Rab's Country Lanes

1600 Hylan Boulevard Staten Island, NY 10305   |   Phone: 718-979-1600    

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Watch: Staten Island University Hospital’s Healthwish – Breast Cancer Awareness & The Rab Wilkinson Foundation

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Watch Rab Wilkinson Foundation Chair Frank Wilkinson sat with Staten Island University Hospital’s Jamie Lynn Homan on the latest episode of Healthwish to talk about some of the history behind Rab’s Country Lanes and why the Rab Wilkinson Foundation continues to be one of the most significant contributors to Breast Cancer Awareness in our community.

​Healthwish is a series of conversations about the state of healthcare in NYC’s fabulous fifth borough, Staten Island. Our goal is to raise issues, raise awareness and raise health. Because when we “Raise Health”, we raise everyone!

Key to NYC: Unlocking Entertainment via COVID-19 Vaccination

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We are committed to continue keeping Rab’s and our Community a safe and enjoyable place for all!

Key to NYC Vaccination Requirement
As of 9/13/21, Entertainment and Dining Establishments, including Rab’s, in NYC require proof of vaccination by all guests ages 12 & Over.

In order to continue providing a safe and healthy environment for all guests, Rab’s and other entertainment venues throughout New York City are subjected to the Key to NYC Vaccination Requirement.

Before proceeding with your reservation and your bowling experience, please make sure all guests in your party have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 Vaccination, and proof with valid ID will be requested upon arrival to Rab’s.

Visit: https://www1.nyc.gov/site/doh/covid/covid-19-vaccines-keytonyc.page to learn more about the Key to NYC Program!

Rab’s Country Lanes and SIUH Northwell Health team up for COVID-19 vaccination shots

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The Johnson and Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine was administered at Rab’s Country Lanes, in Dongan Hills. July 23, 2021. (Staten Island Advance/Derek Alvez)

By Derek Alvez | alvez@siadvance.com
Silive.com | Click here for the full story

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – William Ford of New Brighton admitted he was stubborn about not getting the COVID-19 vaccine, until Friday night at Rab’s Country Lanes, in Dongan Hills.

“It was time to get it, COVID is serious,” the 46-year old Rab’s employee said. “I heard the hospital was going to be here and it made sense.”

Staten Island University Hospital Northwell Health and Rab’s Country Lanes teamed up, hoping to vaccinate and educate.

William Ford of New Brighton received his Johnson and Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine at Rab’s Country Lanes, in Dongan Hills. July 23, 2021. (Staten Island Advance/Derek Alvez)

“We’re trying to get creative with COVID vax efforts on Staten Island,” said Christian Preston, Director of Public Relations for SIUH.

“As the Delta spreads in NYC and to address neighborhoods with some of the highest COVID positivity and lowest vaccination rates in the city, we wanted to get the ball rolling on COVID vaccinations at their wildly popular Cosmic Bowling Night.”

Rab’s Country Lanes Frank Wilkinson thought the idea was a perfect score.

“We have a great partnership with SIUH and we do multiple events here (staff league, staff bowling, fundraising, staff outings),” Wilkinson said. “It’s a community venue; and there is a need for the vaccination.”

According to the NYC Dept. of Health, 50 percent of Staten Islanders have been fully vaccinated. Manhattan has the highest rate at 66 percent.

 

15 Island bowlers compete in USBC Junior Gold Championships

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Brianna Mester and Brandon Handog advanced the furthest among the 15 Island competitors in the Junior Gold Championships. (Photos courtesy of the Mester and Handog families)

By Staten Island Advance Sports Desk
silive.com | Click here for the full story

INDIANAPOLIS — Youth bowling’s version of the Little League World Series was contested last week when the USBC Junior Gold Championships were rolled in Indiana.

Staten Island was well represented as 15 Islanders, most hailing from Rab’s Country Lanes, were among the more than 2,900 youth bowlers who competed for titles, spots on the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Junior Team USA 2022 and the largest scholarship prize fund in the event’s history ($502,100).

The 23rd installment of the USBC Junior Gold Championships took place across six bowling centers in the Indianapolis area. The event features top USBC Youth bowlers ages 7 to 18 from around the United States as well as Canada, Puerto Rico and U.S. military zones. Each participant qualified to enter by advancing through local USBC Junior Gold qualifying leagues and tournaments.

Competition officially started Monday July 12, with bowlers rolling a total of 16 games in the qualifying rounds before advancing to the Advancer Rounds and Finals which were live-streamed on BowlTV.

While competition came to an end after the Qualifying Round for most, Islanders Brianna Mester and Brandon Handog continued on to the Advancers Round in their respective divisions.

Mester, competing in the U15 Girls division, finished 34th in a field size of 298 girls with a 21-game, 3,743 pinfall, averaging 178.24 for the week. Mester fell shy 57 pins from the Final Advancers Round earning a $250 scholarship prize for her finish.

Handog finished the week in 90th place amongst a field of 868 in the U18 Boys division. He finished with a 4,146, 21-game series, averaging 197.43 for the competition. Handog finished 47 pins shy of the top 64 cutline. Brandon received a $300 scholarship for his performance.

The 2022 event should be stronger and will take place in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Some Staten Island youth bowlers have already started qualifying for the event.

Complete Results below:

Qualifying Round:

U12 Division – Field Size: 93 Girls

GIRLS – 14 Advance to Final Advancers Round (cut: 2451)

74 – Kiara Lombardi 1948

U15 Division – Field Size: 631 Boys / 298 Girls

BOYS – 90 Advance to Advancers Round (cut: 2937)

478 – Joseph Guarnieri 2492

583 – Jeremy Vasquenz 2243

589 – Paul Cherry 2219

GIRLS – 43 Advance to the Final Advancers Round (cut: 2831)

13 – Brianna Mester 2987

U18 Division – Field Size: 868 Boys / 560 Girls

BOYS – 167 Advance to the Advancers Round (cut: 3097)

101 – Brandon Handog 3170 | 198.13 average

784 – Frank Koppie 2686

887 – Steven Souffrin 2632

1009 – Luciano Spagnuolo 2531

1083 – Victor Guastella 2450

1087 – Zachary Lababneh 2441

1124 – Patrick Taverner 2337

1131 – Enrique Rodriguez 2308

GIRLS – 80 Advance to the Advancers Round (cut: 2909)

298 – Maya Avilez 2634

530 – Su Denizer 2212

Advancers Round

U15 Division – Field Size: 298 Girls

28 Advance to the Final Advancers Round (cut: 3800)

34 – Brianna Mester 3743

U18 Division – Field Size: 868 Boys

BOYS – 64 Advance to the Final Advancers Round (cut: 4193)

90 – Brandon Handog 4146

College Signings: Maya Avilez is ready for the next level

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New Dorp senior Maya Avilez is flanked by PBA Hall of Famer and former Staten Island resident Johnny Peraglia and New Jersey State Bowling Hall of Famer Leslie Bohn after signing a National Letter of Intent to attend North Carolina A&T. (Courtesy of New Dorp HS)

By Charlie De Biase Jr. | debiase@siadvance.com
Staten Island Advance | Click here for the full story

It’s July, which means the 2020-21 school year is finally in the rearview mirror.

And some local student-athletes are not only planning to play on the collegiate level beginning in the fall, but will be leaving for their new homes pretty soon.

In the meantime, the Advance/SILive.com will once again share the good news with our readers.

And to boot, College Signings 19 includes various sports. In fact, we’ve got four different sports in this edition, including one on the Division 1 level.

We also have a number of past commitments in recent months at the bottom, including the previous 18 College Signings.

Give another look at them as well, if you wish.

Maya Avilez signed a National Letter of Intent to attend North Carolina A&T on a full women’s bowling scholarship.

The 17-year-old Avilez picked up the game after hitting Rab’s Country Lanes with her grandfather (Dr. Robert Taglianetti, DDS) as a youngster and she’s compiled a pretty impressive resume that led to earning the scholarship to the Division 1 school from Greensboro, N.C.

In fact, she competed on New Dorp’s team for two seasons before missing her senior campaign because of the pandemic. However, she currently competes in two different leagues, including the Parker Bohn III/Johnny Petraglia Scholarship League on Friday nights at Howell (N.J.) Lanes and Rab’s Junior Classic on Saturday mornings. She owns averages of 208 and 214.13, respectively, in the leagues.

Avilez is also the owner of four career 300 games.

Her connection to N.C. A&T came through Leslie Bohn, her personal coach and the wife of Parker Bohn. Leslie Bohn is best friends with the Aggies’ bowling coach and USBC Hall of Famer Kim Terrell-Kearney and that relationship helped get the ball rolling for Avilez.

“(Terrell-Kearney and I) initially exchanged emails and did a Zoom chat and last February, I visited the school,’’ said Avilez. “It took me a few months to make a decision, but ultimately I loved the school when I made the visit and decided it was the best place for me.’’

The right-handed Avilez said Terrell-Kearney was impressed with her power game.

“She definitely likes the way I throw it hard,’’ said the Concord resident. “I have more revs than most girls and it gives me more versatility than other styles of bowling.

“I also think (Terrell-Kearney and her husband, Eric), who is an assistant coach, are the nicest people. I believe they can build my game and support me to become the best bowler I can be.’’

Avilez, who plans to study Secondary Education History, also received interest from Louisiana Tech.

Rab’s Selected as Finalist in 1010 WINS Small Business $10K Challenge

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Rab’s Country Lanes was recently selected as a Top 5 Finalist amongst 888 small businesses in the New York City Area to compete in 1010 WINS Small Business $10K Challenge.  Competing for the top prize were: Michelle Cadore, Da Spot NYC, Brooklyn; Kimberly Parris, The CaribDiva Company, Queens; Monica Pidhorechi, The Ice Cream Lady, Paramus, NJ; Lily Urzua, Urzua Queens Center of Performing Arts, Queens and our very own Frank Wilkinson, Rab’s Country Lanes, Staten Island!

Tune in on June 10th to http://1010wins.com/challenge to watch!

Adam Abdelaziz surges to top of leaderboard as Staten Island Singles Classic qualifying ends

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By Joe D’Amodio | damodio@siadvance.com
silive.com | Click here for the full story

Adam Abdelaziz made a statement on the final day of qualifying in the Staten Island Singles Classic Saturday at Rab’s Country Lanes as he moved to the top of the leaderboard with a huge performance.

Abdelaziz, who is Showplace Bowling Center house pro Vinny D’Ambrosio’s protege, uncorked an 817 scratch series with games of 237 and pair of 290s. That alone would have put him in the lead, but add his 12-pin handicap to his scratch series and he finished with an 829 gross set.

Abdelaziz, who is a Susan Wagner HS product who helped the Falcons win the city crown in 2012 and 2013, will lead a field of 24 qualifiers into Saturday’s finals at 2:30 p.m. at Rab’s.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE TOP 24 QUALIFIERS

Last week’s co-leaders, Brandon Sach and Sean McAuliffe, dropped to second place at 802 each. Kelcey Fisher ended qualifying fourth with an 800 gross series, while Anthony Arias placed fifth with a 798.

Two-time defending champion Jeff Scire (795) wound up sixth, but should be tough to beat in the finals.

Brandon Sach, Sean McAuliffe surge into Staten Island Singles Classic qualifying lead

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By Joe D’Amodio | damodio@siadvance.com
silive.com | Click here for the full story

Brandon Sach and Sean McAuliffe each knocked over 802 pins to share the lead Sunday after the second weekend of qualifying in the 43rd Staten Island Singles Classic at Rab’s Country Lanes.

The two, both bowling scratch, took the lead from first-weekend leader Anthony Arias, who now sits in fourth with a 798 set.

Kelcey Fisher, bowling with a 30-pin handicap, is third with an 800 series.

Two-time defending champion Jeff Scire found his way on the leaderboard by rolling a 795 scratch series, which currently places him fifth. Scire won in 2018 and 2019. The pandemic canceled last year’s event.

Co-tournament director Eric Capizzi reported that the turnout for the second weekend in the Donnie Walters’ run event was “surprisingly good” and the winner of the event will be guaranteed $1,000.

Qualifying concludes Saturday (April 17) at 1, 3 and 5 p.m. each day. The top 24 finals will be held April 24 at 2:30 p.m.

Entry fee is $60.

Anthony Arias bolts into Staten Island Singles Classic lead

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By Joe D’Amodio | damodio@siadvance.com
silive.com | Click here for the full story

Anthony Arias bolted into the lead after the first day of qualifying in the 43rd Staten Island Singles Classic Saturday at Rab’s Country Lanes.

Arias, bowling scratch, uncorked a 798 series.

Marco Recchia is in second position with a 787 set (784 scratch), Michael Vlassenko is third (770 gross) and is followed by Jason Wichnovitz (756) and Nicholas DiTomasso (756).

Donnie Walters, the founder of the Staten Island Singles Classic, couldn’t attend opening day, but promises to be there next week.

“I heard it went well,” said the 73-year-old Walters. “There were a lot of people there that I worked with at Maple Lanes. For me, it’s more of a social event and not so much a bowling tournament.”

The tourney took a hiatus last year because of the pandemic.

Qualifying continues April 10-11 and April 17 at 1, 3 and 5 p.m. each day. The top 24 finals will be held April 24 at 2:30 p.m.

Entry fee is $60.

After missing a year because of the pandemic, the Staten Island Singles Classic is back

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Three-time Staten Island Singles Classic champion Rob Vinci is interviewed by tourney founder Donnie Walters during the 40th anniversary 2017 event at Rab’s Country Lanes. (Staten Island Advance)

By Joe D’Amodio | damodio@siadvance.com
silive.com | Click here for the full story

It pained Donnie Walters to have to cancel what would have been the 43rd annual Staten Island Singles Classic last year because of the pandemic.

For 42 years prior to that, the event was a staple in the local bowling community and one that always went off without a hitch.

But, this year, with the news surrounding the pandemic getting better, the 73-year-old Walters decided to proceed with the event.

“I couldn’t miss it two years in a row and I think the bowlers want to see it back,” said Walters.

Qualifying in the Classic will take place at Rab’s Country Lanes on April 3, April 10-11 and April 17 at 1, 3 and 5 p.m. each day for a total of 12 qualifiers. The top 24 finals will be held April 24 at 2:30 p.m.

Entry fee is $60. Those keglers who compete in the first squad will receive a second entry for the cost of lineage ($15) only.

With lanes at a premium because of the pandemic, spots in the first qualifier are sure to go fast.

“I made some changes. I’m not guaranteeing the prize fund,” explained Walters. “It will be based on entries.”

With his tournament sidekick, John Eadicicco, now living in Florida, Walters will rely on help from Eric Capizzi, Garett Gersh and Mike Giovinazzo.

“Eric is associated with Country Lanes and Garett is associated with Showplace so I have representatives from both Island houses helping me out,” said Walters.

Country proprietor Frank Wilkinson has also “been a big asset” to Walters in helping get this year’s event off the ground.

Walters said competitors in the tournament will have to follow the pandemic protocols of Country Lanes at the time of the tourney.

“It’s house rules,” said Walters. “The state and city laws are changing all the time when it comes to the pandemic. Right now, I believe the bowlers would have to wear masks on the lanes.”

Red-hot Jeff Scire is the two-time defending champ, winning in 2018 and 2019.