RALEIGH, N.C., March 23, 2024 – Maryland Eastern Shore advanced to the championship final of the 2024 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Bowling Championship played on Sunday, March 24, at Buffaloe Lanes North with a 2-0 Mega Match win over top-seeded North Carolina A&T.
Day two action began with a pair of elimination games between No. 2 Delaware State and No. 7 Norfolk State and No. 5 Monmouth against No. 8 Howard.
The Spartans claimed the first spot in the consolation semifinals match after defeating the Hornets 2-1 in the Mega Match format. NSU started off winning the Traditional Game 920-879 led by rookie Kiersten Michel who bowled a 216. DSU was led by Alyssa Breidegam with a 210.
In the total pinfall baker game, Delaware State evened the match score after felling 932 pins while Norfolk State dropped 808. With the team score tied at one-one, the teams went to the Best-of-Seven format which came down to the sixth game. NSU won games one and two, (178-168, 201-138), while DSU won game three, 184-119. The Spartans won the fourth game 185-179 taking a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven format, but the Hornets closed the gap to one game after winning the fifth game 202-176. Norfolk State finished out strong winning the sixth game 189-164 to eliminate Delaware State.
The second elimination match of the morning between the No. 5 Hawks of Monmouth and the No. 8 Bison of Howard saw the Bison pull out yet another upset after ousting the No. 4 Blazers of UAB the night before.
Howard won the first format, traditional, by only four points, 880-876, as Simone Ashford led HU with a 216. Morgan Davis, the MEAC Rookie of the Year, led the Hawks with a 212.
Monmouth countered in the total pinfall baker format dropping nearly 100 more pins than Howard winning with a score of 847-756.
In the best-of-seven series, Howard took game one (201-196) while Monmouth won game two (191-153). The Bison won the next two games (192-160, 166-158), before the Hawks won the fifth game by one point, 207-206. Howard rallied in the sixth game to win by two points, 179-177, eliminating their second opponent of the weekend in the fifth seeded Hawks of Monmouth.
Moving into the afternoon session, the No. 1 Aggies of North Carolina A&T took on the No. 3 Hawks of Maryland Eastern Shore in the champions bracket.
In a drama filled traditional game, it came down to the final frame between the Top-25 teams. UMES ended up on top by only three points, 894-891, over N.C. A&T.
In the baker-five game total pinfall match, the score was again neck-and-neck between the No. 1 and No. 3 seeded squads. After getting off to a rough start, N.C. A&T found themselves trailing UMES and needing to drop 53 more pins than the Hawks. The Aggies closed the game with a fifth game score of 168-149, but the difference was not enough to overcome the earlier fault as Maryland Eastern Shore, the No. 3 seed, claimed the win 996-962 and the champions bracket spot in the final match.
In the last elimination match of the day, it was a showdown between the No. 7 Spartans of Norfolk State and the No. 8 Bison of Howard. The Bison bowled themselves to a 100-pin advantage in the traditional round with a score of 840-740. Cameren Sullivan led HU with a 201 score, while NSU was led by Jazmin Esquibel with a 153.
In the total pinfall round, the two teams were trading frame for frame coming down to the wire with Howard holding the slight edge of just six pins, 868-862, over Norfolk State to eliminate the Spartans and advance to Sunday morning.
The final day of the 2024 MEAC Bowling Championship will begin at 9 a.m. with the elimination bracket final between Howard and North Carolina A&T, a rematch of day one-game one, with the winner advancing to the championship match. Sunday’s championship match will be at 2 p.m. and will re-air on ESPNU on Tuesday, March 26 at 7 p.m.
For more information on the 2024 MEAC Bowling Championship, visit Championship Central.