Eagles Win Hoosier Classic In A Classic
Indianapolis, IN - "In one of the most thrilling final matches we have ever seen, Judson defeats SCAD-Savannah 3-2 to win the 56th Annual Columbia 300 Hoosier Classic."
More details to come on the victory.
The 56th Annual Hoosier Classic is the Biggest (66 TEAMS!) and most Prestigious College Tournament of the season, and in the most EPIC performance in Judson Womens Bowling History, the Ladies were able to beat 3 top 10 teams in Bracket play to take home the CHAMPIONSHIP!!
On Saturday, the Ladies got off to a great start with games of 1004 and 1040 then continued the consistency with 975 and 984 to place them in 9th place after day 1.
Heading into day 2 the team was comfortable and confident they could make matchplay and that showed in the highest team baker average in Judson Bowling History as the ladies averaged 211.5 for the 15 Baker Games. This consisted of games of 184, 266, 231, 225, 210, 215, 163, 183, 210, 222, 180, 220, and 206! Heading into the final 2 games they needed solid games to make matchplay and they did just that finishing with games of 233 and 226! This catapulted us into 6th place which took us into the top 8 bracket in which we went up against the 3 seed Milligan University.
Judson took game 1 and Milligan came back to take game 2 heading into game 3 some adjustments were made with alignment and the ladies started with a spare and then proceeded to throw 8 consecutive strikes to finish with 257 and take the victory! With only 4 teams left in the field Judson then faced off against Calumet College.
Judson dominated this match taking the victory 2-0 and moving on to the finals against the #2 team in Country and the Top seed of the tournament Savannah College of Art and Design.
This 5 game baker match for the Championship went back and forth as Judson took game 1 181-174. Game 2 was tight all the way through, but SCAD came out on top 212-211 to take it to 1-1. With a late string of strikes in frames 8, 9, 10, and 11 Judson came back to take game 3 219-202!!
Game 4 was super tight again as the match went back and forth but SCAD finished strong and won 195-189 to make it 2-2 and setup a game 5 showdown for the ages!
In game 5 again the match went back and forth a spare from senior Michele Chancey and strikes from Seniors Brandy Stewart, and Karlea Ceasario allowed Judson to take the early lead. Then in frame 4 a spare by Junior Paige Carpenter and Strike by Senior Chloe Siezega gave a solid first half of the game and a 108 in the 5th frame to SCAD's 95 through 5. Then another spare from Michele in the 6th and fantastic shot and strike from Brandy started the 2nd half strong.
An awful break in frame 8 on a spare setup a 2 pin match through 8 frames 156-154. Paige Carpenter made a great shot in frame 8 and left a 4 pin, she converted it and setup Chloe for the 10th frame.
Chloe stepped up in the 10th frame and made a super shot but came in just light to leave the 2-4-5 spare in which she converted with ease. After a SCAD 8 count and spare in the 10th frame that gave Judson a 1 pin lead 173-172 with 1 shot left for both teams! The situation was if Chloe strikes on the next shot Judson WINS the Championship no matter what the SCAD bowler does on her final shot. Chloe then stepped up and made one of the best shots in that situation in college bowling history, she was calm went through her process and posted the shot as though we were at practice. The ball came in light pocket and mixed the entire left side of the rack spinning the 4 pin into confusion in which it then fell in defeat!!
Then the jubilation, celebration, and emotional tears of pure joy just flooded the team with overwhelming gratitude.
Our families joined in with the tears and hugs for this thrilling victory! The team of Michele Chancey, Brandy Stewart, Karlea Ceasario, Paige Carpenter, Chloe Siezega, Kaylee Mann, Isabell Cooley, and Payten Kusilek have etched their names in the record books for all of time as Hoosier Classic Tournament Champions!
Outstanding individual performances consisting of Junior Paige Carpenter averaging 212.4 for her 5 games with a 89% single pin percentage and 75% multipin percentage an a team leading 58% strike percentage! Senior Chloe Siezega averaged 206.2 and was an outstanding 95% on single pins and struck 57% of the time none more important than the one she had for the CHAMPIONSHIP!
Senior Karlea Ceasario averaged 204.6 and was 84% on single pins with a 52% strike percentage. Senior Michele Chancey averaged 189 and was 80% on multipins and her season best 55% strike percentage! Senior Brandy Stewart was stellar all weekend long as she was 92% on single pins, 72% on multipins, and put up a CAREER best 51% strike percentage!
Senior Kaylee Mann contributed off the best on Saturday to give us a lift and was 75% on single pins, Senior Isabell Cooley also came in off the bench to give us a boost Saturday and was 100% on multipin spares, and Freshman Payten Kusilek was a leader is keeping our energy up and the vibe loose throughout the event.
I want to give a special shout out to Kaylee Mann, Isabell Cooley, and Payten Kusilek for their selflessness, fantastic attitudes, and amazing support they gave our team this past weekend, they played a major role in our success as a team that goes way beyond the stat sheet – GREAT JOB!!
The Lady Eagles are now ranked 7th in the USBC power rankings among over 150 women's bowling programs in the country!
Both teams now await for the Sectional selection show which is tomorrow 7pm Eastern time to see where our post season will be held!
Time to go to work these last 3 weeks before Sectionals on March 7-9!
