155 win in Game 5.
In Game 6, Chris Barosso, Dupuis, Russo and Grace Mason combined for a four-bagger in frames four through seven to give the Generals a commanding lead, and they went on to a 200-124 win to even the match.
Pittsfield then carried that momentum into the deciding seventh game to take an early lead.
But Reilley Lefebvre, Eve Labarron and Putin combined for a triple in the seventh, eighth and ninth frames to get McCann Tech back into it. In the 10th, Oakes recorded a strike and a spare to secure a 191-167 win and a berth in the title match.
“Bakers have been our biggest motivation all season,” Oakes said. “We’ll have Ryder [Lefebvre], our leadoff guy, get one good shot, and then once we’re loud, it’s hard to stop us.
“That’s one thing I’ve noticed throughout the year.”
In the first game of the championship round, Ryder Lefebvre’s strike in the sixth frame started a stroke finish for the Hornets, who did not leave any pins up the rest of the way, getting a spare from Reilly Lefebvre, a strike from Labarron, a spare from Putin and a spare/strike from Oakes to close a 183-168 win.
A four-bagger from Putin, Oakes, Ryder Lefebvre and Reilley Lefebvre in the middle of the second game helped the Hornets take a 2-0 lead over Lee.
Then it was the Wildcats’ turn to rally, winning two straight to even the series.
In Game 3, Devyn Fillio rolled a strike in the eighth, and Bella Kotek got a spare in the ninth to help Lee pull away late for a 157-154 win.
In Game 4, Nate Terry and Fillio rolled back-to-back strikes in the seventh and eighth frames to key a 174-129 Lee win.
The Hornets finished strong in Game 5 as Labarron rolled a strike, Putin a spare and Oakes back-to-back strikes to open the 10th in a 170-137 win.
Lee grabbed an early lead in the sixth game thanks to Makayla Schuerer’s opening strike. But a double from Labarron and Putin in the third and fourth frames gave the Hornets a lead they did not relinquish.
The county’s top teams will spend the next two weeks getting ready for state championships, March 2 and 3 at Chicopee Lanes.
Semifinals
McCann Tech 159, Pittsfield 159 (39-38 bowloff); McCann Tech 163, Pittsfield 143; Pittsfield 204, McCann Tech 134; McCann Tech 230, Pittsfield 165; Pittsfield 167, McCann Tech 155; Pittsfield 200, McCann Tech 124; McCann Tech 191, Pittsfield 167.
Lee 151, Taconic 136; Lee 181, Taconic 120; Lee 160, Taconic 150; Taconic 186, Lee 181; Lee 157, Taconic 145.
Championship Match
McCann Tech 183, Lee 168; McCann Tech 221, Lee 161; Lee 157, McCann Tech 154; Lee 174, McCann Tech 129; McCann Tech 170, Lee 137; McCann Tech 161, Lee 137.
Berkshire County Champions
2006, Taconic
2007, Mount Everett
2008, McCann Tech
2009, Hoosac Valley
2010, McCann Tech
2011, Drury
2012, Taconic
2013, Taconic
2014, Drury
2015, Lee
2016, Lee
2017, Drury
2018, McCann Tech
2019, Wahconah
2020, Wahconah
2021, no season
2022, Taconic
2023, Taconic
2024, McCann Tech