FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 13, 2016

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

WICHITA, Kan. –n their season opener, the Shocker Bowling men’s team took home second place while the women finished third. MidStates Championships took place Oct. 8 – 9 at Northrock Lanes and West Acres Bowl. It was the only home event of the Shocker’s season.

Saturday began with six traditional team games. The Lady Shockers were led by junior Sydney Brummett (Fort Wayne, Ind.), who averaged 224.7 for six games and earned all-tournament MVP honors. Senior Laura Plazas (Bogotá, Colombia) and sophomore Kayla Ovesny (Norman, Okla.) averaged 213 over six games as well. Junior Alex Lankford (Moon Twp., Penn.) led the Shocker men with a five game average of 221 followed by sophomore Jonathan Bowman (Peru, N.Y.) at 214 for four games and Jerod Hromek (Towanda, Kan.), who made his collegiate debut, at 210 for four games.

Qualifying continued on Sunday with twenty Baker games and after qualifying was over there was a cut to the top eight varsity teams and two JV teams in each division. Both Shocker men and women earned the No. 2 seed and both Shocker men and women were the leaders in the JV division. The JVB men’s team qualified second the JVB women’s team finished fourth.

Round one saw the men face Hastings College. It was a quick one as the men swept them, winning 207-203, 207-129 and 229-179. In round two, Midland University faced off with the Shocks. The men took them all the way to game five, but came out on top winning 3-2.

MidStates co-host Newman University made the finals an all-Wichita match. Newman had the right look and the men struggled to find any momentum. Newman won three straight games (203-247, 213-229, and 183-189) to win the MidStates Championship while the Shocker men settled for second.

Hastings College was first up for the Lady Shox and it went all the way to five games. The ladies dropped the first game 193-234 and won the second game 170-155. They dropped the third game 161-181 and won the next 193-148. In the final game, Plazas needed a double to win the match and she came through. The Shox took the final game 214-191 and the match 3-2.

“The weekend was so much fun. The Baker games were a blast and it was cool to see some serious team play. I’m excited to take this weekend and get better, both as a team and individually,” Hromek said. “If this weekend was a preview of the future, these next few months are going to be a blast.

The ladies bowled Lindenwood University in the semi-finals and jumped out to an early 2-0 lead with 186-163 and 201-182 wins. Lindenwood came back to tie the match by winning games three and four, 162-221 and 178-199. The final game stayed close all the way to the end, unfortunately the Shockers couldn't strike out in the tenth to win and lost the game 159-181. The ladies earned third place.

In the JV men’s finals, it went back and forth all match. JVA snuck out to an early 2-0 lead, winning 195-188 and 193-171. JVB tied it up the next two games winning 212-178 and 171-170. In the final game, it was JVA who came out on top, winning the game 196-179 and the match 3-2 to take the championship.

After falling the first game to Lindenwood JV, the ladies JVA team won the next three to take home the match, 3-1.

“It was a good weekend for us,” junior Hollyann Johansen (Wichita, Kan.) said. “We learned a lot and get to take that into practice the next few weeks before we compete again. I’m excited to work together with this group of girls, get to know them better and watch us get better and better each week.”

The Shockers have a few weeks off before heading to the first ever Five Seasons Classic, hosted by Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, Oct. 29-30.

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