DOVER, Del., April 24, 2022 -- A victory over recently crowned NCAA champion McKendree highlighted Delaware State's appearance at the 2022 United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Women's National Championship Tournament in Addison, Ill., this weekend.

Competing as the #16 seed in the 16-team double-elimination tournament, the Hornets opened the competition by shocking top-seed McKendree 4-1 in a first-round match. McKendree was crowned as the 2022 NCAA Tournament champion earlier this month and ranked No. 1 in the most recent National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) poll and NCAA RPI rankings.

The Hornets won the first game against the Bearcats 194-177, and followed with a 180-169 victory in game two. Delaware State then won a nail-biter 178-174 to take a 3-0 lead in the match. After McKendree stayed alive with a 201-170 victory in game four,  the Hornets completed the upset with their best performance of the match, winning 225-203 in game five.

Unfortunately, Delaware State could not sustain the momentum from the upset of McKendree, dropping their next two matches, 4-3 to Pikesville (Ky.) and 4-2 to Mount St. Mary's (Md.), to end its tournament run and 2021-22 season.

"It's was an honor to compete in the USBC nationals, and extremely exciting to defeat the No. 1 team in the country," Stefanny Toala, the Hornets' lone 2021-22 senior, said. "I'm very proud of what we accomplished this season and the state of our bowling program at Delaware State. Our young players, including the freshman, really stepped up this year, giving me a great of optimism for the future of the team."

Delaware State's 2022 USBC appearance marked third time in the last three years that the team has bowled in a national championship tournament. The Hornets competed in the NCAA and USBC tournaments in 2021. Neither tournament was held in 2020 due to the pandemic. Delaware State made a deep USBC Tournament run in 2019, advancing to the Final 4 before falling in the national semifinals.

Also this season, the Hornets reached the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championship match, falling to NTCA No. 5 North Carolina A&T State.

Sophomore Saralyne Nassberg and freshman Sydney Reardon earned NTCA All-Northeast Region honors this season. Nassberg was named to the All-Region Second Team while Reardon was Honorable Mention.

Nassberg was also named to the 2021-22 All-MEAC First Team. Reardon was the MEAC Rookie-of-the-Year, the fourth Hornet in the last six years to capture the award.