Jan. 13, 2024
By Alexandra Lourenço
Editor
Taking after his father and brother, junior Mark Rigano has loved bowling for nearly a decade. He said his father and brother, Class of 2014 graduate Mike Dul, taught him the skills that have led to his success today.
Rigano, a three-year varsity member and two-year anchor, had the most impressive match of his bowling career on Dec. 7 when he bowled a 700 series against Weehawken High School at North Arlington Bowl-O-Drome.
“Since I have never done that before, it was pretty cool,” Rigano said. “It was no different than just bowling a good game.”
After having a disappointing performance in last season’s state tournament, Rigano said he has made the necessary changes to reach his goals this season.
“It’s all about practice…. If you can’t do [well on] one shot, you adjust,” Rigano said.
He said he hopes to make first-team all-league again and win both counties and states.
“He’s reliable and he always comes up clutch in the big moments.”
“We have a great chance for counties, but [for] states, we are going to have to work for [it],” Rigano said.
He said bowling has taught him never to be cocky.
“You could do really [well] one game and talk a lot, and the next game, you could be awful,” Rigano said.
Junior Patrick O’Rourke, who has alternated between varsity and junior varsity since his freshman year, has known Rigano since they were in kindergarten. He said as a teammate, Rigano is extremely supportive and takes initiative.
“If one of us is having a bad game, he is always there and steps up,” O’Rourke said.
He said Rigano’s upbeat nature benefits the team.
“He is always joking around with us, which gets the mood lighter. [There’s] a much better atmosphere on the team with him around,” O’Rourke said. “As a bowler, he gets very serious, but once he gets back to the table, he starts joking around.”
Senior Nick Adamo, who has been on varsity for three years, has known Rigano since he was in pre-K. He said the two have a great bond in and outside the bowling alley.
“We grew up doing lots of stuff together, going to the [New York] Giants and Yankees games,” Adamo said. “In bowling, we’re just teammates and push each other to do our best.”
He said Rigano is one of the most consistent players on the team.
“He’s reliable and he always comes up clutch in the big moments,” Adamo said.
Adamo said Rigano’s ability to bowl a 700 series is a testament to his skill and increases the team’s chances of making it far this season.
“We want to be the best we can be, so every single game means a lot. Him doing that puts us in a position to win and keep moving forward,” Adamo said.
Head Coach Offitto said Rigano is the team’s best bowler with the highest average.
“He does a great job for us in all aspects, but knocking down a ton of pins is what his biggest attribute to the team is,” Offitto said.
He said he is proud of Rigano for his accomplishment of bowling a 700 series and believes he can achieve even more.
“When he gets in a groove, it’s tough to get him off that groove,” Offitto said. “I want to see him get first-team all-county this year. He’s right on the outside edge of that, but I think he is going to work [and] get to that goal.”
