WICHITA, Kan. — For Hawk fans, this weekend’s USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships will hopefully serve as a sign of future things to come. The youthful Hawks bowling team came together in a big way to rise from the middle of the pack to claim a spot in the final four of the tournament before falling to powerhouse Wichita State.
The tournament closes out the 2015-16 season and for two-thirds of the team the weekend closes out their first collegiate season.
After qualifying for a sixth place seed, the Hawks dropped the first match to Wisconsin-Whitewater in six to draw Wright State in the opener on Friday. In the elimination match, the Raiders won the first game in convincing finish but back-to-back strikes from freshmen Danielle August and Jacqueline Rhoda helped tie the match in the second game. The Hawks would win games three and four, then sank the Raiders in the sixth with five strikes in a row, capped off by senior Thashaina Seraus.
“Thashaina really figured it out this weekend. She has always had the All-American talent but this weekend she led like an All-American. She led this weekend and the team followed her all the way to the Final Four.”
In the second pairing against Emmanuel College the Hawks were once again forced into an uphill battle as the Lions built a 2-0 lead. Thanks to a double by Seraus and sophomore Melanie Copey the Hawks rally to win the third set of frames, 192-146, before taking the fourth 226-160.
With freshman Kaci Collins entering the lineup for the fifth game the Hawks and Lions fought a close battle for the lead. Through six frames, the Hawks led by just one and couldn’t get much further away than that. Needing a strike on the fill shot, Seraus delivered just that and Maryland Eastern Shore edged the Lions 215-214.
The Lions would resurge to take game six in a shootout setting up a do-or-die game seven. The Hawks trailed early in the game, but closely closed the gap in the middle frames. In the eighth frame, the Hawks would spare twice and the Lions left two open, helping the Marylanders to a 179-159 win and allowing the Hawks to advance.
The win brought the Hawks together and helped merge them into one united front. “At the end of the Emmanuel match I saw a team that wanted to win, a team we were waiting for all season. They closed that match with determination.” Bandy said.
Notre Dame Ohio would be the team’s next foe, and the Hawks and Falcons would fight to a 2-2 tie through four games. But in the fifth, Copey opened with a spare and Seraus closed with a strike en route to a 189-161 victory for the Hawks. When the Falcons tossed a turkey in the sixth game to force seven, Maryland Eastern Shore responded with seven strikes in a row to win 264-172 and advance again.
Then came North Carolina A&T State, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and the reigning USBC Champion. The Aggies had once again proven to be tough with their second straight quarterfinal appearance. But this would be the Hawks’ day as they defeated the Aggies in six games to advance to the semifinals, denying their conference foes a chance to repeat.
The young team had in fact come together, winning as a unit and fighting through several tough battles to come within three wins of their sixth national title, with two wins needed in the semifinals.
But their opponent in the semis would be the Wichita State Shockers, competing in their hometown and to this point a first place finisher in every tournament they competed in. It was here that the Hawks would meet their match, as the Shockers downed the Hawks in four, capped off by scores of 253, 257 and 260.
The Hawks will now have some time to rest up and improve for the 2016-2017 season, which will begin this autumn.