Women's Bowling | 3/1/2026 9:19:00 PM
GREENSBORO – North Carolina A&T, the 12th-ranked team in the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) Top 25 poll, concluded its eighth year of hosting the Vernell Stallings Invitational on Sunday by finishing in fourth place.
The Aggies hosted the event at Triad City Lanes inside the Gate City, going 1-2 in best-of-seven bracket play on Sunday, played in Baker Format. As a result, the Aggies finished 6-6 overall over the weekend. A&T closed Sunday's action with a total pinfall of 3,267 and had a total pinfall of 12,979 for the tournament, averaging 193.7 over 67 games bowled. In addition to hosting another tournament successfully, the Aggies also seniors Juliana Sams and Tiana Cruz as a part of Senior Day.
Jacksonville State, the top-ranked team in the nation, won the tournament by beating sixth-ranked Nebraska and eighth-ranked Youngstown State in bracket play. The Gamecocks totaled 13,324 pins and averaged 214.9 for the tournament. Youngstown placed second (13,085, 195.3), and Nebraska followed with a third-place finish (13,612, 200.2). Twenty-fourth-ranked Bryant rounded out the top 5 (12,301, 186.4).
Bracket play for the Aggies on Sunday started with the Youngstown Penguins, the defending NCAA national champions. A&T entered a lineup of freshman Charisse Graham, Sams, sophomore Jasmine Hall, junior Savannah Burgin, and sophomore Victorya White. They remained competitive early, getting out-pinned 428-378 over the first two games. But the Penguins remained consistent throughout, sweeping the Aggies 4-0 and out-pinning A&T 846-741 over those four games.
Next up was the 22nd-ranked Duquesne Dukes. A&T inserted Tiana Cruz in the No. 3 spot against Duquesne. The two teams split the first two games before the Dukes took a 2-1 series lead with a 190-184 win over the Aggies in Game 3. The Dukes faltered from there, bowling games of 143, 162, and 164. The Aggies took full advantage, out-pinning the Dukes 566-469 over the final three games of the match to win the series 4-2. A&T out-pinned the Dukes 1,136-995.
A&T's win put them in a battle with the Nebraska Cornhuskers for third place, using the lineup of Graham, Sams, Cruz, freshman Sara Giraldo, and Burgin. And with those five, it was a battle.
The Cornhuskers prevailed 4-3 in the series despite the Aggies taking an early 2-1 lead in the first three games. A&T looked outstanding in Games 2 and 3, combining for a 439 total pinfall. Nebraska evened the series by recovering from a Game 3, where it totaled only 150 pins to win Game 4, 238-189. Again, the Aggies took advantage and found themselves on the brink of winning the series by posting a 178-161 in Game 5.
However, the Cornhuskers out-pinned the Aggies 454-391 over the final two games to win the series. The Cornhuskers out-pinned A&T in a narrow one, 1,400-1,381.
White and Graham finished in the top 10 as individuals during the tournament, with White posting a total pinfall of 1,042 and averaging 208.40 over five games to finish sixth. Graham placed seventh with a total pinfall of 1,009 and an average of 201.80 in five games bowled. The Aggies return to the road, March 6-8, to participate in Vanderbilt University's Music City Classic in Smyrna, Tenn. They will enter the tournament with a 61-30 (.670) overall record.
