Victor, Spencerport secure Section V bowling championships
NORTH GATES — After winning its first Section V championship in six years, Victor was so excited that the backdrop fell behind them during a photo-op with the brick.
Victor's boys bowling team displayed just one of many outstanding performances when the Section V Championships concluded Friday at ABC Gates Bowl. Spencerport's Jesse Taccone and Fairport's Nathan Chaffee — who shot one of the event's two perfect games — won the inaugural Section V individual championships for rolling the high-series in their respective class. Waterloo also advanced Thursday and will join the Blue Devils at states.
The New York State Public High School Athletic Association Bowling Championships are in March, where Section V's composite team will seek a third straight state championship. They seem to be in good hands with the return of Rush-Henrietta senior Keaton Ostrowski, whose jaw-dropping 248.42 regular season average automatically qualified him for states.
"Section V is a part of Rochester. That's who we are," said Ostrowski, the two-time All-Greater Rochester Bowler of the Year. "We're very competitive and we're ready for any challenge."
What it means
Victor coach Mark Foeder's Blue Devils won Division I and Class A to clinch its first Section V title since 2018. Seniors Tim Doan, Lorenzo Amadio, Carter Ortega and Toby Prescott — who also threw a 300 game — have been Blue Devils since seventh-graders. They helped Victor beat Class A runner-up Rush-Henrietta by 300 pins, and overcome a 220-pin morning deficit to Spencerport before edging the Rangers by 43 pins to capture the Division I crown. Victor (17-0) came back from a similar deficit to Spencerport at the Martin Luther King Jr. tournament.
"The big part of the afternoon was the mental capacity," Foeder said. "The skillset is all there. They all have 220 averages. But to not give into the 'I can't do it' was the difference this year."
Spencerport coach Bill Buttaro's Rangers last won the Class B championship in 2022. Taccone, Carter Schum and Josh Winter helped Spencerport dominate its class with a 3,054 total — 846 pins ahead of runner-up Greece Athena. Spencerport led Division I through three games before watching Victor slip away late.
Coach Russ Gillan's Waterloo program won its first section title, winning Class C with a 5,745 total. Nathan Robson, Alexander Rogers and Chris Hayden helped Waterloo merely beat Newark by 10 pins to advance to states with the Division II crown.
Class D was even closer as champion Clyde-Savannah's 5,344 pins were only three pins better than Mount Morris/Geneseo. It was back and forth between the two teams, but coach Anthony Vancuren's Golden Eagles leaned on Quentin Haskins, Parker Miller and Tyler Freelove to win the final game 912-861.
Most Outstanding Bowlers
Class A: Nathan Chaffee
The Fairport freshman rose the ranks to win the Class A individual championship. Chaffee rolled one of the tournament's two 300 games. He was in 12th place through the morning before shooting 300-211-268 in the afternoon for a 1,393 total to squeak past Ostrowski by eight pins, averaging 232.16 at sectionals after posting a 206.73 average in the regular season.
"'I got a new ball the other day and I've been using that ever since, and it looked good," Chaffee said about his 300 game.
Class B: Jesse Taccone.
The Spencerport sophomore won the Class B individual title with 1,339 pins for a 223.16 average. Taccone's 229 regular season average was fourth best in the section. His teammates, Carter Schum and Josh Winter, helped the Rangers sweep the top three and run away with the team championship.
"It was good to get," Taccone said about his tall individual trophy. "It really shows all the hard work me and my team have put in this offseason."
Class C: Colin Johnson
The Penn Yan junior rolled 1,345 to win the Class C individual championship. Johnson's 289 was Class B's high game, catapulting his 224.16 average after shooting 203.98 in the regular season.
Class D: Quentin Haskins
The Clyde-Savannah senior's 1,263 helped him win a Class D individual and team championship, using 12 more pins to edge teammate Parker Miller in the final game. Haskins averaged 210.50 during the tournament and 201.66 throughout the season.
Game balls
Keaton Ostrowski
The Rush-Henrietta senior made the all-tournament team with Class A's runner-up high series (1,385) after leading much of the event. A lefty, Ostrowski is one of the most decorated bowlers Section V and NYS has ever seen. His averages and accolades aid any argument:
Ostrowski's 248.42 average this season is close to, if not, the section record, and is just shy of the state record 251.3 set by Section XI's West Islip's Tim Smith in 2021-22. No one has shot as well as Ostrowski across as many games (48).
He broke the state tournament record for high-series when he shot 1,503 (250.5) to earn an NYS gold medal in 2022
Guided Rush-Henrietta to Section V Class A titles in 2020 and 2022, clinching the Division I championships both seasons.
Struck gold when the Section V composite team won its second straight NYS championship in 2023.
Has thrown numerous 300 games and 800 series over his career, including two perfect games within a week in December. Doan, Winter and Midlakes' Gavin Burnett also rolled 300s this season.
Ostrowski shot 206 in eighth grade and 220 as a freshman. He then began setting school records: 239 as a sophomore, 242 as a junior, and now 248.42 his senior season.
Ostrowski will pursue a masters degree in finance at St. John Fisher and will not bowl in college. "Consistency, and I always got to improve my knowledge from the people that I'm surrounded by," he said about his success. "A lot of knowledge from people, I just take advantage of that and practice as hard as I can."
Section V all-tournament teams
Class A: Nathan Chaffee (Fairport), Keaton Ostrowski (Rush-Henrietta), Tim Doan (Victor), Brayden Masclee (Fairport) and Lorenzo Amadio (Victor).
Class B: Jesse Taccone (Spencerport), Carter Schum (Spencerport), Josh Winter (Spencerport), Kyle Decker (Greece Athena), Evan Moulton (Eastridge).
YOU KNOW WHY IM HERE
Section V Boys Bowling Championships conclude today.
Waterloo and Clyde-Savannah won Class C and D last night. @DandC pic.twitter.com/LsItprR7jO— Marquel Slaughter🌊 (@MarquelSports) February 16, 2024
Class C: Colin Johnson (Penn Yan), Alexanders Rogers (Waterloo), Evan Quade (Midlakes), Kevin Martinez (Newark), Jayden Jackson (Geneva).
Class D: Quentin Haskins (Clyde-Savannah), Parker Miller (Clyde-Savannah), Dominic Lapiana (Mount Morris/Geneseo), Zachary Phillips (Marcus Whitman), Brayden Armison (Marcus Whitman).
What's next
Victor, Waterloo, and members of the Section V composite team will advance to the NYSPHSAA Championships March 8-10 at AMF Strike N' Spare Lanes in Syracuse.
Section V's top 20 bowling averages
The top six averages across Section V automatically qualify for the composite team, which will compete in a state tournament against opposing sections' best bowlers. Since Victor qualified in Division I, their two bowlers are replaced by the next best averages.
Keaton Ostrowski (Rush-Henrietta) 248.42.
Brayden Masclee (Fairport) 233.31.
Tim Doan (Victor) 229.93.
Jesse Taccone (Spencerport) 229.00.
Adam Wakelee (Victor) 225.63.
Josh Winter (Spencerport) 220.87.
Parker Miller (Clyde-Savannah) 219.19.
Toby Prescott (Victor) 217.11.
Connor Andersen (Penn Yan) 216.47.
Matthew Carmestro (Hilton) 215.75.
Lucas Teeples (Rush-Henrietta) 212.85.
Grayson Cole (Newark) 211.70.
Kory Nurse (Genesee Valley) 211.31.
Tyler Bliek (Rush-Henrietta) 210.71.
Alexander Rogers (Waterloo) 208.24.
Nathan Chaffee (Fairport) 206.73.
Ben Smeaton (Greece Athena) 206.10.
Daniel Collins (Webster Schroeder) 204.96.
Colin Johnson (Penn Yan) 203.98.
Jeffrey Fisher (Gates Chili) 203.45.
— Marquel Slaughter is a journalist for the Democrat and Chronicle, specializing in high school sports. He has been reporter for 14 years. Follow him @MarquelSports on X or on Instagram. You can contact him at mslaughter1@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Victor, Spencerport secure Section V bowling championships
