The bocce team kicked off the winter season on Monday, Dec. 12 with a home game against Seneca Valley. Both teams showed great skill, resulting in a very competitive game, but WJ wasn’t able to begin the season with a win, ending in a very close 3-5 loss.
By the end of the first game, WJ made a huge comeback against their impressive opponents with some strategic rolls, moving the other team’s ball further away from the pallino. While it was tied towards the end, one final roll awarded WJ the first game.
With even more strategy and precision, Seneca Valley won the second game by several points leaving the two teams tied.
Even when the team is low in score, their spirits are always high, thanks to one crucial teammate: senior Faisal Ali. The team can always count on him for some motivation and words of encouragement, which is necessary for any team environment.
I cheer on the team because I want to show them sportsmanship.
— Ali
The comradery among this team is strong and all players cheer for each other regardless of the distance of their ball to the pallino.
“The help of my team was good!” senior Hannah Albus said.
After this boost of confidence, the Wildcats came back in the third game winning the first frame and maintaining a tied score up until the final frame when Seneca Valley walked away with the win.
The game overall was competitive and WJ held their own against their highly skilled opponents.
“It went really well; very competitive. I think we could use a little strategy on rolling slower but no complaints, [I’m] happy how it ended,” coach Joe Schultze said during a post-game interview.
This year, some new freshmen have joined the team but the majority of the team is filled with upperclassmen. Even after years of being on the team and practicing and playing, improving their skill is always a top priority.
“[I hope] just to get better at it!” junior William Isola said.
As well as improving skill, there is always hope to have an impressive record in order to make it to the county tournament at the end of the regular season.
“If we could go to the championships that would be awesome, to get the championship and the playoffs!” Ali said.
The team’s next game is on Thursday, Jan. 5 at 3:30 p.m. against Wootton.
