McCann, Mount Greylock Join Berkshire County Bowling League
GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. -- To say that McCann Tech senior Martin Loughman was not putting pressure on himself on Friday would be an understatement.
"I pretty much stink," he deadpanned. "So I have no shame in losing."
Loughman is a member of the first-year McCann Tech bowling team, which participated in its first Berkshire County League event at Cove Lanes.
Bowling for McCann's junior varsity squad, Loughman's day was highlighted by a double (back-to-back strikes) that he nearly turned into a triple.
While he was not the best bowler in the house, he hardly "stunk," especially considering his experience in the sport.
"This is the first time I've played ten-pin bowling," Loughman said. "I've played candlepin before, but not ten-pin."
Loughman credits his friends and McCann coach Rick Moon for recruiting him for the team, McCann's first in the sport in at least four years.
Moon, a former professional bowler and current library and media specialist at McCann, said that he has 14 students out for the squad this winter.
"A lot of kids cannot play the other sports, and I was one of them," Moon said as he watched his team compete on Friday. "I couldn't play basketball. I couldn't play football. I wasn't big enough. I bowled. That's what I did.
"This is part of me giving back to something that, basically, I did for a living. And they're enjoying themselves, which makes it all the better."
McCann's varsity enjoyed some success in its first action of the season, finishing first in the league thanks to a 21-10 win over Lee High's Orange team in a dual match.
Taconic, Drury and Lee's Black team each picked up wins as well, over Mount Everett, Monument Mountain and Pittsfield, respectively.
McCann freshman Austin Davine had the high game (248) and high series (446). Mount Everett's Alissa Rathbun had the top scores among the girls competing on Friday with a 183 game and a 349 series.
Davine is an avid bowler who has been competing in youth leagues since he was 10 and bowled last year as an eighth-grader for the Drury team.
He said he enjoys the level of competition in the high school league.
"I just like having to bowl against some of the best kids around," Davine said. "It's more of a challenge for me. It just makes me a better bowler by having to face the better bowlers out there."
Davine said the McCann players are learning from one another in practices at Greylock Bowl & Golf, which donates time to the team.
"It's really built a good team spirit," Moon said. "They're starting to be a close-knit bunch. That's what I'm hoping for."
And the high school bowling community is also a close-knit bunch. Unlike many sports, players from different schools talk with one another during the Berkshire league's weekly events and even applaud when members of competing teams roll a strike.
McCann's and Drury's teams share another bond. Since high school bowling is not an MIAA sport and not funded by most high schools, the teams have to raise money to compete -- something that the Hornets and Blue Devils did together this year.
"What we did was we asked all the bowlers at Greylock Bowl to donate a quarter a week to the high school bowling," Moon said. "We had three leagues that did that, and we split it with Drury. So we both were funded through the bowlers. That was just awesome."
McCann is just one of the newcomers to the league this year. Mount Greylock, which has never had a team according to coach Jerry Gillette, fills a spot in the league lineup previously held by St. Joseph, which had a co-op with the Mounties last year under Gillette.
Last year, the Crusaders had three players from St. Joe, two from McCann and two from Mount Greylock. The three St. Joseph students all graduated, and enough Mounties showed an interest to put a team together this winter, Gillette said.
"My son [Reece] plays baseball and football," Gillette said. "He got a couple of the baseball players to join and one of the football players joined. And a mutual friend joined."
Mount Greylock had a bye in the league's first week but will take on Drury when the action shifts to Pittsfield's Ken's Bowl on Friday.
Jerry Gillette said there it's good for Reece and Mount Greylock freshman Taylor Calahan to have a chance to compete this year in Mounties red instead of St. Joe purple and gold.
"It's a lot different," he said. "They represent themselves.
"Last year was a lot of fun, so I figured I'd do it again."
Team scores:
McCann 21, Lee Orange 10; Taconic 19, Mount Everett 12; Lee Black 17, Pittsfield 14; Drury 18, Monument 13.
Boys Series:
Austin Davine, McCann, 446; Tom Hankey Jr., Monument, 424; J.T. Sorrentino, Lee Black, 421; A.J. Moore, Pittsfield, 396; Zach Yeaton, Drury, 384.
Girls Series:
Alissa Rathbun, Mount Everett, 349; Lynsey Aldam, Taconic, 338; Marissa Buttlieri, Pittsfield, 332; Paige Parks-Smith, Mount Everett, 307; Samantha Reu, Pittsfield, 285.