ERIE, Pa. - The Daemen College women's bowling team continued play today at the Grapevine Classic hosted by Penn State Behrend. The two-day event took place at Eastland Bowl and featured seven schools, Daemen, Walsh University, Roberts Wesleyan College, Mercyhurst University, Penn State Behrend, D'Youville College, La Roche University.

Daemen entered day two in second place with 4,366 total pins. Mercyhurst (4,515 total pins) sat atop the day one standings, while the Wildcats were followed closely by East Coast Conference rivals Roberts Wesleyan (4,316) and D'Youville (4,008).

The Wildcats ended up winning four of nine matches over the two days and finished in third place with 8,581 total pins. Mercyhurst went 7-1 and placed first with 8,847 total pins. Roberts Wesleyan won six of its nine matches and placed second with 8,637 total pins. Walsh (8,208) and D'Youville (7,980) rounded out the top five.

Daemen was represented on the all-tournament team by junior Caitlyn Nowak (West Seneca, N.Y.) and sophomore Mollie Gizicki (Brighton, Mich.).

Nowak posted the third best individual pin total (923) out of 48 bowlers during the opening day. Her 214 during a win over Roberts Wesleyan was the highest score by a Daemen bowler yesterday and she also rolled a 191 during a win over La Roche. Gizicki, who spent her freshman season at Adrian College, rolled a team-best 196 in a loss to Mercyhurst yesterday and posted a 210 in the win over Roberts Wesleyan yesterday. Her pin total of 914 ranked as the fourth highest among all bowlers yesterday.

HIGHLIGHTS

• All of today's matches were scored using Baker Format.
• The Wildcats opened the day against rival D'Youville. The Saints jumped out to a 74 point lead (553-479) after three games, before the Wildcats cut the deficit to 44 pins following a 185-155 win in game four. Daemen's comeback fell just short despite a 165-124 win in game five, and the Saints held on for a 832-829 win.
• Daemen rebounded with a 848-710 win over tournament host Penn State Behrend, as the Wildcats won four of the five games.
• Daemen then hung tough with tournament champion Mercyhurst, before suffering a 883-832 loss to the Lakers. Mercyhurst won all five games, but three of the five games were decided by a total of 13 pins.
• The Wildcats entered the positional rounds seeded third with 6,875 total pins. Mercyhurst remained atop the standings entering the positional rounds with 7,127 total pins, while Roberts Wesleyan jumped Daemen into second place with 7,012 total pins. Walsh (6,518) and D'Youville (6,390) rounded out the top five.
• Daemen opened the positional rounds with a 821-751 victory over La Roche. La Roche was up 486-478 after three games, but the Wildcats outscored the Redhawks 343-265 over the final two games to secure the win.
• The Wildcats closed out the tournament with a 904-885 loss to Walsh. Daemen won the first two games and took a 562-522 lead following a 223-212 victory in game three, but the Cavaliers posted a 188-168 win in game four and secured the comeback with a 194-155 win in game five.

UP NEXT

The Wildcats are idle until the weekend of Oct. 22-24 when they return to Erie, Pa. to take part in the Mercyhurst Invitational.


Daemen College features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 18 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

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