Season in Review: Women’s Bowling Always in the Hunt

by Wade Steinlage

Oskaloosa–The NAIA and USBC national events were the only things left on the bowling calendar when operations were shut down due to the COVID-19 crisis. While these marquee events were not able to be contested, the women’s bowling team could hang their hats on the hook of a pretty successful season.

Once again, the team was primed to compete on the national stage and threw their weight into the Heart of America Athletic Conference Championship tournament. The team had contributions from across the lineup and will look to take momentum into another campaign next year.

Brandon Brooks was back at the helm as he led both bowling teams over the course of the competition calendar. Almost every grade was represented equally on the team, with three freshman and three seniors tag-teaming with two sophomores and two juniors.

The first tournament of the year (Midwest Championships) did not quite go the way the team wanted, as they could not get into a solid rhythm. Finishing 11th out of 28 teams, William Penn picked up valuable experience that paid off very quickly. Though the team result was not the best of the year, Nicole Craft (Sr., Wakefield, Neb., Sports Management) notched her first top-10 with a 10th-place finish. Alexis Lake (Fr., Kaysville, Utah, Business Management) was second best on the team as she gave a preview of how the younger members of the squad would be a big part of the success in later events.

The Columbia 300 Western Shootout saw WPU finish fourth, just missing the bronze on the weekend. Craft again was the leader for the group, placing eighth for her second top-10 finish in a row. Bailey Palmer (Sr., Ottumwa, Iowa, Biology) came home in 11th, just missing a top-10. With solid performances in Indiana, the navy and gold did snag a spot on the podium their next time out in Cedar Rapids. Their third-place finish in the Five Seasons Classic had the team losing in the quarterfinals of the knockout rounds. Palmer got over the bump for a ninth-place finish, while Casey Brandau (Jr., Mason City, Iowa, Psychology) picked up a top-20 ending.

The team took a slight step back in the standings at the ISYL Leatherneck Classic, but still played well against a lot of good competition. The Statesmen just missed beating out Baker in the standings, but had the arrival of Gabi Evans (Fr., West Liberty, Iowa, Business Management) to celebrate, as the freshman topped the individual standings for the team. They quickly turned things around to start December off with a bang at the Ebonite Warhawk Open. Finishing in second place, the navy and gold qualified in seventh for bracket play and took the momentum all the way to the final contest of the tournament. Palmer had a fantastic showing as she finished third overall in the individual standings.

The annual trip to Las Vegas saw the team take good results at both the Glenn Carlson Las Vegas Invitational and the Las Vegas Collegiate Shoot-Out. Seventh and fourth respectively, the team had a chance at the Glenn Carlson competition, as it was at times the team to beat and took its first bracket match to the final frame. Although WPU lost in the end, Palmer and Evans once again led the team and they stacked up well overall at one of the top collegiate events in the nation every year.

Another top-five finish was earned by William Penn, narrowly missing the cut in pool play at the Shoot-Out event. Palmer made the all-tournament team and claimed another third-place finish in the field of 167 bowlers. The end of the 2019 calendar year brought five top-10 finishes for the women with four of those being top-five.

The 2020 half of the season started at the Kegel/ISBPA Midwest Collegiate Class and once again, WPU was in the mix, taking seventh place out of 57 teams. Evans was the bright start again as she tallied a seventh-place individual placing. Kayla Gifford (Sr., Camanche, Iowa, Biology) started to pick up momentum as she came in second on the team.

Another silver was claimed at the McKendree Baker Challenge. With everyone chipping in over the progression of the tournament, the navy and gold had their way in the knockout rounds until running into one of the strongest bowling programs in that nation in Wichita State. With another trophy to put on its mantle, the squad set its sights on the big, concluding events of the season.

The run-up to the championship season concluded with the Hoosier Classic. Another top-tier event with 64 teams involved, the Statesmen came away in 13th place. A number of high-ranked USBC teams competed at the event, and the women once again battled through a slow start to finish strong, missing the knockout phase by less than 100 pins. Abbey Fangman (Jr., Waterloo, Iowa, Human Service and Sociology) had one of her better events and was the second-best bowler for the Statesmen team. The experience gained at this event would pay off big in the Heart Championship as the team would need to grind again.

Moving up and down the standings over the course of the first day, the women pushed each other to get better and concluded the first stage of play on fire, pushing their way up to third in the qualifying standings. They put Clarke and Missouri Baptist away before losing to Grand View, which sent them to the loser side of the bracket on day two. Once again, the ladies gave it their all, but failed to beat Baker, who won the entire tournament. The bronze would end up being the final time WPU would be one the lanes, and although a slightly disappointing event, Coach Brooks did think it was a bad result.

“It’s unfortunate that our season was cut short,” said Brooks. “I think we had a lot of success this season and I am really happy with how it went. We had a lot of younger players gain some invaluable experience this year and am really looking forward to what that turns into over the next couple years. Our seniors Kayla, Bailey and Nicole provided a ton of guidance and leadership for us this year, and I can’t thank them enough for the dedication and help through the last two seasons. Anytime you are ranked in the top 20 in the nation among all collegiate programs, something is going well.”

On the year, Palmer bowled in the most games and posted an average of 194.5, the best on the team, with a high of 244. Craft was next up in terms of games played, with an average of 185.9 (high of 267, also the highest game for the team). Lake had an average of 183.0 and a single-game high of 240. Gifford posted a 173.0 average and a single game best score of 224. Evans put up a 188.2 average and a single-game high of 234, while Brandau had an average of 181.3 and a single-game high of 243. Fangman had 195.7 over the course of the final few events and a top mark of 213, while Jade Klinefelter (So., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Elementary Education) got a couple frames in to conclude the year, with an average of 168.