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Struthers bowlers rolling toward biggest goal to date
High School Bowling
By Greg Gulas
STRUTHERS
With their third consecutive All-American Conference White Tier bowling title safely tucked away, the Struthers Wildcats boys’ quest for a first school state title begins today with the start of sectional play at Warren’s Freeway Lanes.
Girls action begins at 9 a.m. with the boys expected to take over the lanes at 2 p.m.
It’s an exciting time for head coach Bob Eisenbraun Jr.’s squad, a group that has gone 47-5 over the past three seasons and finished as Division II state runners-up four years ago when six seniors were mere up-and-coming freshmen.
It was also the year that the Wildcats produced the state’s individual champion in Dan DiLoreto.
“This group doesn’t just want to get to state, they want to win it all and I believe that all the components are in place for that to happen,” Eisenbraun said. “They practice hard, are always on the lanes and every team member is serious about the commitment that it takes in order to be a winner.”
Being good simply isn’t enough according to Eisenbraun, who notes that a bad game or sub-par showing in Baker games can be costly.
“It’s getting hot that one day and taking advantage of what you have going for you,” he added. “You need a couple of breaks to go your way and cannot look ahead, so we begin today by just by focusing on sectionals.”
Hot is exactly what Struthers (13-1, 7-1) has been this season, winning six tournaments, showcasing three team members who have authored perfect games while winning seven of eight conference matches.
Of the eight players that dot their roster, six are seniors with a junior and freshman also set to compete.
The six seniors include Adam Cifra (220.08 average), Andrew Brabant (207.22), Johnny Medvec (204.94), Cameron Coppola (193.22), Jarrod Sawyers (186.07) and Connor Lane (187), the junior is Chad Laczko (197.00) with freshman Johnny Morris rounding out the sectional slate.
Cifra has been a big part of the Wildcats’ back-to-back-to-back AAC run – they were also runners-up in 2013-14 — rolling the second perfect game of his scholastic career on Jan. 15 as he heads to Wright State University this fall and will compete on the Raiders’ bowling team.
“The key to our success the past three seasons and especially this year has been our practices,” Cifra stated. “We practice quite a bit and this senior group has worked together really well over the past four years.”
Showcasing their skills might just be an understatement.
Medvec, who rolled his first 300 game this year against Niles on Jan. 9, is scheduled to play baseball for Heidelberg College upon graduation.
He’s simply enjoying the run that he and his bowling brethren have put together.
“This senior group has been together for four years now and I really think that we can go all the way,” he noted. “We have the experience, but must bowl well each tournament. The lane conditions are different at every site, but the fact that we have won at multiple sites and under varying conditions has helped prepared us for wat we hope will be a nice run.”
Covering their spares could be the difference according to Brabant, who has two perfect games to his credit — the first coming as a freshman during practice and the next the following year against Hubbard — and will attend bowling power Pikeville University upon graduation.
“It’s awesome to bowl with your classmates all four years and be with a group that shares your same passion and goals,” he said. “Struthers High School has already enjoyed conference success in football, girls tennis and girls basketball and we want that run to continue. Our eye is on state, but we’re smart enough to realize that you have to take things incrementally knowing that you have to get through point ‘A’ and point ‘B’ in order to get to point ‘C’ and state.”
Eisenbraun is currently in his 15th season as the Wildcats’ boys coach and since the OHSAA sanctioned bowling as a sport in 2006-07, his teams have won five overall league titles and consistently finished in the upper echelon of their tier.
“Each team has been very special, but the last three years we’ve had a really incredible run,” Eisenbraun said. “These seniors were state runners-up as freshmen, missed the cut by one pin and finished ninth as sophomores then last year, lost to Coldwater in their first match and finished eighth overall. Staying focused is the key and this is a group that has been focused all season long.”