32 | MARCH 19 • 2020

Birnberg went to Eastern
Michigan University to play
baseball.
But he didn’
t spend much
time in Ypsilanti, leaving after
a freshman red-shirt season
and transferring to Oakland
University, where he didn’
t play
baseball and earned a degree in
communications in 2018.
“I must admit, it took me a
while to get over not playing
baseball anymore,” Birnberg
said. “I started playing high-
level baseball when I was 9.
Getting into coaching with
the Hit Dogs really helped me
through a tough time.”
Birnberg also coached the
West Bloomfield freshman
baseball team last spring and,
this winter, he was the coach of
the undefeated (12-0) Abbott

Middle School seventh-grade
boys basketball team.
He’
s also a hitting and
fielding instructor at High
Performance Training in
Keego Harbor.
So why did Birnberg coach
basketball at Abbott?
He has experience in the
sport. He played basketball at
West Bloomfield.
He was the Lakers’
starting
point guard as a sophomore
and junior, but he didn’
t play
basketball as a senior so he
could concentrate on baseball.
Birnberg’
s first scheduled
game as West Bloomfield’
s
baseball coach was to be
March 23, but the game
was canceled due to the
coronavirus.

continued from page 31

S

tandings in the B’
nai
B’
rith basketball league
through eight weeks of
the nine-week regular season:

1. Pisgah/Zeiger 8-0
2. Pisgah 5-3
3. Brotherhood I 2-6

4. Brotherhood II 1-7

High scorers in Week 7
and Week 8:
1. Eric Fishman (Pisgah) 35 points
2. Steve Lipshaw (Pisgah/Zeiger) 22
points
3 (Tie). Avi Katz (Brotherhood I) 21
points; Mike Morris (Pisgah/Zeiger) 21
points
5. (Tie) Max Kersch (Brotherhood II) 20
points; Rusian Shamayev (Brotherhood
I) 20 points
7. Justin Peters (Brotherhood II) 16
points
8. (Tie) David Banooni (Pisgah) 15
points; Dan Serlin (Pisgah-Zeiger) 15
points
10. Jenard Long (Pisgah-Zeiger) 14

points

Playoffs
Due to the cornoavirus, the playoffs
scheduled for March 22 have been
postponed, date to be determined.

Stats

sports HIGHlights

brought to you in partnership with

NMLS#2289

The Frankel Jewish Academy
boys bowling team wasn’
t on a roll
this season, but it was a very good
year for the Jaguars.
They finished fourth among nine
teams in their Catholic League
division, winning seven of 10
matches, and they were 8-4 overall.
They once again couldn’
t compete
in the Catholic League tournament
because it was held on Shabbat, but
thanks to accommodations made by
the Michigan High School Athletic
Association and Ten Pin Alley in
Tecumseh and not being on winter
break, they were able to compete in
a Division 4 regional tournament.
FJA bowlers participated in the
individual portion of the regional
Thursday, Feb. 27, instead of the
scheduled Saturday, Feb. 29. They
competed in the team portion Friday,
Feb. 28, during the day.
Senior Hannah Resnick, the lone
girl on the FJA team (there was no
girls team), led the Jaguars in the
individual competition at the regional
with a 33rd-place finish among 91
bowlers. She rolled 911 in six games.

Senior Jonah Feldman was
38th with 865. The top 10 bowlers
qualified for the state tournament.
FJA was 11th of 16 teams in the
regional team competition, which
consisted of six Baker games and
three match-play games. The top
three teams moved on to state.
Sophomore Eli Gordon was
FJA’
s top bowler during the season,
averaging 159. He was named to the
Catholic League All-League Team.
“Eli struggled early in the season,
but he really came on at the end,”
said FJA coach Joe Bernstein. “He
probably averaged 185 after the new
year with multiple games of more
than 200.”

Also on the FJA roster were
seniors Avery Feldman and
Elliot Kaftan and sophomores
Andy Tukel, Adam State, Jacob
Bronstein, Daniel Stryk and
Charlie LaBelle.
Avery Feldman was named to the
Catholic League All-Academic Team.
Langan’
s Nor-West Lanes in
Farmington Hills once again was
FJA’
s home lanes.

Above: Members of the Frankel Jewish
Academy bowling team.

ABOVE: Josh Birnberg (left) and team-
mate Brandon Wallace show off the West
Bloomfield High School baseball team’
s
district championship trophy in 2014.

WENDY BIRNBERG

quick hits
BY STEVE STEIN

CAPTAIN TO COACH continued from page 31

WENDY BIRNBERG
MARLEE SHIFMAN

GARY KLINGER

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