Stephen F. Austin
Greater Ozark Invitational
Ladyjacks Take Fourth At Greater Ozark Invitational
10/25/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Bowling
Oct. 25, 2009
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - The Ladyjack bowling team picked up another pair of wins over two of the top teams in the country on Sunday, closing out the Greater Ozark Invitational with a fourth-place finish in against one of the toughest tournament fields in the country.
The 10-team field was littered with nationally-ranked teams, with seven in the top 20. SFA did it's part to show it belonged early on Sunday with Baker game wins over No. 20 Valparaiso and No. 1 Nebraska - the defending national champions.
SFA opened up the day with a 4-2 win over Valparaiso with a high game of 224 pins before taking down the Cornhuskers one match later. Against top-ranked Nebraska, the Ladyjacks were on the verge of defeat before rallying to take the final two games and sneak away with the upset.
"To beat Valparaiso and Nebraska today along with the wins we got yesterday over Vanderbilt and Arkansas State I think will go a long way for the confidence of this team," head coach Laura Cramer.
Those wins, added in with SFA's 2-3 mark from Saturday, gave SFA the No. 4 seed going into the bracket portion of the tournament where they squared off with Louisiana Tech for the fourth time in two tournaments. The Bulldogs were able to claw out a narrow 4-3 win, taking a 194-140 victory in the deciding game.
SFA then worked its way into the a battle for the third place trophy with a 4-2 win over Minnesota State-Mankato, using a high game of 234 and wins in the final two games to advance.
The Ladyjacks then ran into Louisiana Tech once again in the third-place game, and once again the result was the same despite each game being by a narrow margin. SFA had a high of 205 in the match, but still fell 4-2 to walk away with fourth place.
"It got a lot tougher as the day progressed," Cramer said. "The lanes really were breaking down and I think just the fatigue of a tough three-day tournament like this kind of took its toll as well."
Ashli Rosenkrantz finished the tournament with a 196 average, which placed her 10th overall among all bowlers for the weekend. Sierra Gibbons was right behind her as the 11th-ranked bowler with her 193 average, while Whitney McCoy, Dustie Hammone and Amy Rutherford each finished ranked in the top 30.
"We had a lot of close games, but we just have to learn how to close out games, and that will come as the girls continue to mature" Cramer said. "Ultimately, I'm very proud of the way that they played against this caliber of competition."
The Ladyjacks next compete in Houston at the Lady Tiger Classic, Nov. 14-15.
-SFA-
