TOWSON, Md. – For the second straight tournament, North Carolina A&T has a bowler on the brink of winning an individual title, and for the first time since 2023 started, the A&T bowling team has a chance to win a tournament.
It was another outstanding showing for the Aggies on Saturday at the annual James Brown Invitational (JBI) hosted by Morgan State University at AMF Lanes. A&T, the sixth-ranked team in the nation according to the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) poll, ended Saturday's competition by going 3-1 in traditional matches.
They totaled 4,756 pins on Saturday for a two-day total of 9,747. The Aggies will enter Sunday's bracket play as the No. 2 seed as they try to capture their third straight JBI title. Meanwhile,10th-ranked Maryland Eastern Shore will go into Sunday's bracket play as the No. 1 seed after totaling 5,048 pins on Saturday for a two-day total of 9,953. The host, 24th-ranked MSU, rounds out the top-3 with a two-day pin total of 9,667. MSU and A&T will open bracket play against each other.
Sophomore Chloe Newberry leads the tournament individually after totaling 1,084 pins for a five-game average of 216.80. She had four games over 200, including a 259 in Game 2. She leads Maryland Eastern Shore's Elizabeth Ross by nine pins as Ross posted a 215.0 average on Saturday.
Two other Aggies are in the top-20 of the standings, including junior Laura Garcia in 16th place with 970 total pins for a five-game average of 194.40. Senior is 20th with a four-game average of 191.75 to total 767 pins. The Aggies will face Coppin State on Sunday for their final traditional match of the tournament.
A&T opened Saturday's competition with a dominating 983-845 win over Fayetteville State. Newberry led the way with a 238. Garcia added 222, and sophomore Maya Avilez added 190 pins. Bryant and A&T battled next, with the Aggies squeaking out a 939-191 win. Again, Newberry played big for the Aggies, tossing a 259. Garcia added a 202 as the Aggies survived a 242 from Jenavieve Lyon.
The Aggies improved to 3-0 on the day despite posting their lowest score of the day. The Aggies defeated Alabama A&M 890-786 behind 200 pins from Avilez. The Aggies did a 180 for their next game by posting their best score of the day against No. 19 Medaille. They defeated Medaille 1,003-975. Tomaszewski, the Aggies anchor, led the way with a 222. Newberry added 208 pins, and senior Jada Bassette posted 199.
Morgan State will head into its best-of-seven Baker match with A&T in bracket play Sunday with a win over the Aggies. The Bears defeated A&T 990-941. The Aggies did get a 204 from Newberry, but three Bear bowlers went over 200, led by Aliya Adams' 223.
A&T finished the day 4-1, and they are 8-1 for the tournament. The Aggies are 59-22 on the season. Play begins at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday.
