William Penn Falls Short of Nationals Berth

Dallas, Texas–The Statesmen women’s bowling team suffered some late-tournament struggles as it competed at the USBC Team Sectionals Saturday and Sunday.

WPU finished sixth out of 13 teams with 11,418 pins in 64 Baker games. The top four teams qualified for nationals with Wichita State (Kan.) taking the crown (12,177 pins).

The navy and gold, who were seeking their first trip to nationals since 2019, were in a solid position for much of the event. WPU moved into first place during the first 16-game stretch, but slid down to third after that opening block with 2,921 pins.

Consistent play kept the Statesmen in the running as they remained in fourth at the halfway point and also through 48 games. Unfortunately, William Penn fell off the pace down the stretch and finished 132 pins from the last qualifying spot.

Competing team members included Isabel Diaz (So., Kissimmee, Fla., Communications), Gabi Evans (Sr., West Liberty, Iowa, Psychology and Sociology), Toni Hansen (Sr., Anchorage, Alaska, Biology), Alexis Lake (Sr., Kaysville, Utah, Nursing), Christy Mottier (Sr., Madison, Wis., Business Management), Caitlin Radliff (So., Belleville, Ill., Software Engineering), Madison Ross (Sr., Charles City, Iowa, Exercise Science), and Cydnee Whiteleather (Jr., Lehigh Acres, Fla., Elementary Education).

“Unfortunately, our run at USBC did not go as we had hoped, but the good news is our season is far from over,” Head Coach Kirstin Foster said. “We have a week to work out some kinks we ran into this week and get ourselves ready for NAIA Nationals.”

Next Up: William Penn will travel to Sterling Heights, Mich. March 23-25 to compete in the NAIA National Championship.