Bowling at Lincoln East High School is still a relatively new official high school sport. But already, the team has been able to start finding its footing. According to the coach of the varsity girls bowling team, Head Coach Antonio Hamersky, the program had a 19-7 record in 2024-2025, won two tournaments, and most importantly, qualified six athletes, three from the boys and three from the girls for the individual state tournament.
At the center of that growth is Antonio Hamersky, who stepped into his current role after starting as a volunteer assistant when the sport transitioned to varsity status.
“This will be my fourth year with the program here at East,” Hamersky said. “It’s only been a recognized sport with LPS the past four years, so I’ve kind of been around since the beginning of bowling being taken as a qualified sport in LPS.”
He states that his goal for the bowling team is for East to be known as a “bowling school”, a place where students can be a part of something special. Hamersky enjoys coaching so much because it gives him the chance to build something from the ground up and establish a culture filled with meaningful relationships
“It was always such a welcoming atmosphere when I went to tryouts,” said Eli Quinn, a student at Lincoln East that participated in tryouts. “They always cheered me on, telling me that I could do it and to keep trying.”
Teamwork plays a huge role in whether a bowling team can be successful. Even in what might seem like an individual sport at first glance, bowling is actually a mixture of both an individual and a team sport. Each bowler competes head to head, gaining points not only for their personal games, but their wins also contribute to the team. After the rounds of one on ones, baker rounds begin, where teamwork shines the most. Here, five bowlers share the same scorecard, each contributing two frames to complete a single game.
“At the high school level, it’s a little of both,” Hamersky said. “I would describe it as a team sport that’s built upon individual performances. Each bowler is essentially bowling their own individual game, but then those games represent points that contribute to the team’s overall score.”
“Bowling comes down to you and your team working together for a common goal,” said Alex Preister, a bowler for the varsity boys team. “Working with your team is what makes you successful.”
As tryouts are coming up, Hamersky reveals a lot about what he and the program values in possible bowlers. He shares that although score matters, it’s not what he focuses the most on. He values teachability, consistency with rolls, and a good understanding of the mechanics of bowling. As well as a player that shows leadership and teamwork, responds well to criticism and feedback, and can stay composed after making mistakes or taking a bad frame.
“I describe bowling as an 80% mental sport, 20% physical sport,” Hamersky said. “We want to be critical of ourselves, but we don’t want to tear ourselves down. We view mistakes and bad shots as an opportunity to get better. So it’s about framing things in a growth mindset.”
Last season had a lot of success. For this season, he wants to raise the bar even further. Focusing on helping every bowler raise their average, develop new leaders after graduating four varsity seniors, and the ultimate goal of getting the entire team to qualify for state by winning their district for the first time in the team’s history.
With personalized practices, powerful mindsets, and a coach that’s focused on developing athletes, East has become a place where anyone, regardless of skill can improve. Whether it’s your first time touching a bowling ball, or you’re a season pro, the program is built so that every bowler can grow to the level of state champion.
