William Penn Wins One of Two at NAIA Weekend-West
West Lawrence, Kan.–The Statesmen women’s bowling team collected another tournament crown as it competed in back-to-back one-day tournaments at the NAIA Weekend-West Saturday and Sunday.
On Saturday, WPU qualified second out of 18 teams with 7,006 pins in five individual games and 12 Baker games. Ottawa (Kan.) paced the field in qualifying with 7,208 pins.
The navy and gold were one of eight teams to advance to match play, and from there the Statesmen were dominant, defeating #7 Columbia (Mo.) 2-0, #3 Morningside 2-0, and #3 Grand View 3-0 to win the championship.
Kinsey Miller of Baker headlined individual play with 1,095 pins for a 219.0 average.
William Penn had three individuals in the top 15, led by Cydnee Whiteleather (Sr., Lehigh Acres, Fla., Elementary Education) who was eighth with a 197.0 clip (985 pins).
Sammantha Meyers (Jr., Rockford, Ill., Elementary Education) was right behind her at 196.0 (ninth place), while Gabi Evans (Sr., West Liberty, Iowa, Psychology and Sociology) had a 192.2 mark for 13th.
Caitlin Radliff (Jr., Belleville, Ill., Software Engineering) also started all seven rounds, recording a 177.8 average.
Madison Ross (Sr., Charles City, Iowa, Exercise Science), at 174.5, and Christy Mottier (Sr., Madison, Wis., Business Management), at 168.5, both rolled in two games, while Olivia Nolte (Sr., Atkins, Iowa, Elementary Education) knocked down 177 pins in one round.
WPU’s reserve squad topped the JV field as well for a Statesmen sweep. Finishing first out of three squads with 6,176 pins, the navy and gold were guided by Lucy Mitchell (Fr., Poulsbo, Wash., Psychology) who had a 188.6 average (943 pins).
On Sunday, the Statesmen placed fifth out of 18 teams with 5,991 pins in seven individual games, while Ottawa again led qualifying (6,429 pins). Holly Bridges of Ottawa was the best individual bowler with 1,390 pins (198.6 average).
Evans claimed the top spot for WPU with a 186.9 clip (1,308 pins) to take eighth place. Ross was in the top 15 as well in 15th at 179.7.
Meyers (174.8) and Whiteleather (173.0) each started five rounds, while Nolte (160.0) and Victoria Potter (Jr., Yuma, Ariz., Psychology) (149.0) both started four times.
Radliff concluded the varsity scoring with a 150.0 clip in three games.
The JV crew again came away with gold, taking first out of three teams with 5,691 pins. Kelcey Aczon (So., Las Vegas, Nev., Nursing) was her team’s best roller with a 188.0 mark (1,316 pins).
“The ladies have really started to hit their stride,” Head Coach Kirstin Foster said. “We went into this weekend with a goal in mind and they accomplished it the first day. It was their best tournament of the year for spare shooting and they were efficient in match play. This was a good tournament to see how we match up with our conference and should be a confidence booster.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Indianapolis, Ind. Saturday and Sunday to compete in the Hoosier Classic.
