Last year the District 117 boys bowling team only had one Lakes player. This year the boys bowling roster has increased from one player to a team of four. “I feel like it was pretty good. It was definitely a new experience, and something new people should try if you have nothing to do in the winter,” said junior varsity bowler Feliciano Qattawi.
Qattawi is a first year bowler that joined because of senior varsity bowler, Brayden Thornton. “I started this year, and I [joined] because I had friends who played. It’s easy just to have fun with your friends and learn something new,” said Qattawi.
Thornton is the only returning player from the previous years. Thornton’s junior year was a huge milestone for the boys bowling team. He won MVP this year, and last year Thornton brought attention to a sport that is looking to grow. While this year is different for him with three additional bowlers to the team, he likes the fact that he has some new players. “My season went well and It was nice to bring some of my football friends to the team,” he said.
While this is Qattawi’s first year playing, Thornton has had a much longer career. “Yeah, I’ve been bowling since I was four years old,” he said. “I got into bowling because my sister bowled a lot, and I was tired of watching her bowl so I picked it up [too].”
Qattawi has picked up bowling fast for it being his first year. “ It was my first ever match and I bowled a 252 and it definitely, like, made me kind of like the sport because I noticed I can actually do pretty good at it,” Qattawi said.
The winter season is coming to end, and Thornton hopes for more Lakes students to join bowling. “The season was okay, it was still a struggle to go against some of the teams around us. We need more kids to join the team from Lakes because if we have like 12 Lakes kids we could start our own team instead of being with Antioch and have a conference finally,” Thornton reflects.
With a record of 3-6 the District 117 bowling season ended at regionals. Qattawi hopes to continue to bowl for the 2025-2026 school year. Unless more boys join, the team will remain a district-wide team. Expanding the team seems promising, since they grew from only one player from Lakes to four. If anyone is interested in boys bowling please contact Coach Baker.
