HAMILTON, N.J. (March 25, 2022) – Seven pins entering the final Quint Baker game stood between the Mount St. Mary's bowling team and a spot in the Northeast Conference Championship game. Needing to make those up in the final 10 frames, the Mount fell short. Sacred Heart went on to advance in the winner's bracket, and the Mountaineers fell to a blazing hot Long Island team, bowing out of contention for the 2022 NEC Title.
Four bowlers posted Baker averages north of 20 pins, led by
Rebecca Dodson with a 20.96. Senior
Danielle Milo stepped up in a big way with a 20.85, followed by
Amanda Yeung maintaining her pace with a 20.62.
Alyssa Alexander posted a 20.07.
Sacred Heart: 2 (1023, 1137, 4) | Mount 1 (1024, 1038, 0)
In an exciting start to the day, the Mount battled pound-for-pound with the top seeded Pioneers. Strong showing of 202 from
Rachel Hines and a 224 from
Tamera Stanton set up Dodson's final frame. Needing to match the SHU anchor for a single pin victory, the Mount senior converted the 10-pin to earn the traditional round.
Baker play saw the two sides virtually match the first four games. When the Pioneers went up 37 after three, the Mount responded with a 200 in game four to close the gap down to seven. Strikes in the early going gave the Mountaineers the advantage, and a spot in the championship game was in their sights. But splits in frames three and five reopened the door to Sacred Heart, who knocked the door down by striking out the sixth frame on to force bracket play.
The best-of-seven ended in a sweep by SHU. After a lopsided first game, the Mount lost in grueling fashion during games two to four, capped by a 246-240 score that clinched the Pioneers' title spot.
Long Island: 2 (1053, 1038) | Mount: 0 (1013, 982)
Shifting to the afternoon, the Mountaineers and Sharks duked it out for the second Saturday spot with the defeated headed home.
Traditionals came down to the final frame. Hines rolled a 227 to equal her LIU counterpart and Milo stepped in to deliver a 210. But the Sharks' anchor plowed her squad to the victory with a 215, rebounding from 95 through six frames with a six-bagger to close out her game.
The inspired Sharks – having already eliminated Fairleigh Dickinson and Duquesne – set their sights on the Mount in Bakers. It began with a 247 in the opening game that set the tone. A 20 pin lead for LIU expanded on three consecutive opens in the fourth match. An attempted rally in the fifth game fell short as LIU filled enough frames to sweep the mega match.
An at-large bid for the NCAA tournament remains in play for the Mount. That decision comes this Wednesday (March 30) at 4 p.m. during the NCAA Selection Show. The announcement of the 16 team field airs live on NCAA.com.
