On Tuesday, January 20th, the Golden Hawks faced the Indian Hills Braves at Bowler City in Hackensack for a rematch of their first game of the season.
The Hawks’ and Braves’ first meeting of the season ended with the Braves handing the Hawks their first loss of the year. In that earlier 4–3 nail-biter, the Hawks lost the first game by 10 pins and the second game by a mere 27. Despite a strong performance by the Hawks in the third game, beating the Braves by 58 pins, the Hawks were still defeated.
“This is a team I know we can beat, but only if we’re all playing at our best,” said Henry Wacks.
The Braves came into Tuesday’s match on a four-game losing streak, while the Hawks had just picked up a win over the Ramsey Rams on Thursday, January 15th. The Hawks hoped to earn back-to-back wins, while the Braves looked to end their losing streak with another victory over the Hawks.
The Hawks, however, did not let that happen without a fight. Coach Kleinfelder’s roster consisted of juniors Henry Wacks and Henry Arturi, sophomore Jack Leahy, and freshman duo John Tsokanos and Jin Jang.
The Hawks started the first game strong, hoping to make a statement that what happened in December would not happen again. After a few strong frames to begin, the Hawks gained momentum and steamrolled through the first game.
Jang knocked down 150 pins, while Leahy bowled a 136. Tsokanos, who was sick and unable to attend the Hawks’ last game against the Rams, bowled a 178. The two Henrys combined for 380 pins, giving the Hawks a total score of 844 compared to the Braves’ 521.
While the first game ended in a Hawks victory, Coach Kleinfelder had one adjustment he wanted to make. Senior Justin Spano bowled an impressive series of strikes and spares while competing on the JV team during the first game. Kleinfelder felt confident that moving Spano up would result in a higher pin total for the Hawks, and he substituted Spano into the lineup for the next game.
With the first game secured, the Hawks quickly moved on to the second. The addition of Spano, who continued his streak of strikes and spares, added an impressive 177 pins. Leahy improved on his first-game score by bowling a 174, while Tsokanos followed with a 189. Arturi added a 151, and after a slow start, Wacks rebounded with a string of more than four consecutive strikes, finishing with 174 pins. The Hawks posted a team total of 865, defeating the Braves’ 636.
After winning the rematch, the Hawks looked to finish strong and complete a three-game sweep of the Braves.
Game three was highlighted by another strong performance from Spano, who rolled a 142.
“Justin bowled really well today,” said sophomore bowler Joseph Bushi. “I’m glad to have him as a part of the team. He’s helped me personally a lot with improving my hook and becoming a better player.”
Wacks echoed the sentiment and gathered the team after the match. “Everybody, let’s give a hand to Justin. Justin, great job today,” Wacks said.
Leahy added a 131 to Spano’s score, followed by Tsokanos’ 126. Arturi contributed another 172, and Wacks anchored the team with a 149.
After nearly four hours at the lanes, the Hawks posted their lowest team total of the match in the final game. Nevertheless, they secured the win, defeating the Braves 720–612.
The Hawks’ win on January 20th marked their second consecutive victory and their first back-to-back win streak since the 2024–25 season, when the Hawks also defeated the Rams and Braves in consecutive matches. All of the Hawks’ wins this season have been sweeps of their opponents. The Hawks’ next match is against Coach Jim Dalessio’s 9–1 Mahwah Thunderbirds on Thursday, January 22nd.