Women's Bowling | 3/19/2023 11:36:00 PM
SMYRNA, Tenn. – The seventh-ranked team in the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) poll, the North Carolina A&T bowling team completed the 19th annual Music City Classic hosted by Vanderbilt University in fifth place. The Aggies went 2-1 in best-of-seven bracket play in Baker format to finish 8-4 at the tournament.
Senior Lauren Tomaszewski earned all-tournament honors. She had the highest total pinfall in traditional team play, knocking down 1,192 pins for a five-game average of 238.40.
The Aggies opened bracket play against fourth-ranked Arkansas State. The Red Wolves won the first two games to take a 2-0 lead in the series. The Aggies recovered and won Game 3 205-193. They evened the series with a convincing 206-155 win in Game 4 before losing Game 5. The Red Wolves closed out the Aggies and won the series 4-2 with a 184-180 win in Game 6.
The loss set up a matchup against fifth-ranked Stephen F. Austin (SFA) as the Aggies took a shot at fifth place. A&T got off to another slow start as the Ladyjacks took a 2-0 lead in the series. But the Aggies had an excellent Game 3 to win 263-232 before evening the series at 2, with a 226-183 win.
A&T had another dominant showing in Game 5, blowing out the Ladyjacks 226-142. They ended the series against the Ladyjacks with another impressive showing, winning 245-191, to win the series 4-2. A&T's win set up a rematch against Arkansas State for fifth place.
Once again, the Red Wolves took a 2-0 lead in the series. But the resilient Aggies spent the day fighting back. First, they won Game 3, 233-199. Then, they evened the series at 2-2 again with a 221-167 win. Arkansas State retook control of the series by winning Game 5, 225-158.
A&T forced a Game 7 with a 246-192 win and then took the series against the Red Wolves with a 257-195 Game 7 win. A&T used the lineup of junior Melanie Katen, senior Jada Bassette, sophomore Maya Avilez, Tomaszewski and sophomore Chloe Newberry.
The Aggies totaled 3,973 pins on the day. For the tournament, the Aggies totaled 14,039 pins. They were one of four teams to exceed 14,000 pins during the tournament, joining second-ranked Vanderbilt (14,468), No. 14 Louisiana Tech (14,315) and Arkansas State (14,081).
Ninth-ranked Sam Houston State University won the tournament, knocking down 13,474 pins in the process. Top-ranked McKendree (12,105), Vanderbilt, Louisiana Tech and A&T rounded out the top-5. The Aggies end the regular season at 85-32, heading into the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) tournament this weekend. They are seeking their third straight conference tournament title.
