Geoff M Schneider

Wildcats Close Out Play At Destination Orlando Invitational

Daemen Battles No. 7 Jacksonville State; Defeats Alabama A&M On Final Day

10/29/2023 3:09:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Tom McDermott, Director of Athletics Communications | tmcdermo@daemen.edu

ORLANDO, Fla. - The Daemen University women's bowling team closed out play at the Destination Orlando Invitational today. The field consisted of 18 teams, several of which are ranked nationally by the National Tenpin Coaches Association (NTCA). In addition to tournament host and 17th-ranked Sacred Heart and Daemen, the field also includes Alabama A&M, No. 2 Arkansas State, No. 22 Delaware State, No. 11 Duquesne, Emmanuel, No. 15 Fairleigh Dickinson, Florida A&M, No. 7 Jacksonville State, Monmouth, Saint Francis, No. 4 Stephen F. Austin, Texas Southern, Tulane, Alabama-Birmingham, No. 1 Vanderbilt and No. 6 Youngstown State.

The Wildcats entered today's bracket play in 18^th place after totaling 8,704 total pins over the first two days of the tournament. Today's winners were determined using the Baker best-of-seven format. Daemen opened the day with losses to Florida A&M University (4-1) and nationally ranked Jacksonville State (4-3). The loss to Florida A&M put the Wildcats in the 17^th/18^th place match with Alabama A&M, and Daemen prevailed 4-3.

Six-ranked Youngstown State claimed the tournament championship. YSU, which entered day three in fourth place, defeated No. 1 Vanderbilt and No. 4 Stephen F. Austin on the way to the championship match, where the Penguins defeated No. 7 Jacksonville State to claim the title.

Daemen is now 17-14 on the season.

HIGHLIGHTS

Florida A&M opened with a 144-143 win in game one and the opened up a 2-0 lead after another close win (186-178) in game two. The Rattlers went up 3-0 after a 203-145 decision in game three, but the Wildcats stayed alive with a 180-152 win in game four. Florida A&M closed out the match with a 188-121 win in game five.
Daemen then squared off against No. 7 Jacksonville State for the second time during the tournament. JSU entered day three in second place (10,588 pins) and posted a win over day-two leader Stephen F. Austin in its first match of the day. The Wildcats came out on fire, posting a 224-182 win over the Gamecocks in game one. The teams then battled in a tight game two, with JSU prevailing 258-214. JSU went up-2-1 following a 204-184 win in game three, but the Wildcats would not go away and gutted out a 212-210 win in game four to even the match at 2-2. Daemen rolled another solid game in the fifth with 213 pins, but JSU rolled a 234 to go up 3-2. The upset-minded Wildcats bounced back with another close win (190-186) in game six to force and seventh and deciding game. Once again the Wildcats hung tough, but the Gamecocks prevailed 191-180 to claim the match.
The Wildcats capped the tournament with a 4-3 win over Alabama A&M. Daemen opened with back-to-back wins in game one (175-173) and game two (213-136), before Alabama A&M answered with a 206-173 win in game three. Daemen took a 3-1 lead after posting a 173-161 win in game four, but the Bulldogs forced a seventh game following wins in game five (210-135) and game six (197-176). Daemen regrouped and posted a 203-153 win in game seven to claim the match.

UP NEXT
Daemen is idle until the weekend of Nov. 11-12 when the Wildcats host the Daemen Storm Fall Classic at Brad Angelo Lanes in Lockport, N.Y. Daemen was scheduled to take part in the Bobcat Baker Classic next weekend (Nov. 4-5) in Greensburg, Pa., but Daemen has pulled out of that competition.

Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 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.

Follow the Daemen women's bowling program on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @DaemenBowling.

Print Friendly Version