William Penn Secures Third Place for Third Consecutive Tournament
Louisville, Ky–The Statesmen women’s bowling team rolled their way to an impressive third-place finish at the NAIA Invitational last Saturday and Sunday.
Tournament #1 Recap
In the regular-season event that featured only NAIA squads, William Penn secured third place out of 17 teams with 4,797 pins in five regular games and 25 Baker games. Savannah College of Art and Design (Ga.) topped qualifying with 5,067 pins.
Lara Kurt of SCAD Savannah topped qualifying with a 220.4 average (1,102 pins).
For the Statesmen, Caitlin Radliff (Sr., Belleville, Ill., Software Engineering) was the top performer, averaging an impressive 214.6 over five rounds, with four games scoring over 200. Isabel Diaz (Sr., Kissimmee, Fla., Fine Arts) also led a strong campaign, averaging 205.4 across five games.
Olivia Nolte (Sr., Atkins, Iowa, Elementary Education) delivered a solid performance with a single-game score of 192.0. Sammantha Meyers (Sr., Rockford, Ill., Elementary Education) knocked down 935 pins over five rounds, averaging 187.0 pins.
Olivia Pilcher (Jr., Ottumwa, Iowa, Exercise Science) was next at 181.3 in three games, while Kelcey Aczon (Jr., Las Vegas, Nev., Nursing) averaged 177.25 across four rounds. Lucy Mitchell (So., Poulsbo, Wash., Psychology and Human Services) rounded out the squad posting a 158.5 average in two rounds.
Tournament #2 Recap
William Penn placed third in Baker play Saturday, recording 4,559 pins over 25 Baker games, while SCAD Savvanah topped the 17-team standings with 4,642 pins.
Radliff was the only Statesmen to bowl a baker game, finishing with a 182.04 average (4,551 pins).
In match play, the Statesmen started strong, defeating #6 seed Saint Xavier 4-2. However, they fell to Pikeville (Ky.) 4-2 in the semifinals. SCAD Savannah ultimately claimed the tournament title, defeating Pikeville in the championship round.
“The girls bowled great all weekend. They placed 3rd for both tournaments which put us as the 3rd seed for matchplay. They handled themselves well and executed shots at a high level,” said Head Coach Kirstin Foster. “This is the 3rd weekend in a row that they finished 3rd and they keep challenging some of the top programs in the country. They are becoming more and more of the team they can be and I’m excited to see what they do next.”
Next Up: William Penn takes three weeks off before heading to Las Vegas, Nev. to compete in the Glenn Carlson Las Vegas Invitational December 18-19.
