St. Joseph's Prep's first Catholic League bowling title since 1994 did not come easily on Saturday.
The second-seeded Hawks beat host and top-seeded Archbishop Ryan at Thunderbird Lanes (Holme Circle), 2,829-2,718.
"We knew it was going to be a battle and it was," Prep assistant coach Joe Nawn said. "We pulled it out in the last three frames of the third game. It was a classic match. I can't say enough good things about Ryan. They fought to the end, but we just had a little more than they did."
Catholic League MVP Chris Jones, a senior, had the most for the Hawks with a 638 series. Thanks largely to his 246 first game, the Hawks were able to build a 1,020-849 lead.
That was the best game of the day, but teammate Joe Liciardello had the best series (642).
Ryan's best series came from Chris Gatto (623).
Archbishop Ryan 849 979 890 - 2,718
St. Joseph's Prep 1,020 833 976 - 2,829
AR: Tyler Cruz 163-209-178–550; Chris Gatto 181-222-220–623; Jim Mormando 138-191-160–453; Pat Ball 134-161-158–489; John Rooney 233-196-174–603.
SJP: Joe Liciardello 230-188-224–642; Donte Gleason 179-140-201–520; Phil Carlino 184-148-160–492; Chris Rocks 181-184-172–537; Chris Jones 246-173-219–638.
Contact Mike Gibson at rallysports@phillynews.com.
