When a student at Cherry Hill East hears about a game against their crosstown rivals, Cherry Hill West, the first thing they would probably think of is a football or basketball game. They likely wouldn’t think of a bowling match. But on Monday, December 18, bowling was the sport in which the two schools were clashing, with both the East Boys and Girls Varsity teams defeating West at West’s home alley, The Big Event.
Both the girls’ and boys’ teams have been doing well this year, with the girls’ team staying undefeated, 5-0, and the boys’ team improving 4-1. The Girls’ Varsity team was led by their captain Leanna Lescano (‘26), a competitor in the Girls’ state championship last year, whose 159 average at the meet helped East defeat a tough West team. Other highlights from the girls’ team included a great third game from Serena Simms (‘24) and a personal best of 167 from Mary Perry (‘25). Perry felt that the squad bowled “collectively as a team” and were all motivated by the “great rivalry and bragging rights that come along with it”. The format of the bowling matches divides the match into four points, with one point going to the team whose combined score in each game is highest, with a point also going to the team whose total score between the three games is the highest. The girls pushed through a tough second game with good numbers put up by West including a 155 from Kim Reed (‘26), in which the opposing team scored a point for the first time all year against the team, but an outstanding third game put the match away.
As for the Boys Varsity Match, Cherry Hill East rebounded off their first season loss on December 14 against Shawnee with a 3-1 victory over West. The Cougars were led by a series of three games from Dmitry Camarre (‘25), whose 674 combined score contained a high game of 265. This is the second match in a row in which Camarre has bowled a game above 250. Consistent showings from Jack Dubin (‘25), who rolled a 171 average for his three games, and Max Wizeman (‘26) who rolled a 160 average, also powered the Cougars towards victory. While West played tough to start out, winning the first game 810-796, the Lions’ scores worsened, leading to the Cougars getting the other three points in dominant fashion.
Coach Ryan James, current coach of the East girls’ and boys’ bowling team, is very pleased with the Cougars’ performance so far this season, noting a win against West is always an added bonus to the player’s confidence, and hopes that they can stay in a groove as the new year approaches, trying to win the Olympic Conference for the first time since 2016.