Photo Courtesy of George Ackerman
Matt Wrobel
NHS senior, Bowling
What got you interested in the sport of bowling?
I have been bowling for fun with my family and friends ever since I was young, so I jumped at the opportunity in my junior year when I heard the high school had a team.
For you personally, how much mental preparation does it take for you to bowl?
Mental preparation for my own bowling game is all about the five seconds before, during, and directly after each shot that make the most difference. If I can mentally convince myself to bowl to the best of my ability during those five seconds on every throw, and to recognize how to improve upon it in the next shot, then I would consider myself successful.
Do you have any rituals or superstitions while competing?
I don’t believe in rituals or superstition – I think competing comes down to a combination of individual skill and the team’s mentality. Because of this, my biggest “ritual” is to always lift my teammates and myself up, congratulating them on their good shots and not holding them constantly accountable for their bad shots.
What kind of advice would you give a novice bowler?
My advice to a novice bowler would be to focus on the fundamentals, as having a good foundation to build upon is what I think is one of the keys to success in any field. Watching the way professionals bowl is a good way to understand this, but it is important to develop your own style and to have fun.
What is your favorite subject in school?
My favorite subject in school is mathematics. I am currently taking AP Calculus BC and AP Statistics, and I greatly enjoy them both. I like mathematics as a whole because it is steeped in logic, and there is an objectively correct answer for every problem.
Do you have any favorite TV shows or movies?
The only TV channel I watch is the Food Network channel (while I am eating food). A few of my favorite shows from there are Beat Bobby Flay, Guy’s Grocery Games and Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
What are your favorite teams in any sport? Do you have a favorite athlete?
I don’t follow any professional teams or athletes, but even if I did, my favorite team would still be the Nutley High School bowling team. Bowling with them has been my first real experience of being on a team full of people trying to do their best in a sport, and it has far surpassed my expectations of how I imagined it to be.
If you ever won the lottery, how would you spend your prize?
If I were to ever win the lottery, considering it was a decently large sum of money, I would first hire an experienced personal chef, because having restaurant-quality food for every meal would be a dream come true. Beyond that, I would put the majority of the money toward college and to save for whatever curveballs life decides to throw my way, keeping 10% or so of the money to spend on personal desires such as upgrades for my computer and new bowling equipment.
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