Huskers Return to Winning Ways in Big Red Invite

Lincoln – The top-ranked Nebraska bowling team won the second day of the three-day Big Red Invitational, finishing with a 6,072 total pinfall and winning five of its six traditional matches Friday at Sun Valley Lanes

Per rules of the event, each day is a separate tournament. The victory is the defending national champion Huskers’ first tournament win of the season.

“Our progress is on the upswing,” said Nebraska head coach Bill Straub. “We had a really good day, really good self-management, emotionally. The girls are responding to our suggestions for alignment and ball choices. It went swell today.”

No. 7 Wisconsin-Whitewater took second place with a 4-2 record and a pinfall of 5,853, while No. 8 Central Missouri came in third with a 5-1 record and a pinfall of 5,801.

Sophomore Julia Bond led the way for the Huskers in the individual standings, finishing second overall with a 214.7 average. Senior Melanie Crawford finished tenth with a 199 average and junior Briana Zabierek finished 11th with a 198.5 average.

Jordan Kasza from Arkansas State won the individual standings with a 217.7 average. Central Missouri’s Carly Thomas finished third with a 211.7 average. Sam Houston State’s Carrie Hopkinson finished fourth with a 209.7 average, while Central Missouri’s Justyne Falbo rounded out the top five, finishing with a 207.5 average.

The Huskers began the morning session with a match against No. 8 Central Missouri, which finished second place during Thursday’s first day of competition. The Jennies continued to perform well, defeating the Huskers by a 965-943 margin. Crawford led the Huskers with a score of 234, while sophomore Julia Bond pitched in a score of 212.

The Huskers then caught fire, netting over 1,000 pins in each of their next five matches.

NU faced off with No. 7 Wisconsin-Whitewater in the second match of the day. The Huskers faced an early deficit in the match, but 12 consecutive strikes in the middle of the match triggered the Nebraska comeback. Junior Gazmine Mason’s strike in the fifth frame and Bond’s strike in the seventh bookended the streak. Mason hit five consecutive strikes in the closing frames and Bond added six more to spur the Huskers to a 1,017-974 victory. Bond finished with a score of 231 and Mason netted a 213. The Huskers improved to 3-0 against the Warhawks on the year after a pair of victories the previous weekend in the Crusader Classic.

In the final match of the morning session, the Huskers squared off with Lincoln (Mo.) University, a school in its first year of NCAA bowling competition. The Huskers used a balanced attack to defeat the Blue Tigers, 1,060-715. Bond, Zabierek and freshman Meghan Straub each had streaks of four consecutive strikes, while Mason added a streak of three. Meghan Straub led the Huskers with a score of 230, while Zabierek contributed a score of 227. Crawford also scored a 214 and Bond scored a 213 to give the Huskers four players over 200 in the match.

Nebraska carried its success from the morning session into the afternoon contests. After a break for lunch, the Huskers dominated in their next two matches, a 1,034-886 victory over No. 6 Sam Houston State and a 1,010-879 victory over No. 15 Valparaiso. The victory was NU’s first of the year against the Bearkats, falling twice previously this season. NU moved to 2-1 against the Crusaders.

Going in to the final match of the day against No. 9 McKendree, the Huskers led the overall standings by 192 pins. In a close match all the way, senior Bethany Hedley, who had come on in relief in the fifth match, knocked down five consecutive strikes from frames 5-9 to lead the way. Mason also contributed a streak of five consecutive strikes for the Huskers. Mason paced the Big Red with a sizzling score of 244, while Hedley contributed a score of 231 in the nightcap, a 1,008-966 Husker victory.

“(Bethany) didn’t start today, but she wanted to prove the worthiness to stay in,” Straub said. “She worked her tail off and did an excellent job today.”

The Huskers will compete at the final day of the Big Red Invitational Saturday. Teams will play four traditional games beginning at 7:45 a.m. The tournament awards ceremony will take place honoring each day’s champion and the all-tournament team following competition.

Big Red Invitational Day 2 Standings (Pinfall)

1. Nebraska: 6,072
2. Wisconsin-Whitewater: 5,853
3. Central Missouri: 5,801
4. McKendree (Ill.): 5,776
5. Arkansas State: 5,768
6. Sam Houston State: 5,690
7. Valparaiso: 5,470
8. Lincoln (Mo).: 4,662