Huskers Eye Crusader Classic Title

#1 Nebraska Cornhuskers at Crusader Classic

Friday-Sunday, Feb. 17-19, 9:30 a.m., 9:35 a.m., 8:30 a.m. (CT) – Richton Park, Ill. (Lakewood Bowl)

Huskers Eye Crusader Classic Title
The top-ranked Nebraska bowling team travels to Richton Park, Ill., for the Crusader Classic this Friday through Sunday at Lakewood Bowl. The tournament is hosted by 23rd-ranked Valparaiso, and the Huskers have won the tournament twice in the last six years. NU has competed at the tournament in each of the last six seasons, finishing in the top-three each time

The tournament will feature 12 teams, including eight ranked teams in the latest National Tenpin Coaches Association Top 25 Poll.

The top two teams in the country will be represented at the tournament in Nebraska and Arkansas State. No. 10 Sacred Heart will also bowl this weekend at the tournament. The list of ranked teams includes No. 11 Central Missouri, No. 13 Tulane, No. 14 Wisconsin-Whitewater, Valparaiso and No. 24 Youngstown State. In addition, Aurora, Elmhust, Maryville and Lincoln Memorial will be represented at the tournament.

The Huskers are coming off a second-place finish at the SFA Stormin’ Ladyjack Invitational in Houston, Texas, last weekend. Julia Bond led the way for the Huskers, finishing second overall with an average of 228, her highest average of the season and the fourth-highest of her career. Gazmine Mason added an average of 219 to finish fifth overall. The Big Red went 10-3 on the weekend and defeated eight ranked teams, with the only three losses coming to third-ranked McKendree, which went 11-0 on the way to the championship.

Competition begins Friday morning at 9:30 a.m. (CT) with five sets of five-game Baker matches, followed by five traditional team matches on Saturday morning, beginning at 9:35 a.m. Combined results from Friday and Saturday will determine the seeding for Sunday’s best-of-seven Baker format championship tournament, which begins at 8:30 a.m.

Crusader Classic Notes
The 2017 Crusader Classic marks the seventh season in a row that Nebraska will compete at the tournament hosted by Valparaiso. The Huskers have finished in the top three at each of the last six editions of the Crusader Classic, winning in 2010 and 2014. NU finished third at the tournament last season, defeating Wisconsin-Whitewater in the third-place match. Gazmine Mason won MVP honors at the tournament last year, which was held in Valparaiso, Ind. Mason posted an average of 223.8 to finish first overall, while Melanie Crawford added an average of 201 to finish 10th. The Huskers won the season-opening Crusader Classic during the 2014-15 season, as Liz Kuhlkin finished first overall with an average of 212.6. Kuhlkin also finished first overall at the tournament in 2012 with a 230.6 average.

Huskers Take Second at SFA Stormin’ Ladyjack Invitational
Nebraska closed a solid weekend at the SFA Stormin’ Ladyjack Invitational in Houston with a second-place finish and a 10-3 overall record. Each of the three Husker losses on the weekend came at the hands of No. 3 McKendree, including a 4-1 defeat in the championship match. Julia Bond posted her highest average of the season and the fourth-highest of her career with a dazzling 228 to finish second overall, while Gazmine Mason joined her in the top five, finishing fifth with an average of 219.

NU Wins Fifth-Consecutive Prairie View Invitational Crown
For the fifth year in a row, Nebraska left the Prairie View Invitational as tournament champions, winning the loaded invitational the weekend of Jan. 27-29 at the International Training and Research Center in Arlington, Texas. NU went 11-2 on the weekend, defeating 10 ranked teams along the way. The Huskers swept Vanderbilt in the championship match to claim the title. Gazmine Mason led the way for the Huskers, finishing eighth overall with an average of 202.7.

Nebraska Back on Top in NTCA Poll
In the latest NTCA Top-25 poll released Jan. 22, Nebraska returned to the top spot, claiming 23 first-place votes and a total of 1,263 points. The Huskers began the season ranked first overall, but fell to the third spot in the November poll. Arkansas State fell one spot to second, while McKendree, Sam Houston State and Vanderbilt round out the top five.

Huskers Win Mid-Winter Invitational Title
Nebraska picked up its first tournament title of the season, winning the Mid-Winter Invitational in Jonesboro, Ark., the weekend of Jan. 13-15. NU went 9-2 on the weekend, defeating six ranked teams in the process. The Mid-Winter Invitational field featured 10 ranked teams, including eight of the top-10 teams in the nation. Nebraska defeated McKendree in the opening round of the championship tournament, and then took down the Bearcats again in the final, 4-2. Meghan Straub paced the Huskers with an average of 210 to finish second overall, while Julia Bond was right behind with an average of 209.6 for a third-place finish.

Back to Back
Nebraska won back-to-back tournaments in January, finishing first at both the Mid-Winter Invitational (Jan. 13-15) and the Prairie View Invitational (Jan. 27-29). The back-to-back wins were the first for Nebraska since winning the Big Red Invitational and the TRACK Kat Klash in November and December of 2015. It is the 23rd time in school history that NU has won multiple tournaments in a row. The program record is 13 tournament wins in a row, stretching from the 2004-05 season to the 2005-06 season.

Bond Wins U.S. Amateur Championship, Named to Team USA
Julia Bond was crowned United States Amateur Bowling Champion and was named to Team USA for the 2017 season after winning the women’s U.S. Amateur final at the 2017 United States Bowling Congress Team USA Trials the week of Jan. 4-8 in Henderson, Nev. Bond finished fourth overall at the trials with 54 ranking points. Kayla Johnson, a Husker from 2010-2012, was also named to Team USA for the 2017 season by the National Selection Committee based on her performances throughout the week, while Shannon Pluhowsky, who competed for Nebraska from 2000-05, was selected by the National Selection Committee based on her submitted resume. Husker senior Gazmine Mason and junior Kelly Belzeski also competed at the trials.

Looking Ahead
Nebraska will return to action next weekend at the Central Missouri Mid-America Invitational. The tournament will take place next Friday and Saturday in Kansas City, Kan. The Huskers last competed at a tournament hosted by Central Missouri during the 2014-15 season, as they finished first at the Central Missouri Invitational. Liz Kuhlkin finished first overall with an average of 234.3, while Gazmine Mason was fifth with a 209 average.

Crusader Classic - Teams Competing
No. 1 Nebraska 
No. 23 Valparaiso
No. 2 Arkansas State
No. 10 Sacred Heart
No. 11 Central Missouri
No. 13 Tulane
No. 14 Wisconsin-Whitewater
No. 24 Youngstown State
Aurora
Elmhurst
Maryville
Lincoln Memorial