Pearl River Athletic Department Honors Torgersen

The Pearl River Athletic Department presented the 2011 Lauren Buonocore Girls and Women in Sports Day Award to Marni Torgersen at halftime of Thursday's home basketball game against Albertus Magnus.

Torgersen, a Nanuet resident, founded and continues to coach the Pearl River bowling team, which began for the boys in 2001 and girls in 2002. She coaches both varsity squads and the junior varsity.

The Pearl River graduate has led Pearl River to one Rockland County championship and two division championships. She coached all-section teams at the NYS Competition from 2002 through 2009.

“Some of the people I bowl with in the adult leagues are prior student athletes of mine,” Torgersen said through a press release.  “One of my greatest high points in coaching was being able to start the bowling program for the PRHS. I keep in touch with many of my former students and am so proud to see so many of them go on to bowl at the collegiate level or in college programs. I also have had the opportunity to work closely with Cathy Lessica, the proprietor of Pearl River Lanes, who was my coach during middle and high school."

Torgerson is a Pearl River graduate who teaches with the special education program at Pearl River Middle School.

This is the 25th Annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day, which celebrates girls and women competing in athletics. Only one in 27 high school girls participated in sports and the average high school had two girls teams when Title IX was passed in 1971. Now one in three high school girls play a sport and high schools field an average of eight girls teams.

Pearl River renamed the award in 2002  to honor former Pearl River School District teacher and coach Lauren Buonocore, who passed away after a long battle with cancer.