Bellmore-Merrick Boys Bowlers Edge Out Win Over Plainedge

The Bellmore-Merrick boys bowling team edged out Plainedge on Monday afternoon for its second consecutive win 8-3.  

The two teams played close through all three games, but it was Mepham senior Ricky Hough and Bellmore-Merrick that pulled out on top by 33 total pins, 2,413-2,380.  

"All of the games were pretty close," head coach Joe Bianca said. "We were able to pull out eight points, so it'll move us up in the standings."

Calhoun junior Joe Cucinella had the match-high score in the opening game with a 257. Calhoun senior Dan Mueller bowled a strong first game as well with a 217. Another Calhoun senior, Scott Castellano, followed right behind Mueller with a 197, and Mepham's Hough rounded out the scoring with a 182.

Bellmore-Merrick took the early lead in what would be the largest margin of victory in any of the three games, 27 pins, by a score of 853-826.  

Hough responded well in the following game with a 244, including a stretch of eight straight strikes between the first and last frames, followed by another Mepham senior, C.J. Marino, with a 225. Cucinella and Mueller continued on to bowl a second game, posting a 197 and 151, respectively. Bellmore-Merrick narrowly beat Plainedge in the middle round, 817-807.  

Calhoun junior Tom Bianco was substituted into the final game and bowled a team-high for the round with a 201. Mepham senior Eric Schildt also came into the final game and contributed with a solid 189, followed by Marino, who bowled a 189 after capping his round with three consecutive strikes.

Hough, the lone member of the team to play all three games, bowled a 170, but missed an opportunity to give his team the sweep on an errant shot in the final frame. Plainedge took the last game, 747-743, to salvage three points.  

"It was a tight one winning two out of three. I thought we got a lot of momentum in the beginning and it helped us out a lot," Marino said. "I knew I wasn't bowling the best, so I knew I needed to step it up at the very end and the team really needed it." 

Bellmore-Merrick advances to 3-2 on the season after its wins over Plainedge and Island Trees last Thursday, but coach Bianca knows that only tough matches lie ahead and what it will take to finish on top.  

"They are starting to get stronger, bowling together, and being more consistent," Bianca said. "The most important thing is that we get those 830s and 840s to get to the counties."