March 18, 2010
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - The nation's no. 1 team, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) Lady Hawks, took their fourth first place finish in their last six events, topping Central Florida by 37 pins, tallying 12, 842 total, to take the sectional title in Chattanooga and with it earn a berth in the United State Bowling Congress (USBC) International Team Championships.
The UMES and Central Florida women's teams continued their battle for the sectional title on Sunday. Central Florida held a slim 30-pin lead heading into the final 16 games, but the Lady Hawks were 67 pins better during the final stretch to win the sectional. Lindenwood and Florida State took the final two ITC qualifying spots.
The pinfall was the best of any sectional held over the weekend. 12,599 was the closest, the total amassed by Pikeville in the Allentown sectional. Wichita State posted 12,350 in Peoria to post the fourth highest total. The win was impressive for UMES who had the second best team in Central Florida in their regional.
Sectional qualifiers were held March 13-14 at four sites - AMF Parkway Lanes in Allentown, Pa.; Holiday Bowl-Brainerd in Chattanooga, Tenn.; Landmark Lanes in Peoria, Ill.; and the South Point Hotel and Casino Bowling Center in Las Vegas. The ITC sectionals consist of 32 Baker System games each day for a total of 64 Baker games.
The top four men's teams and top four women's teams at each sectional, based on total pinfall, earned spots in the 2010 USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships. The ITC will be held April 14-17 at the El Paso (Texas) Convention and Performing Arts Center.
The sectionals also featured individual competition on Friday. The top four solo finishers in each sectional advanced to the championship round. UMES came just shy of being represented at that event as Stacy Parsons (Delran, N.J.), came in fifth in the field of 77, posting 1,201 pins, averaging a 200.166 over six games. She was just four pins out of fourth. Anggie Ramirez (Bogota, Colombia) took 11th place while Maria Rodriguez (Ibague Tolima, Colombia), T'Nia Falbo (Greensburg, Pa.) and Kristina Frahm (Oswego, Ill.) took 18th through 20th respectively.
Those five, along with the rest of the Lady Hawks head look to capture their fifth overall Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Championship this weekend in Greensboro, N.C.
