‘Silver’ Bells Again Ring for Statesmen
William Penn University Athletics
by Wade Steinlage
Las Vegas, Nev.–The William Penn men’s bowling team wrapped up a big week out west as it again placed second, this time at the Las Vegas Collegiate Shoot-Out Wednesday and Thursday.
WPU was second out of 36 teams with 9,067 pins in six regular games and 16 Baker games (including bonus pins for high group finishes). Webber International (Fla.) took the team crown with 9,481 pins.
Matthew Russo of WIU led the 252-player field with a 237.0 average, while Nick Walker (Sr., Zeeland, Mich., Business Management) and Rok Kostric (So., Koper, Slovenia, Sports Management) were both in the top 10 to pace the navy and gold. Walker was sixth at 212.7 and Kostric was right behind him in seventh at 212.5.
Curtis Majka (Sr., Elgin, Ill., Mechanical Engineering) was next at 195.7, while Logan Mason (Sr., Knoxville, Iowa, Business Management), at 193.7, and Aleksander Kostric (So., Koper, Slovenia, Sports Management), at 192.3, rounded out the varsity lineup. Each of the five varsity players started all six games.
William Penn’s second team was in action as well and headed the three-team JV standings with 8,200 pins. Jayson Miner (Fr., Silvis, Ill., Physical Education) was at the top of the group at 193.7.
Like the varsity, all five JV members started all six rounds. Braxton Coble (Sr., Ottumwa, Iowa, Business Management) was next at 185.8, while Austin Czerwinski (Fr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Applied Computer Science) (177.8), Dawson Knight (Fr., Ottumwa, Iowa, Secondary Education) (171.0), and Alex Mitterer (Jr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Psychology and Biology) (151.5) rolled as well.
“Both of our men’s teams had fantastic showings this week,” Head Coach Brandon Brooks said. “Our men had several individuals step up in individual games to get us near the top of the field and we stayed there. Nick being all-tournament and Rok just missing out was big for us on the first day. Having four separate top-10 efforts out here in two tournaments is a testament to the depth of this team, that it is not one person who is going to have to step up every tournament. Everyone is able to contribute to keep us competitive everywhere we go.”
“This week’s two tournaments could not have been more different,” Brooks added. “The first one had a much higher scoring pace than the second, so early Wednesday morning it took some recalibrating mentally for everyone to adjust to the harder conditions. For us to finish as well as we did in both tournaments shows that we are one of the most versatile teams in the country. I am really proud of how we came together this week to have success.”
Next Up: William Penn returns to action on January 19-20 by traveling to Addison, Ill. to compete in the Kegel/ISBPA Midwest Collegiate Classic.
