Feb. 5, 2008
JONESBORO, Ark. - Jessica Worsley averaged an amazing 212.2 pins over 10 games and was named to the All-Tournament Team of the NCAA Mid-Winter Classic as third ranked (#3) University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) won the event's championship with 13,829 pins and posted a 10-4 record at the event. Worsley tallied an amazing 2,122 pins for the event while teammate Kristina Frahm was also on the All-Tournament Team with 1,833 pins over nine games for an average of 203.67. Together they paced the Lady Hawks to one of their best showings of the season.
UMES opened the three-day event with team games and rolled through to a perfect 5-0 mark. They topped #5 Fairleigh Dickinson (1061-992), #17 St. Francis (N.Y.) (940-777), Grambling State (987-736), #7 and host Arkansas State (1083-920) and #16 Wisconsin-Whitewater (924-760).
On the opening day UMES posted 13 games over 200 with two players, Worsley and Maria Rodriguez averaging over 200. Rodriguez averaged a 205 for the day while Worsley had an impressive 216.8 for day one. Worsley had three games over 200 (256, 209, 256) while All-American Laura Zanrucha (222, 213), Kristina Frahm (245, 223), Martha Perez (206, 223) and Rodriguez (256, 237) each posted two games. Jamie Culbreth bowled just one game, but posted a solid 203 in the outing.
On day two the Hawks bowled five more games topping Morgan State (1057-750) in a no decision game while they picked up wins over #12 Jackson State (1055-897) and #10 Delaware State (1019-913). With the top three teams in the nation at the event they were bound to cross each other's paths at some point. UMES did just that on day two when they meant up with #2 Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt topped UMES in the National Championship last season in seven games but this time the Lady Hawks got the best of the Commodores 994-865. They immediately followed that match-up with #1 Nebraska, a tough stretch by any means, and fell to the nation's top team 965-994, their lone loss in team games.
On that day the Hawks were red-hot again. They tallied 13 more games over 200 with three players averaging over 200 for the day. Frahm (208.8), Perez (209.33) and Worsley (207.6), were nearly unstoppable. Frahm posted four games over 200 (213, 245, 203, 211) while Worsley (257, 204, 254) had three games eclipse the mark. Zanrucha (222, 205) and Perez (225, 224) each had a pair of games over 200 while Rodriguez (235) and Sara DiScioscia (209) had one each.
UMES seemed poised to run away with the event heading into day three, the baker games. It wasn't to be however as the lady Hawks lost some of their fire. They opened with a 795-788 loss to #9 Alabama A&M but rebounded to top Florida A&M 753-600, still not posting an impressive score. They dropped two more contests, one to #4 Central Missouri (813-739) and one to #11 Minnesota State-Mankato (792-746). They finally broke the 800 barrier with a tournament ending win over Bethune-Cookman, 828-637.
"We bowled great," said Head Coach Sharon Brummell. "Day three was a little disappointing, but overall, the team needed this. We went into an event with all five of the top teams in the nation and we came out on top. Sure, four less wins would have been great, but we knocked down more pins than anybody and showed we can bowl with anybody," she added.
UMES won the event over second place #8 Sacred Heart by 126 pins. Sacred Heart has been on fire as of late, going undefeated last weekend and posting a 14-1 mark at this event. Third place was #5 Fairleigh Dickinson who posted 13,637 pins and an 8-7 record. #1 Nebraska was fourth, #4 Central Missouri was fifth, #11 Minnesota State was sixth, #9 Alabama A&M was seventh, #7 Arkansas State was eighth, #2 Vanderbilt was ninth and #10 Delaware State was tenth.
Impressively, UMES bowled one less game than the teams that placed second, third, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and tenth in a tournament championship decided by pinfall.
The Hawks are back in action this weekend, February 9 and 10 in Dover, Del. at the Capital Classic.
