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Last Thursday at 3 p.m., a giddy buzz had overtaken Rab’s Country Lanes, a bowling alley just south of the Verrazzano Bridge on Staten Island. But there didn’t appear to be any birthday parties, family outings or buddies gathered around pitchers of beer.

Instead, nearly all 48 lanes were occupied by high school bowling teams, including the defending Public School Athletic League (PSAL) citywide champions: the Tottenville High School boys team and McKee/Staten Island Tech girls team. Tryouts for the fall season were underway.

“I got 20, 25 bowlers that are trying out for the team, and unfortunately can't keep them all,” said J.P. Cassese, Tottenville’s head coach. “This is a varsity sport, and we’re a competitive team.”

His final roster, he said, would be capped around 16.

“People sometimes look down on bowling,” Cassese said, “but if you come to one of the matches, the energy between the fans, the kids, the teammates, it gets crazy. … It’s unparalleled if you compare it to any other sport.”

One of those students gunning for a roster spot was ninth-grader Frank DiNapoli — who, based on the strike we saw him bowl, should have a decent chance.

“ I've been [bowling] since I was about 11,” he said. “ My dad taught me most of what I know.”

Watch our video dispatch from Rab’s.

Although high school bowling may not be the first sport that comes to mind when you think “fall,” it has a storied tradition on Staten Island. Before Tottenville’s back-to-back championships, the boys team at Susan Wagner High School won three consecutive titles, beginning in 2018. And on the girls’ side, McKee/Staten Island Tech, New Dorp High School, the Michael J. Petrides School and Curtis High School have all won championships going back to the early 2000s.

“Families that bowl typically bowl together,” said Frank Wilkinson, whose family has run Rab’s for 31 years. “And families that bowl stay together.”

Frank Wilkinson, whose family has run Rab’s for 31 years, competed at New Dorp alongside his brother and said the borough’s passion for bowling is largely generational.

“Families that bowl typically bowl together,” he said, “and families that bowl stay together.”

Wilkinson said Staten Island’s strength compared to other boroughs is also due to its access to facilities. Storied bowling alleys in other boroughs, including Maple Lanes in Brooklyn, Whitestone Lanes in Queens and Bowlmor Lanes in Greenwich Village have all shuttered in recent years. The recent closure of Showplace Bowling on Staten Island’s West Shore — where Cassese said he worked as a teenager — means even Richmond County is down to one major alley.

That said, the Department of Education and the PSAL still make high school bowling comparatively accessible. Matches and practice sessions themselves are funded by the city, and students without their own bowling shoes can borrow a pair from the alley, free of charge. (Sean LaRoy, a Tottenville senior, had his own black and gold shoes. He said he bought them on Amazon.)

And kids who don’t come from legacy bowling backgrounds can still excel.

“I was really bad at bowling when I started,” said Hongzheng Wu, a senior co-captain of the McKee/Staten Island Tech girls team. “ When I first tried out, I got around 60s. For me, it's more about consistency and showing up to practice every day to get better.”

Lauren Zerega, the head coach of the girls squad, admitted that she went into last season not expecting to reach the finals, but credited her team’s persistence and dedication for their championship win over top-seeded Petrides.

“ I think for us, our school's highly competitive academically, and they don't crack under pressure then — and in sports,” Zerega said.

When I asked if last year’s win in the finals drew more girls to tryouts this year, Zerega said she honestly didn’t think many of the new girls even knew about the championship — they were there for the  opportunity to be with friends and blow off steam after a tough day in class.

“ We do have really good team spirit, and we want to win,” Zerega said, “but for the girls' teams, and, maybe it's just for this sport, there's really no trash talking. I know in the finals, the boys were kinda going at it, but not the girls' teams.”