CLINTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Overcoming a sluggish start on Saturday, seniors Andrew Rusu and Alexander Thorn helped their team right the ship, as De La Salle Collegiate finished third at the Bowl Swami Motor City Team Challenge at Imperial Lanes in Clinton Township.

Rusu finished up Game 3 of qualifying play by rolling 11 straight strikes, en route to a career-best 290 game. Thorn had a 256 in his final game, helping the Pilots roll a 1,057 regular game. The team then bowled a 741 for its final four Baker games to qualify 10th in tournament play. 

De La Salle then won its Round of 16 and quarterfinal matches before falling in the semifinals. But the team bounced back to defeat Oxford in the consolation finals to take third place.

"After Game 1, they seemed to get out of their bad spare-shooting funk and put together a couple of decent games," coach Jay Lang said. "Thorn and Rusu really gave us a big lift in Game 3 and really gave us a confidence boost going into match play."

Rusu (fifth) and Thorn (ninth) both received Top 10 medals in singles. Rusu rolled a 693 three-game series. Thorn bowled a 670. The Junior Varsity-A team also bowled in the varsity division and finished 18th in qualifying, just missing out on a top-16 finish. Jacob Cosart led the way with a 618 series.

De La Salle (5-3-1 Catholic League East) returns to league action Tuesday when it takes on second-place University of Detroit Jesuit at Oak Lanes in Westland. 

"We seem to be turning a corner at the right time with the Catholic League Championships and regionals only a few weeks away," Lang said.