LOCKPORT, N.Y. - The Roberts Wesleyan College women's bowling team claimed the 2021 East Coast Conference Tournament championship with a victory over Daemen College here tonight at Brad Angelo Lanes.
Roberts Wesleyan claimed its first-ever ECC Tournament title and earned the league's automatic bid to the 16-team National Collegiate Athletic Association Championship, set to take place April 7-10 in Kansas City, Mo. The Redhawks will be making their first appearance in the national tournament.
Daemen, which was also looking for its first ECC Tournament title and NCAA Tournament bid, closes out the year with a 7-16 record.
Tonight's championship format started with a traditional match, followed by a total pin Baker match. If needed, a best-of-seven Baker match would then decide the winner.
Daemen opened the night with a 967-816 victory in the traditional match. Three of Daemen's five bowlers posted a score in the 200s, led by senior Katlyn Newberry (Rochester, N.Y.) who rolled a team-high 228. Fellow seniors Alex Syrotynski (East Greenbush, N.Y.) and Alex Hasiotis (Rochester, N.Y.) also broke the 200 barrier. Syrotynski posted a 209 and Hasiotis rolled a 206. Sophomore Paige Bartosz (West Seneca, N.Y.) and senior Adrianna Pencek (Dunkirk, N.Y.) also competed during the traditional match. Bartosz bowled a 187, while Pencek posted a 141.
Daemen's victory in the traditional match meant that it could claim the title with a win in the total pin Baker match. Roberts Wesleyan built a 22 pin lead (552-530) after three games, but the Wildcats cut the lead to just four pins after Daemen posted a 190-172 win in game four. The Redhawks forced the winner take all best-of-seven Baker match after a 235-191 win in game five gave RWC a 959-911 total pin fall victory.
Roberts Wesleyan took game one of the best-of-seven Baker match, but Daemen seized control by winning three of the next four games. Game six was a back-and-forth affair and Bartosz came through with a clutch strike for Daemen in the ninth frame to tie the game at 142-142. RWC forced a seventh and deciding game after a clutch strike by RWC senior Kayla Kawyn in the 10th frame gave the Redhawks a 162-160 victory. Daemen trailed by 12 pins (85-73) after five frames in game seven, and the Wildcats stayed within striking distance following a strike by Hasiotis in the sixth and back-to-back spares by Newberry and junior Christina Aldridge (Webster, N.Y.) in the seventh and eighth frames. Bartosz and sophomore Caitlyn Nowak (West Seneca, N.Y.) both failed to convert difficult spares in the ninth and tenth frames, and RWC secured the win when Kawyn rolled a spare, a strike and another spare in the tenth to give the Redhawks a 184-158 victory.
Kawyn was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Bowler. Named to the all-tournament team was Nowak from Daemen, Sarah Gerken of Roberts Weslyan, Madeline Gannon of Chestnut Hill College, Jenna Repack of Caldwell University and Haley You're of Mercyhurst University.
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