by CHRYSTAL STASICKY Staff Writer
Senior Lauren Hoffman has an unbelievable record that makes her a valuable player on the bowling team, as well as captain.
Hoffman first started bowling when she was five years old. She was like any other beginner, dropping the ball in the gutter and missing spares. However, with time, she improved herself into an accomplished bowler.
Hoffman began making a name for herself in 2008 when she became winner of the Division II All Star Varsity Tournament of Champions.
It was in 2009 that Hoffman joined the bowling team as a freshman. That year, she was placed on the varsity team and got her varsity letter.
She received the highest average of 183, series of 694, and game of 266 out of all of her teammates. In the final round of the Middlesex County Singles High School Tournament, she finished in ninth place, while qualifying for third place in semi-finals.
During sophomore year in 2010, she received a spot on varsity again. This time, she placed fifth in the Middlesex County Singles Tournament.
During the bowling banquet at the end of the sports’ season, she was acknowledged as the most valuable player for highest average, series, and game for yet another year. Hoffman was also named team captain for the following year, as she possessed great sportsmanship and supported all her team mates.
High School bowling Coach Samantha Grimaldi said, “Lauren is one of the most determined student athletes I’ve seen thus far. She pushes herself to perfect her craft and still stays an excellent student. This balance is what sets her apart from the rest and one of the many reasons she will be a division one bowler at Sacred Heart next year.”
During junior year, Hoffman was ranked third place in the Bob James Memorial Tournament and fifth in the Anna Mueller Doubles Tournament in 2011.
Senior year, she became team captain for the second time. In 2012, Hoffman took third place in the Joe Goertz Memorial Tournament.
In the last Greater Middlesex County (GMC) Individual Tournament she will bowl in during high school, she placed third.
Sophomore varsity player Hiral Patel said, “Even though it was Lauren’s last year as a bowler and Captain, I believe that she really left a mark on this school.”
Hoffman even made an impact out of school.
In 2011, she joined the Garden State Junior Gold League and qualified for Junior Gold tournaments. In May, August, and December of 2012, she placed first in the tournaments. In September, she ranked second, and in January of 2013, she placed first.
These accomplishments are very serious because she is bowling on sport lane conditions, meaning it is difficult to score high. However, Hoffman was able to achieve high games and earn first and second place numerous times.
In 2008, she won third place out of an estimated amount of 200 bowlers in the 65th US Open Pro-Am, an event where pro bowlers and individuals bowl together, and in the 2009 Pro-am, she ranked 10.
To her high school years and her success, Hoffman said, “To get all of the awards I have in bowling and be ranked where I am, I just feel so accomplished and happy that all of my hard work paid off. All of that did not come easy and to see that the hard work paid off is priceless. I am going to miss high school bowling so much because it made my high school, career so much more memorable. I made so many new friends through it and the bowling team is like my second family. I will miss them a lot but I am continuing my bowling in college and I cannot wait for that to start!”