After starting the day with team games, where they were on fire, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) cooled off a little in the Baker sets, relinquishing their second place standing after the third Baker set and falling all the way to fourth place by the end of set number four. They bounced back however in the seeding round, facing third ranked Vanderbilt. Down just three pins, UMES was four pins better in the four game set, reclaimed third and earned a date with Central Missouri in the opening round of bracket play.
The Hawks are 2-0 against the Jennies in team games this season and 1-1 in Baker games for a 3-1 mark overall this season. In NCAA Championship play the teams have split their two match-ups. Central Missouri eliminated the Hawks in the 2005 tournament and UMES knocked them out of the winners bracket in 2007 on their way to the runner-up title.
The seeding matches do not count to the team's record so the 13 plus hours of time spent at the alley yesterday do not count for any thing official other than seeding. UMES arrived at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday.
It was overall a good day for the Lady Hawks. They dominated in the team games and ended on a high note with the Vanderbilt match-up, giving them some much needed confidence heading into Friday's matches.
Nebraska earned the no. 1 seed, never relinquishing control of the top spot, up 256 pins after four team and five Baker sets. New Jersey City is the second seed and will face MEAC Champion Delaware State in their opening round. The Hornets fell to seventh place in their final match avoiding an opening meeting with the Hawks. Nebraska will play last year's runner-up Arkansas State who finished 737 pins out of first.
UMES opened the Baker sets well. Rolling an 802, however in set two they had the second lowest score a 757. Set three wasn't much better as they posted a 772, again just one spot from the bottom. Set three was a 715, the lowest of any set.
The defending National Champions are that for a reason however and they rebounded to post an 832, the third highest set and with it secure the pins needed to get back into third.
The Hawk faithful should not be discouraged however as UMES came from the seventh seed last season to win the title.
The rest of the bracket will pit Vanderbilt against the fifth seed Fairleigh Dickinson. Those two teams are in the top half of the bracket with Nebraska and Arkansas State, leaving a potential match-up with Delaware State.