Victory lane
Immaculata H.S. senior’s state bowling title a school first
By Chris Donahue
Staff Writer
Jeffrey Szabo of Immaculata High School, Somerville, made the most of his first appearance in the state individual bowling finals as he defeated top-seed Stephen Soss of Bayonne High 256-238 at the Brunswick Zone Carolier Lanes, North Brunswick, Feb. 19.
Szabo’s parents, Steve and Carol, were both in the crowd to see him capture the state title, which is the first won by an Immaculata student.
In the sectionals preceding the finals, Szabo had to finish in the top 12 out of about 200 competitors. He was one of 51 bowlers in the finals.
“I just try to take my time and focus, and stay low. Don’t rush things,” Szabo said about the keys to his success.
Bowlers also aim for a mark, such as a certain board in a lane, to maintain consistency in their release, said Szabo, who began bowling when he was 4 years old under the tutelage of his father.
Szabo, the second seeed, said his ability to stay focused helped him from becoming unnerved after a poor game in the sectionals.
“In the fourth game of the six we bowl for qualifying I shot 160,” Szabo said. “My friends said I was rushing things so I sat down and gathered control of my thoughts.” Szabo said he sometimes prays silently during competition to calm down.
In addition to Immaculata’s bowling team, Szabo competes in amateur leagues and tournaments to earn scholarship money. At Immaculata, where he takes honors level courses, he also competes on the golf and cross country teams, and is a member of the Model United Nations and Youth and Government Clubs. “I try to stay as busy as I can,” he said.
Szabo, who turns 18 on March 3, is an altar server at Sacred Heart Parish in his hometown of Manville.
After graduation, he plans to major in business administration at William Paterson University, Wayne, and bowl with its club team, which was recently ranked third in the nation by the United States Bowling Congress.
Carol Szabo believes that her son has the talent to be a professional bowler. “He’s got more than a roomful of trophies,” she said
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law