Bowling requires pinpoint accuracy and ultimate focus. In a survey presented by statisticsanddata.org, bowling wasn’t among the top ten most followed sports or the top ten most played sports.
It’s never been the most common sport for kids in the current generation. Football, basketball, and baseball, amongst others, have dominated youth. Ethan Bromley, a first-year student at William Paterson University, believes it should be more widely recognized and televised as the primary sport in America.
Growing up in Mahopac, New York, and later moving to Montrose, Bromley picked up his first ball at the beginning of middle school. At eleven, Bromley joined his first youth league. Admitting he wasn’t perfect early on, Bromley stuck with it, only watching YouTube videos for advice.
“I wasn’t the most physically fit,” Bromley said. “I tried other sports while younger, including flag football, basketball, soccer, rowing; I felt none were for me.”
Montrose, New York, has few bowling alleys, so it is not a big community for the sport. The residents of Montrose don’t care for the game as much as Bromley does.
His step-grandfather began picking him up, and they started going to the bowling alley more and more. As soon as the final bell rang at Blue Mountain Middle School, his step-grandfather was there, ready to drive Bromley 30 minutes to the nearest bowling alley.
“My step-grandpa is from Chicago,” he said. “It’s a big community for bowling down there. He took it upon himself to teach me his techniques.”
While in middle school, Bromley began to excel academically. “Ethan has always been able to retain information,” said his mother, Maria. “When he does his schoolwork, he is at the top of his class.”
According to collegeboard.org, roughly ten percent of students receive a five on their exams on their Advanced Placement scores. Bromley achieved this feat five separate times.
Bromley reached this milestone in Advanced Placement in World History, United States History, Calculus AB/BC, Music Theory, and Literature & Composition. There is a 0.001% chance that this is attainable; this puts Ethan in a rare percentile.
Bromley began to take the sport very seriously during the latter half of Middle School. In the upcoming months before high school competition started, he realized, “I want to go pro.”
Bromley reiterates, “It’s not if I go pro; it’s when I go pro. I want to achieve my dream.”
Ethan is a journalism major who is involved in many clubs and organizations. He’s an analyst for WPTV’s “Sports Desk,” providing intel for the National Basketball Association. He’s also a producer for Brave New Radio and an actor for Pioneer Players.
He plans on picking a minor involved with music. “I’ve always been musically inclined,” he said. “I was a part of the All-State Choir in High School. Some of my favorite artists are Bruno Mars and Chappell Roan.”
In addition to these clubs, Bromley is a member of the Honors College. “The honors college is important because I hold myself to a higher standard than most individuals. It allows me to better myself and the community,” Bromley said.
Bromley is a two-handed bowler. It’s estimated that around 20% of bowlers currently use this style. This number is rapidly increasing due to its popularity at the professional level, such as in the case of players like Jason Belmonte, who is widely considered one of the greatest ever.
His unconventional technique in the lanes has attracted the interest of schools and bowling clubs all over the Northeast.
What has him excel is that he’s a lefty. Thirteen percent of adult bowlers are left-handed. In the Professional Bowling Association (PBA), ten percent of their top fifty bowlers of all time list are lefties.
“In the bowling community, being a two-handed lefty has got me a lot of criticism from the older community. We call them the old heads. They don’t understand the analytics of the game on different patterns. With my form, it picks up oil off the lane, which evaporates faster. With someone who bowls right and with one hand, their ball will push right, and it’s harder to control.”
Fellow freshman Matt Jinks explained to me that lefties have an advantage. “It’s a big advantage for our team; when you’re bowling, and you’re a lefty, you have your part of the oil to play in, not having anyone in your way.”
What’s unique about Bromley is he is Filipino. Professional bowling and collegiate bowling have been predominantly white sports.
Bromley mentioned, “I have never been criticized based on my ethnicity, but that’s because I have been in the youth leagues. I feel that when I get my name more recognized in the professional community, I expect there to be some comments.”
Bromley made it to the 2022 Pepsi finals in Rome, New York, with hard work and dedication. He placed thirteenth out of thousands of participants, which gave him a lot of optimism to look forward to.
In the following year, he was invited back to Rome. Bromley took the gold medal this time, bowling one thousand four hundred and six in six games.
A couple of weeks later, Bromley threw his first 300. In bowling, that is a perfect game.
“It was the first time in my youth community that someone threw a 300-hundred game. My friend was recording me, and his hand was so shaky recording it because he’d never seen anything like that. I bowled another 300 two weeks later and didn’t celebrate too much as I want it to be a regular occurrence.”
Bromley now has seven Westchester Junior Bowler Tour Wins and One New Jersey Youth Bowlers Tournament win. Bromley now averages 231.2 in competition play.
Earlier in the year, Bromley placed in the top five at the Storm Youth Championships in Orlando, Florida, and second at a junior event in North Brunswick, New Jersey.
Committing to the Pioneers bowling team at the beginning of his senior year of high school, Bromley hopes to be a part of the varsity team right off the rip. Traditionally, first-year students play at the Junior Varsity One or the Junior Varsity Two levels.
The Pioneers finished as the fifteenth-ranked club in America; Bromley wants to raise that ranking to number one.
There’s a perception around the team that it will be a “rebuild” year. The club lost many productive players, and many also transferred out. Former head coach Gregory Hatzisavvas stepped down after getting a job in a higher-up position at the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA). Former William Paterson bowler Dylan Kowaleski will take over as coach.
“Dylan, being a former bowler and having experience as a Pioneer, gives us a sense of comfort as a team. He has the mechanics to teach us to be the best bowlers we can be. GH will still be there for the next couple of years helping Dylan adjust to the coaching role,” mentions Bromley.
Bromley couldn’t be much happier to talk about his teammates when asked about critical returners who can take this level to the next level.
“Anthony Derobertis is from the same town as me in New York; he puts his heart and soul into bowling. Ben Darrow was our club’s national MVP last year. He was lights out with a 95% strike percentage. John Tucker has one of the best two-handed forms I’ve ever seen in my life, and our captain Bradlee Pase, before the season, I never met him, and he is genuinely one of the best guys I’ve ever met.”
Bromley comes in with a very talented first-year class. The Pioneers recruited some of the most highly touted high school bowlers in the Northeast.
“William Gifford, my roommate; Matt Jinks, a great guy who’s very good at his craft; Tai Burns, a good friend who throws amazing; I can watch his form all day; it’s buttery. Finally, Ryan Lashlee. They all have great potential but may take some time to develop.”
Gifford said, “Ethan is one of the best bowlers I’ve ever seen in person. His precision is almost like no one else I’ve ever seen.”
Added Jinks, “I’ve only started talking to Ethan for a month, but he’s an amazing bowler and an even better person. He cares about his craft, but he wants success. He’s determined, and I believe he is already a leader.”
The Pioneers bowling club looks gritty and fierce heading into the 2024-2025 season. Ethan Bromley hopes to be an evident factor in future team success, but most importantly, he wants one thing: bringing a championship to Wayne.
