TOURNAMENT BRACKET

The Saint Vincent women's bowling team's run in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Championship ended with a 4-2 loss in a best-of-seven shootout to decide the title.

The Bearcats, the #1 seed in the tournament, started the day with a tough loss in the opening round.  SVC led the opening match by 30 pins early, but Medaille battled back to tie the match after six frames.  The Mavericks took the lead in the seventh frame, but the Bearcats closed the gap in the final frame.  SVC was down just six pins going to the final two bowlers, but an untimely split ended the comeback, as Medaille won by a score of 964-948.

Olivia Emmonds led the way with a 213 game, while Sabine Strickland added a 194 and Abby Justice finished with a 190.

Up next was a Baker team set, counting total pins over five game.  SVC shot a 184 in the opening game, but Medaille countered with a 236 to take a commanding 52-pin lead.  SVC won game two, but only by one pin (180-179), then lost the third game by a score of 184-168.  Down 67 pins, SVC bounced back with a 213-172 win in game four, trailing by just 26 going to the final game.  However, Medaille won the final game 192-171 to win the point by a score of 963-916.

That victory ended Match 8, and with both teams now showing one loss in the double-elimination tournament, sent the championship to a final, best-of-7 Baker team challenge.

In game one, SVC was victorious, winning 188-166.   The Bearcats stayed consistent in game two, shooting a 184, but lost by 31 pins to the Mavericks (215).  Game threw was another close battle, but Medaille held on for a 178-174 win to take a 2-1 advantage.  SVC was unable to score in game four, losing 180-147 and falling behind 3-1.  With their backs to the wall, SVC fired back in game five, winning 201-189 to remain alive.

The Bearcats threw another strong game in the 6th game, finishing with a 201, but Medaille strung several strikes together mid-game, pulling away to a 245-201 victory to secure the conference championship for the sixth consecutive season.

After the match, Emmonds and Strickland were named to the All-Tournament Team.

For the three-day Championship, Saint Vincent averaged 183.1, including a 185 mark on Sunday.

Saint Vincent ends the season with a record of 51-9.  The team's .850 winning percentage was the highest in the nation in 2022-23.