Women's Bowling Season Comes To An End In The Semifinals Of The ECC Championship

3/25/2023 4:31:00 PM

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

CORAM, N.Y. - The Daemen University women's bowling team saw its hopes for a first-ever East Coast Conference championship come to an end this afternoon during day two action of the 2023 ECC Women's Bowling Championships. The three-day event is being hosted by Adelphi University at Coram Country Lanes.

Daemen was one of 10 teams in the tournament field and entered today looking to build off the momentum it gained yesterday while winning four of five matches. The Wildcats posted a total pin fall of 4,665 during the opening day and earning the No. 3 seed in today's double elimination portion of the tournament. Mercyhurst earned the No. 1 seed with a total pin fall of 5,030, while Kutztown (4,737), Daemen, D'Youville (4,563) and Roberts Wesleyan (4,547) rounded out the top five.

Daemen opened today with a 4-1 win (best of seven Baker format) over sixth-seeded Bryant. Daemen lost the first game, 180-176, but the Wildcats evened the match with a 205-165 win in game two. Daemen took the lead following a 225-205 win in game three, and the Wildcats completed the win with wins in game four (202-187) and game five (221-193).

The win set up a match against seventh-seeded Molloy, which was coming off a 4-2 upset of second-seeded Kutztown in its first match of the day. Molloy handed Daemen its lone loss during the opening round yesterday and the Lions got the better of Daemen again today, as they rallied from a 2-1 deficit to post a 4-2 win over the Wildcats.

The loss dropped Daemen into the losers bracket, which meant the Wildcats would need to post two more wins in order to advance to "Championship Sunday".

Daemen got the first win out of the way, as the Wildcats eliminated fourth-seeded D'Youville with a 4-1 victory. It marked Daemen's sixth win over its crosstown rival this season. Daemen cruised to a 253-201 win in game one, and then opened up a 3-0 lead following a 197-169 win in game two and a 196-142 win in game three. The Saints countered with a 200-163 win in game four, before Daemen secured the win with a 181-161 win in game five.

Daemen then squared off against second-seeded Kutztown, with the winner advancing to "Championship Sunday". Both teams entered the tournament ranked among the Top-15 teams in the most recent National Tenpin Coaches Association Division II/III poll. Kutztown edged the Wildcats in game one (185-150) and the Golden Bears took a commanding 3-0 lead after wins in game two (188-165) and game three (207-146). Daemen was not going down without a fight and stayed alive with a 201-149 win in game four, but Kutztown completed the win and eliminated the Wildcats with a 203-153 win in game five.

Daemen closes out the year with a record of 47-32. The Wildcats reached the 40-win plateau for the third time in program history and came just three wins shy of reaching 50 wins for the second-straight season.

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.

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