HOUSTON – North Carolina A&T bowling competed during the first day of the 15th annual TRACK Kat Klash hosted by Sam Houston State University (SHSU) at the Emerald Bowl. The tournament features 10 teams ranked in the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) top 25. The Aggies went 4-1 on Friday during the Baker format, totaling 4,555 pins for an average of 182.2. A&T is in sixth place heading into traditional team play on Saturday.
A&T opened against No. 24 Oklahoma Christian with a lineup of senior leadoff bowler Juliana Sams, junior Savannah Burgin, sophomore Jasmine Hall, sophomore Tiana Cruz, and sophomore Victorya White served as the Aggies' anchor.
The Eagles gave the Aggies all they could handle. They out-pinned the Aggies 360-331 over the first two games before the Aggies won Game 3 159-139. A&T took the advantage into Game 5 after out-pinning the Eagles 186-163. Leading by 14 pins heading into Game 5, the Eagles out-pinned A&T 203-197, but it was not enough as the Aggies came away with an 873-865 victory.
Reigning MEAC Rookie of the Week Sara Giraldo entered the lineup in the second game against Texas Southern University for Cruz. The Aggies defeated TSU 827-787. A&T took a nice lead over the first three games, leading 537-441 going into Game 4. The Tigers rebounded nicely, winning Game 4, 202-149. But the advantage the Aggies built over the first three games was too much to overcome.
A&T mixed up the lineup again heading into its matchup against No. 19 Tulane. Burgin took over the leadoff role, followed by freshman Charisse Graham, junior Payton Hargrove, and Giraldo. White remained the Aggies' anchor. Despite the changes, the Green Wave handed the Aggies their only loss on the day.
Tulane defeated A&T 968-856. The Green Wave won Game 1, 180-129, and Game 3, 223-184, to secure its victory over A&T.
The Aggies recovered with an impressive 981-728 win over Prairie View A&M. Graham moved to the leadoff spot for A&T, spearheading the Aggies to get off to a 564-430 start over the first three games. Game 4 was closer, with A&T winning 173-166 before putting an exclamation point on its victory with a 244-132 Game 5 win.
Friday ended with A&T collecting a 1,006-864 over longtime rival and the 16th-ranked team in the country, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) Hawks. The Aggies bowled a 212 in Game 2 before having their best output of the afternoon by bowling a 246 in Game 5.
A&T returns to action on Saturday before closing out the Klash Kat tournament on Sunday with best-of-seven bracket play.
