Bowling Set to Open 2026-27 Campaign at Mercyhurst Invitational

10/2/2026 3:13:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Connor Griffin, Assistant Director of Athletics Communications | cgriffin@daemen.edu

Mercyhurst Invitational
Oct. 3-4 | Rolling Meadow Lanes | Erie, Pa.

STARTING UP
The Daemen University women's bowling team opens the 2026-27 campaign at the Mercyhurst Invitational at Rolling Meadow Lanes in Erie, Pa., this weekend.

TOURNAMENT INFO
The two-day tournament begins on Saturday with traditional matches. On Sunday, the competition switches to Baker Match play. Daemen competed at the Mercyhurst Invitational last season. The Wildcats earned two wins, defeating D'Youville 770-741 and Penn State Behrend 792-762.

LAST SEASON RECAP
The Wildcats finished 34-52 in 2025-26. Daemen logged multiple wins over ECC foes Roberts Wesleyan, D'Youville, and Molloy. The Wildcats went 1-2 at the 2026 ECC Championship, beating Saint Anselm before falling to Molloy twice.

PRESEASON POLL
The East Coast Conference released its 2026-27 women's bowling preseason poll on Monday, with Daemen selected fifth. Kutztown sat atop the poll with 62 points and six first-place votes. Molloy was second with 55 points (one first-place vote), and Adelphi rounded out the top three with 46 points. Roberts Wesleyan was selected fourth with 35 points, followed by the Wildcats in fifth with 32 points. D'Youville (29 points, one first-place vote) landed sixth, Saint Anselm (20 points) was seventh, and St. Thomas Aquinas rounded out the poll in eighth (9 points).

FORSHA EARNS ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
Brenna Forsha (Tonawanda, N.Y.) finished the 2026-27 campaign strong, earning Third Team All-ECC. It was her first time earning conference recognition. Last year during the regular season, the senior completed 859 frames for the Wildcats and led the team in strikes (344) and strike percentage (39.7%). She also posted 320 spares and a spare percentage of 61.3%.

MORE RETURNING TALENT
Also returning for the Wildcats is Sabrina Palmer (Waterloo, N.Y.), who threw 306 strikes and posted a strike percentage of 36.0% during the 2025-26 regular season. Cassidy Papero (Cheektowaga, N.Y.) completed 868 frames, logging 297 strikes. Sophomore Alyssa Crewe (Lewiston, N.Y.) completed 39 frames with a 55% strike percentage.

NEW FACES
Daemen also welcomed three new bowlers for the 2026-27 campaign. Freshmen Kenzie Smolnik (Rochester, N.Y.) and Emma Snowman (North Tonawanda, N.Y.) bring fresh talent to the squad. Sophmore Shelly Cummings (Victor, N.Y.) joined the squad as a transfer from Roberts Wesleyan. She was a two-time ECC Rookie of the Week last year.

SCHEDULE OUTLOOK
The Wildcats will compete in 11 tournaments, including five in the fall and six in the spring. Following this weekend, Daemen heads back to Pennsylvania for the Kutztown Golden Bear Invite (Oct. 17-18). The Wildcats bowl at the Niagara University Brunswick Fall Open on Oct. 24-25 then travel to the Keystone State for the Duquesne Invite on Nov. 7-8. The fall schedule concludes with the Hilbert Hammer Classic (Nov. 21-22). Daemen resumes the season Jan. 23-24 with the ECC Clash. The following weekend, the Wildcats compete at the WNY Cup on Jan. 31. The team then travels to the Wildcat DII-DIII Invite (Feb. 13-14). It's then back to Niagara for the Brunswick Spring Classic (Feb. 20-21). The regular season concludes with the Redhawks' Queen City Classic on March 6-7. Daemen will host the 2027 ECC Women's Bowling Championship at their home lanes, AMF Lancaster Lanes, March 18-21. More information will be available as the tournament approaches.

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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