CHESAPEAKE, Va. – Delaware State won the first three games of the day on the way to a 4-1 win over the Norfolk State bowling team to claim the 2016 MEAC Championship on Sunday afternoon at the AMF Lanes in Chesapeake.
For the second year in a row the Spartans were unable to come away with the win in the championship match as the No. 6 seed. DSU, the No. 1 seed, won its first title since 2010 after finishing with a 9-0 record at this year's tournament.
NSU saw its season come to a close at 50-33 overall. The Spartans were making their third-ever title match appearance and the third within the past five years.
Senior
Carrie Hickey and freshman
Alexa Rodriguez were named to the all-tournament team. Rodriguez had the highest individual average on Friday during the qualifying round.
After defeating three-time defending MEAC champion UMES on Saturday to advance to the championship round, NSU was unable to keep the momentum going. Delaware State had four strikes in five frames late in game 1 to win 192-179 for the early lead in the match.
Back-to-back open frames early in games 2 and 3 spelled doom for the Spartans, as they fell 194-178 and then 179-175 to fall into a 3-0 hole. NSU rallied in the third game after the fifth frame TV break, sparking plenty of noise from the crowd, but the Spartans unable to come away with the victory.
Delaware State opened the fourth game with five-of-six open frames, giving NSU a window to stay alive in a 167-154 triumph. The Spartans switched back to the left lane for game 5, and that lane again proved to be a gremlin. Delaware State won the fifth and final game, 198-140, to claim the title.
The match will be shown on ESPNU on April 3 at 11 p.m.
Hickey closed out her career on Sunday as NSU's only senior. She was a part of all three championship round appearances, including the Spartans' MEAC title in 2012 during her freshman campaign. She ranked second on the team this year with a 186.5 average, the best of her four years of competition. She had at least a 181.0 average in all four seasons.
NSU will return its other four regular-lineup players for next season and add an undetermined number of newcomers.
