Bowlers Depart for NCAA Championships
4/12/2016 9:15:00 AM | Women's Bowling
The Sam Houston women's bowling boarded a bus for the airport at 6:15 a.m. Tuesday as the Bearkats headed off for New Jersey for the fifth NCAA Championships appearance in the program's sixth year history.
The action begins Thursday at Brunswick Zone Carolier in North Brunswick, New Jersey. Sam Houston won the NCAA national championship in 2014 and reached the semifinals last year.
“This is the earliest hour of the morning we've ever left for the tournament but everyone is excited,” Sam Houston head coach Brad Hagen said. “It's great to be going back again. With six athletes who were all there last year when we reached the semis we have group that is experienced and knows what it takes to win at the national tournament.”
Sam Houston is joined by Nebraska, Arkansas State, Vanderbilt, Stephen F. Austin, McKendree, Central Missouri and North Carolina A&T at the NCAA Championships
The championship final will air on ESPNU Saturday, April 16 at 5:30 p.m. A tape delay broadcast of the championship final will air on ESPN Sunday, April 17 at 5:30 p.m.
“I think it's important for the university and for us,” Sam Houston head coach Brad Hagen said. “We've set the standard and the bar extremely high. Every year that's the challenge for us is to maintain those standards. Consistency is so important in our sport.”
The Bearkats have earned NCAA berths in four consecutive seasons. In 2014, Sam Houston defeated third-ranked Maryland-Eastern Shore twice and eighth-ranked Wisconsin-Whitewater to advance to the finals against defending national champion Nebraska.
The Kats defeated the Cornhuskers four games to two in a championship final that was televised nationally on ESPN. Seniors Erin Brown, Anna Groce and junior Janine Kuwahara were part of the national championship squad.
“Every year it gets a little different but the feeling is always amazing,” Groce said. “We're a very talented team and some of the best bowlers in the country are right here. We've worked all year for this week in New Jersey.”
Sam Houston stands as one of only three programs in the country with more than 90 dual match victories in 2015-16. The Bearkats own a record of 93 victories and only 43 losses. Sixty-eight of those wins have come over squads ranked among the top 25 and 34 victories were against top 10 national opponents.
“We're returning back to the postseason with six athletes that were all there last year,” Hagen said. “The fact that we made it to the final four and semis is kind of exciting for this year. We're returning with six ladies who have deep postseason experience and a lot of depth. We're going in pretty good shape as long as we're physically and mentally healthy.”
The Bearkats have won two tournament championships and finished as runner-up in four events including last weekend's Southland Bowling Conference tournament in Kenner, La. Sam Houston has finished among the top seven teams in all but one of their other tournament appearances.
Joining the veterans from the 2014 championship squad are juniors Randi Speiler, sophomores Heather Penatzer and Stephanie Zavala and freshman Madysen Keller.
Competition begins with qualifying rounds in which each team bowls one five-person regular team game against each of the other seven participating teams. Teams will be seeded for bracket play based on their win-loss record during the qualifying rounds.
At the conclusion of the qualifying rounds, teams will then compete in best-of-seven Baker matches in the double elimination tournament. In the Baker format, each of the five team members, in order, bowls a complete frame until a complete (10-frame) game is bowled. A Baker match tied at 3½ a piece after seven games will be decided by a tiebreaker using the Modified Baker format.
“Consistency and predictability are big things for us,” Hagen said. “As long as the girls are trusting in themselves, we'll get the consistency we need. In the last two tournaments, we've done a lot better controlling our emotions. It has paid off. If we are healthy, the mentality capacity will be where we need it to be, life will be good and hopefully a second national championship will come.”
The Northeast Conference will host the championship. Nebraska won its fifth National Collegiate Women's Bowling Championship in 2015 at Tropicana Lanes in Richmond Heights, Missouri defeating Stephen F. Austin State University.
The championship final will air on ESPNU Saturday, April 16 at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time. A tape delay broadcast of the championship final will air on ESPN Sunday, April 17 at
6:30 p.m. Eastern Time.
For more information about the National Collegiate Women's Bowling Championship, log on to www.NCAA.com.
