The Janesville Area Bowling team had another successful with a fourth place finish at the Class A State tournament .Bottom Row L-R: Christian Reyes, Abigail Balzotti, Zander Terbeest; Top Row L-R: Coach Matt Balzotti, Kinsey Dreyer, Demian Reyes, Coach Ryan Rohwer, Noah Rohwer, Coach Laura Seys.
The Janesville Area Bowling program capped off a historic 2025 season, securing their first ever South Central Conference title, and a fourth place finish at the Class A State tournament on November 22. This would be the second time in three seasons the JAB placed at State, placing second in 2023.
Established in 2014 under the direction of Head Coach Laura Seys, the JAB program has seen tremendous growth with 18 bowlers across its Varsity and JV squads for the Fall 2025 season. Seys is aided by Coaches Ryan Rohwer and Matt Balzotti. Their season runs relatively longer than the more contemporary sports, running from August to late-November in which teams of five travel across Southern Minnesota to compete against two teams every Saturday morning.
An actual hurler might be able to explain it better than this reporter can, but the competitions utilize the Baker Format or Baker System as a more team-based method of keeping score. Throughout the match, players rotate frames within a single game, emphasizing teamwork over individual talent. For example, Player 1 will bowl frames 1 & 6, Player 2 bowls frames 2 & 7, and so on. It requires each bowler to contribute to one shared score, making every shot crucial to the overall performance of the team.
For their 2025 co-ed season, the JAB Varsity team averaged an impressive 160+ score over the span of 70 games, winning 47 and losing 23. They finished in third place in the South Central Conference, but overcame tremendous odds to defeat Mankato East by 26 pins, then the undefeated Waterville team by 20 pins to claim the Conference Championship. Seys described the victory as a “true underdog moment” and a few of the athletes crowned themselves a “Cinderella team.” Taking the top spot in the Conference automatically granted JAB a trip to the Class A State tournament on November 22, and an ideal sendoff for four of the program’s seniors.
All four seniors, Abigail Balzotti, Kinsey Dreyer, Noah Rohwer, and Zander Terbeest had stellar individual seasons, achieving scores in the low to mid-200s in competitions. Additionally, all four achieved “100% fills” or threw either a strike or spare in every frame of a single game at least once with the two boys (Noah and Zander) accomplishing the feat multiple times, highlighting their consistency on the lanes.
Each senior brings a unique trait or skill to the competition: Balzotti is a rookie compared to the others, only bowling for the past few years, but her enthusiasm as a teammate and cheerleader offered support when games went sideways. Dreyer has been bowling since the fourth grade, and it shows as her highest score is 244 pins; it takes tremendous focus to excel at the sport, and she finds music as a suitable tool to help “lock-in” before tournaments. Rohwer has been with JAB since their inaugural 2014 season, and he brings a confident swagger to his play. His senior season represents the culmination of hard work and talent as he was named to the All-Conference Team, placed 21st out of 88 bowlers in a recent Singles State competition, and boasts a high score of 276 pins, although his teammates seemed to scoff at the “legitimacy” of his boisterous claim. Lastly, Terbeest may not be the ideal image of a bowler as he towers over many of his teammates, but his many years of experience almost brought him to perfection, claiming a 289 as his highest score this season.
As their co-ed season ended a few weeks prior, Seys hosted an awards banquet at Janesville Bowl on December 14 to highlight the successful season, and give heartfelt goodbyes to the four seniors who have been “central to this program.” Letters were awarded to all eight Varsity players, emotional embraces were shared, and each senior received a bowling pin with their names etched on it as a memento of their great season and successful run these past few years. This may be the end of the Fall season for the co-ed JAB team, but a girl’s league is currently underway with competitions running from December through February with a State tournament held in March.
Once the ceremony ended, many of the JAB team unzipped their bowling bags, tied their bowling shoes tightly, and celebrated the only way they know how–by throwing a few frames. The crash of pins echoed as teammates shared lanes for one final hurrah, sharing their favorite moments of the season, and commemorating a well-earned finish at State.
