Freshman Lawrence contributes to sudden surge in Noll’s conference ranking

  After nearly a month holding 1st place in the Greater Lake County conference, the Bishop Noll’s boys bowling team fell to 3rd place. Currently, Noll trails Lake Central by two wins and Griffith by one. But after almost a decade of team rebuilding, boys bowling is once again a major powerhouse.

  One of the major reasons for Noll’s strengths in the alleys is due to newcomer Ameer Lawrence, freshman. Lawrence started bowling when he was three, but didn’t realize he wanted to be a serious bowler until he was six. Currently, he also participates in golf, swimming and cheerleading; but his bowling skills are what have boosted Noll’s prominence in this sport in close to a decade.

  Lawrence says he gets his motivation from two people.

  “When I was younger, I would say I was the only person who motivated myself to do better. But now, I would say my deceased Aunt Birtha and my grandfather push me to do better.–not just for myself, but for them, too,” he said.

  Lawrence wants to improve the team by increasing morale among the bowlers. He sees the talent they have, but he wants to generate excitement and pride for their team.

  “There won’t be a lot that I would want to improve with the bowling team, but I would change the bowing shirts we have to wear because they are kind of dull and boring and our names are microscopic,” he said.

  The last tournament Lawrence bowled in was an EYT (Elite Youth Tour) tournament on October 19, in Dekalb, Illinois in which he bowled 1465.

  “I was bowling in a step-ladder format and I lost to the number one seed and came in second place. I also earned my spot for junior gold,” he said.

   Ameer credits a couple other bowlers on the team for their success.

  “Zach is our anchor on the team, so he is really important because he is like the backbone of the team. He brings that fiery flavor to the team because sometimes we need it,” he said.

  He also credits junior Luke Fuehermeyer.

  “Luke is great for the lanes because he brings a new style of bowling to the team, but he can also get really fired up when he wants to. Luke brings that welcoming surprise to the team, warning other teams that we aren’t a force to be reckoned with,” he said.

  In addition to all of their strengths, Lawrence sees some weaknesses in the team that might affect their hard-earned standings and hopes to overcome them before their rankings fall.

  “We need to work on not playing as much as we do in practice on the tournament field,” he said. “We need to work on different oil patterns, different parts of the lane, and playing during tournaments.”

  The boys bowling team will bowl their next game on December 14 at Olympia Lanes at 4:30.