FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 15, 2016

CONTACT:
Gordon Vadakin
Phone (316) 978-7655
Fax (316) 978-6056
email - shocker.bowling@wichita.edu
www.wichita.edu/bowling

Start of Second Half: January 16th marks the start of the second half of the season for the Shocker Bowling team as they head to Addison, Ill. for the Kegel/ISBPA Midwest Collegiate Classic.

Strong First Semester: Between the two teams, they have four tournament wins and 13 top three finishes through seven events. Currently, the Lady Shox are in third and the men seventh in the collegebowling.com Power Rankings.

Defending Champs: Since this tournament became a Tier I event two years ago, the ladies have won the event both times. The Shocker men look to improve on two second-place finishes.

Schedule: One of the largest tournaments the Shockers compete in all season, this tournament features two squads. The Shocks compete in the first squad. On Saturday, everyone bowls five, traditional team games, beginning at 7:30 a.m. for the early squad. Everyone returns the next day for 20 Baker games beginning at 7:30 a.m. for the early squad. The Shockers will depart Addison after they finish bowling and will find out their final placement Sunday evening when the second squad finishes their bowling. Tournament champions are determined based on total pinfall with no bonus pins awarded.

How to keep up: Follow the Shockers scores on their Facebook (/shockerbowling) and Twitter (@shockerbowling) for periodic score updates when they are available! The Illinois State BPA Facebook will also post standings when they are available.

Traveling Shox: Coach Vadakin is joined by Brandon Biondo, AJ Chapman, Stephen Cowland, Tyler Cruz, Mitch Hupé, Wesley Low, Zach Rhoades and Justin Zwaschka for the weekend. Sydney Brummett, Estefania Cobo, Ashlyn Herzberg, Hollyann Johansen, Sierra Kanemoto, Dasha Kovalova and Kristie López join Coach Lewis to compete.

Team USA Shockers: Over Christmas break, many of the American Shockers competed in the Team USA Trials in Las Vegas, Nev. Team USA will once again feature five Shockers as Chris Barnes (’89-’92), senior AJ Chapman, soon-to-be Shocker Kamron Doyle, Sean Rash (’99-’03) and John Szczerbinski (’06-’10) were named to Team USA. Freshman Wesley Low bowled his way on to Junior Team USA and joined Brandon Biondo, Sydney Brummett, Doyle, Hollyann Johansen, Sierra Kanemoto and Thomas Peters, who earned their spots at Junior Gold over the summer.

Shocker Speak: Junior Sydney Brummett and Freshmen Brandon Biondo
How did you make sure you and your team were ready for this weekend, since there were no practices over winter break?

  • SB: I made sure I was getting out on the lanes every day to stay sharp and improve for the semester. The whole team was communicating with each other and making sure we were keeping up with practice.
  • BB: It wasn't really a question if my team was practicing; I knew we were all putting in a few hours every day. The bigger part was keeping in touch so we can keep the bond we created this fall and make it stronger.

What class are you most looking forward to this semester?

  • SB: I’m really looking forward to Biology 211 – ready to dive into the material I’m interested in!
  • BB: I’m probably looking forward to public speaking the most.

###
The Rhatigan Student Center has been the major financial and administrative supporter of the Wichita State University bowling program since 1959.