Team Results
READING, Pa. – The No. 14/13 Norfolk State bowling team finished 11th overall at the competitive Kutztown Invitational this weekend at Heister Lanes. The three-day tournament featured 16 of the 20 teams ranked in the latest National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA) coaches poll.
The Spartans went 9-6 overall on the weekend, running their record so far this season to 56-20. All six losses this weekend occurred against ranked teams, while the Spartans also picked up three victories over ranked opponents along the way. Eight of the 10 teams that finished ahead of NSU at the tournament are also ranked above the Spartans in the NTCA coaches poll.
Junior Jessica Overton led the way on Saturday in team play, posting a 194.3 average in all six games. Senior Chelsea Krall was the only other bowler to compete in all six games, as she averaged a 186.3. Junior Lauren Graupmann, meanwhile, had the highest average for NSU on the weekend, rolling a 202.3 in three games.
Freshman Kelsea Yarbrough rolled a 185.7 average in three games, while rookie Delilah Bethel tallied a 184.3 average in three games. Freshman Thea Aspiras carded a 177.8 average in five games, while freshman Carrie Hickey rolled an average of 174.8 in four games.
NSU struggled to a 2-4 record on the first day of action, although the Spartans still found themselves in 10th place out of the 28 teams at the tournament after Friday's Baker play. NSU fell to No. 4 UMES, 802-755, to kick things off, followed by a 742-675 loss to No. 12 Delaware State. Second-ranked Fairleigh Dickinson then upended NSU by an 823-794 score in the third game of the day.
NSU bounced back with a solid but narrow win over No. 6 Vanderbilt, 733-730. No. 17 St. Peter's handed the Spartans their fourth loss of the day, 735-690, before NSU finished things off with a 778-756 victory over No. 3 Sacred Heart.
The Spartans posted a 5-1 mark on Day 2 in traditional team play, with their only setback a 961-839 loss to No. 1 Valparaiso. NSU began play on Saturday with a 1004-901 victory over MEAC Southern Division foe Bethune-Cookman, followed by the loss to Valparaiso. NSU then secured another victory against a ranked opponent, 926-909 over No. 18 Wisconsin Whitewater.
A victory by just 10 pins over Morgan State was next for the Spartans, 969-959, which was then followed by a 932-837 win against Penn State Altoona and a 919-642 victory over Coppin State to close out the day on Saturday.
On Sunday, the Spartans entered final bracket play with a No. 11 seed based on their performance over the previous two days. NSU fell to No. 12 seed Kutztown, 4-2, in the first match before rebounding with a 4-0 win over Morgan State in the second round.
A tight match ensued to end the tournament for NSU against Long Island, as the Spartans won the first and third games of the match, with the two teams tying in the second game, 179-179. LIU won the fourth through sixth games to take a 3-2 lead, but NSU rebounded with a huge win in the seventh and final game to tie the match up at 3.5-3.5. The Spartans then won the tiebreaker, 97-70, to finish 11th for the weekend.
UMES won the tournament title over Fairleigh Dickinson, while Sacred Heart, Vanderbilt and Valparaiso rounded out the top 5.
NSU will head to Texas to take part in the Prairie View A&M Invitational at the state-of-the-art International Training and Research Center Friday through Sunday.
