Bowlers roll to 4-2 mark on Friday
3/18/2016 9:00:00 PM | Women's Bowling
Sam Houston's No. 4 ranked women's bowling team opened play at the Columbia 300 Music City Classic with four consecutive victories before dropping their final two matches of the day.
The Kats knocked down 1,141 pins in the six matches to stand in fourth place after four-game baker play in a talent-laden tournament field of 30 squads that includes 23 of the top 25 teams in the country.
No. 12 LIU-Brooklyn leads the tournament in total pins with a 196.6 average after winning five of their six matches. No. 1 Nebraska rolled up a perfect 6-0 record and stands second with a 195.1 mean. No. 7 McKendree (3-3, 153.6), No. 4 Sam Houston (4-2, 190.2) and No. 5 Stephen F. Austin (5-1, 189.1) stand third, fourth and fifth, respectively in total pins.
Sam Houston opened Friday's action with a 977 to 815 win over No. 25 Jackson State. The Kats followed up by defeating Alabama State 1,054 to 879, knocking off Texas rival No. 5 SFA 948 to 863 and edging No. 11 Maryland Eastern Shore 896 to 886.
No. 21 Adelphi defeated the Kats 904 to 881 and No. 10 Wisconsin – Whitewater narrowly topped Sam Houston 954 to 951.
The Columbia 300 Music City Classic this weekend is all of the team's last major opportunity to impress the selection committee for the NCAA Championships.The only ranked teams missing are No. 15 Kutztown and No. 20 Norfolk State.
Eight teams will earn berths in the NCAA Championships April 14-16 in North Brunswick, New Jersey. The Music City event is Sam Houston's next-to-last tournament. The Kats will wrap up the season with the Southland Bowling Conference championships March 25-26 in New Orleans.
Sam Houston upped its season dual match win-loss record to 87-39. The Kats entered the tournament as one of only three teams in the country with more than 80 victories.
“This weekend gives us one more opportunity to add to our resume for the NCAA committee,” Sam Houston head coach Brad Hagen said. “It's crunch time.”
The Music City Classic, hosted by Vanderbilt, will continue Saturday six five-person traditional team contests on Saturday and three baker best of seven matches in bracket play on Sunday.
The Sam Houston women have participated in the Music City Classic each of the program's five years. The Bearkats have won 50 of their 74 matches in Smyrna in the period. The team's top finish in the event was seventh place in 2013.
