Coppin State tops Mollory to open the season
READING, Pa. - The Coppin State bowling team opened its 2015-2016 season at the Kutztown Fall Baker Invite Saturday at Berks Lanes by defeating Molloy College, 698-554.
Overall on the afternoon, the Eagles went 1-5 in Baker-style matches on the first day of the tournament. As a team they averaged a 653.6 pinfall in six matches and knocked down 3,922 pins overall today.
Sophomore Jasmine Newman led the team with 154 total pin fall.
Before the tournament Coppin State head coach Shaunita Middleton stressed the importance of her team competing hard at Kutztown. She was proud of how her team battled.
As the Coppin State Eagles prepare for next weekend, Middleton will keep the team focused on competing and putting themselves in a position to win in the tenth frame.
The Eagles are back on the road for some action next weekend in the Hampton Roads Collegiate Invitational hosted by Norfolk State University at AMF Lanes in Chesapeake, Va.
For complete story, visit www.coppinstatesports.com
Lady Wildcats conclude All State Sugar Bowl Run
KENNER, La. – Bethune-Cookman wrapped up its three-day stint at the 2015 All State Sugar Bowling Collegiate Bowling Invitational on Sunday, concluding play at the AMF All Star Lanes in Kenner, Louisiana. The three-day event was hosted by Tulane University.
In bracket play, best-of-seven Baker matches Sunday, Bethune-Cookman took part in three Baker contests.
The Wildcats opened as the No. 10 seed, facing host and No. 19 Tulane in the opening match of the day. B-CU fell to the Green Wave, 4-0.
The Maroon and Gold would face Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) opponent Texas Southern in the next match, falling to the Tigers in seven games in one of the most thrilling affairs of the day.
B-CU suffered a 4-2 defeat to close out the tournament, falling to Louisiana Tech.
For the weekend, the Cats posted a record of 5-9 in Baker and Traditional matches, respectively.
Sam Houston State took home tournament champion honors for the second-consecutive year and the third time overall, as the Bearkats defeated Arkansas State in the finals, 4-2. The Red Wolves took second place, followed by Nebraska, who took third overall.
Vanderbilt (fourth), Stephen F. Austin (fifth), North Carolina A&T State (sixth), Prairie View A&M (seventh), Jackson State (ninth), Texas Southern (10th), Louisiana Tech (11th), Bethune-Cookman (12th), Florida A&M (13th), Alabama State (14th) and Southern (15th) rounded out the field.
Sam Houston State’s Heather Penatzer took home tournament MVP honors, joining fellow teammate Janine Kuwahara on the All-Tournament team. Jordan Richard (Arkansas State), Destiny Velez (Prairie View A&M), and Giselle Poss (Vanderbilt) were the other three All-Tournament team recipients.
Bethune-Cookman competes next at the FDU New Jersey Jamboree, which begins Friday, Oct. 30, in Elmwood, New Jersey. Fairleigh Dickinson is the host of the annual three-day event.
For complete story, visit www.bcuathletics.com
Maryland Eastern Shore finishes fifth at UPIKE Orange and Black Invitational
DAYTON, Ohio— This weekend’s tournament for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) bowling team was designed to be an icebreaker, attempting to give a team that is 80-percent newcomers a chance to mesh and gel before competing in some more crucial weekends down the road.
Not only did the UPIKE Orange and Black weekend succeed in fulfilling the mission of teambuilding, it also proved that this new crop of players can immediately make an impact at a high level. The Hawks were in first place after individuals on day one before earning a #2 seed entering bracket play on Sunday. In the end, the team lost to Urbana University (Ohio) in the bracket rounds to come in fifth out of 26 teams.
Coming together was evident from the word “go” in Dayton, beginning with the blazing start in the first set of individual games Saturday. Senior Thashaina Seraus opened her campaign with a 245 and three other Hawks, all of them newcomers—freshmen Jacqueline Rhoda, Haley Cummings and Kaci Collins managed scores over 200 in their collegiate debuts. Rhoda and Cummings earned 225 apiece while Collins bowled a 216. The Hawks rolled over Morehead in the first ten frames, 1081-886.
UMES would go own to achieve a perfect 5-0 day on Saturday, with several other Hawks earning high marks. Seraus would lead in the second matchup with a 234, and in the third set of frames with a 232. Sophomore Melanie Copey started out in the high 100s but muscled a 223 in game three, followed by a team high 236 in the fourth game. Freshman Danielle August bowled her first collegiate frames with the Hawks in game four and impressed with a 213.
Overall, the Hawks achieved a total pinfall of 5,150, edging host Pikeville by eight pins for the lead after Saturday.
On Sunday, Baker matches began with four games each against four teams, and the Hawks managed to hold their own during this long stretch. First up was Ohio State, which proved to be an easy sweep for the Hawks. The team of Copey, August, Rhoda, Cummings and Seraus achieved an 804-588 victory over the Buckeyes.
Collins replaced August in the rotation for the second Baker match, and with a Sunday high of 275 in the third set of frames, the Hawks easily tamed the North Kentucky Norse with a 840-605 decision. Lindsey Wilson was the Hawks next opponent, and despite the fresh arm of freshman Quianna Macares joining in, the team perhaps showed some fatigue as their score dropped to 766. UMES still defeated their opponent to stay perfect on the weekend, but unfortunately that was not to last.
In the final Baker matchup, although the team trotted out the initial matchup that handily took care of Ohio State, the quintet struggled to a 670, and the Hawks would fall to Campbellsville. Nevertheless, the Hawks earned a #2 seed entering bracket play among the top eight in the field.
Facing Urbana University, UMES fought hard in the first match to ultimately lose by eight, but would fight back with wins in games two and three in the best of five. However, the Blue Knights would edge the Hawks in the fourth and fifth games, and even though UMES knocked down two more pins than their opponents, Urbana won the bracket matchup, 3-2, relegating the bowlers from Princess Anne to fifth.
With their mission accomplished the young Hawks will rest from tournament play this weekend and sharpen their skills in preparation for the New Jersey Jamboree, hosted by Fairleigh Dickinson University and set to begin on October 30th.