Huskers in First After Day One at Mid-Winter Invite

Lincoln - After the first day of the Mid-Winter Invitational, the Nebraska bowling teams sits in first place, 57 pins ahead of No. 2 Arkansas State.

"I am very pleased once again by the team's performance," Head Coach Paul Klempa said. "Top to the bottom, the lineup made good shot after good shot each game and find themselves in the lead after day one. Every week I mention how this team is improving and building momentum and today was more of the same. We have things going really well right now and we will go right back to work tomorrow to continue this torrid pace."

Behind NU and ASU is No. 16 Stephen F. Austin in third followed by No. 11 Youngstown State and top-ranked McKendree.

Nebraska went into their first matchup of the day against No. 17 Tulane and earned a 1,072-970 victory. The Huskers began their lineup with Michelle Guarro, Kendyl Hofmeister, Kayla Verstraete, Cassidy Ray and Crystal Elliott. NU took the first two games 228-212 and 215-171 before falling 190-199 in the third game. The bowlers bounced back by taking the last two games 237-189 and 202-199.

Next up for the Huskers was No. 14 Maryville, where NU found its only loss of the day, falling 1,016-1,063. Both teams came out hot with Maryville taking the first game 256-279 and NU bouncing back with a 221-191 win in game two. The Huskers fell 164-204 and 192-206 before tying in the fifth game, 183-183.

The Huskers followed the loss with a 1,155-1,087 victory over No. 23 Wisconsin-Whitewater in their third matchup of the day. NU won the first three games 214-204, 278-256 and 224-173. The bowlers fell 183-255 in game four before claiming game five 256-199.

Rolling with the same lineup, the bowlers moved on to verse No. 2 Arkansas State, claiming a 1,172-1070 victory. Nebraska narrowly lost the first game 202-203 before taking the second and third games 278-245 and 231-183. NU didn't relinquish their lead, winning 229-216 in the fourth game and 232-223 in game five.

To round out the day, the Huskers defeated No. 22 Central Missouri 1,079-967. UCM took game one 182-190 but NU took the last four games winning 244-220 and 192-178 in games two and three. The bowlers finished out the matchup with 234-196 and 227-183 victories in games four and five.

Bowling continues for the Huskers at 9:25 a.m. on Saturday against No. 8 Sam Houston State.

Mid-Winter Invitational Day One Standings

1. No. 5 Nebraska (5,494)
2. No. 2 Arkansas State (5,437)
3. No. 16 Stephen F. Austin (5,315)
4. No. 11 Youngstown State (5,112)
5. No. 1 McKendree (5,058)
6. No. 23 Wisconsin-Whitewater (5,028)
7. No. 14 Maryville (4,963)
8. No. 8 Sam Houston State (4,871)
9. No. 17 Tulane (4,805)
10. Drury (4,723)
11. No. 22 Central Missouri (4,611)